The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB
Western Kentucky
UAB Baseball Drops Extra-Inning Nail-Biter
4/3/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Late-inning heroics from Danny Hudzina helped Western Kentucky (16-11, 5-4 C-USA) to a 6-5, extra-inning win over UAB (11-17, 3-6 C-USA) on Sunday afternoon at Young Memorial Field with a game-tying home run in the top of the ninth inning.
Leading up to extra innings, the matchup was a tug-of-war all afternoon on the UAB campus. The Hilltoppers struck for the first run of the game in the second inning on a Blazer error, but momentum swung UAB’s way in the third as Holt Davis laced a two-run double down the line in left to give the home team a 2-1 lead.
WKU jumped back ahead in the top of the fifth, thanks to a hit, error and couple of sacrifices; but the Blazers motored ahead again after the seventh-inning stretch on an Esteban Tresgallo home run. The two-run blast to left-center — the senior’s second of the weekend and third of the season — put the Green and Gold up, 4-3.
The Blazers tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth as senior Adam Smith lined a single down the left-field line, snapping an eight-game drought, to extend the home-team lead to 5-3.
Seemingly cruising to a series victory, Hudzina ruined the hopes of a nine-inning ballgame when he homered to left to tie the contest, 5-5. UAB came up empty in the bottom of the ninth to send the game into extras.
The Toppers loaded the bases in the top of the 10th inning against freshman Garrett Whitlock (2-3), and the young Blazer hurler was one out away from getting out of the inning without any damage done; but a wild pitch allowed WKU to score its game-winning run in the frame. The Blazers were retired in order in the bottom of the inning to close out the heartbreaker.
“That was a very tough way to lose,” head coach Brian Shoop said. “It was a great, competitive game that could have gone either way. WKU’s kids fought until the end, and it went their way.”
The Blazers totaled eight hits but left 10 runners on base in the loss. Senior outfielder Griffin Gum was 3-for-5 with a double and two RBIs, while Davis and freshman outfielder Brewer Hicklen each doubled. Davis and Smith accounted for the other two UAB RBIs.
The Green and Gold looks to rebound in the very busy week ahead. The Blazers take on Jacksonville State in Jacksonville on Tuesday, host the Gamecocks at Regions Field the following night at 6:30 p.m., then head to Houston, Texas, to take on C-USA foe Rice from Friday through Sunday in the Lone Star State.
For more information on the UAB baseball team, follow the Blazers on Twitter (@UAB_Baseball). For more on all Blazer sports teams, follow the official social media accounts of UAB Athletics on Twitter (@UABAthletics), on Facebook (Facebook.com/UAB.Blazers), on Instagram (@uabathletics) or on Snapchat (@uabathletics).
