PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff baseball team used a trio of big innings to defeat Prairie View A&M 17-2 in seven innings in the SWAC opener for both teams Friday at Tankersley Field.
Bryce Roesch went 2-for-3 with a grand slam and drove in five runs, and
Sergio Esparza hit a three-run homer and drove in four runs to lead the attack.
Nick Kreutzer went 3-for-5 with four RBI, and
Brandon Simon went 3-for-3 with a pair of RBI as the Golden Lions (2-7 overall, 1-0 SWAC) scored a season-high in runs.
Peyton Burks (1-2) earned his first win of the season, allowing seven hits and one run in six innings of work, with one walk and one strikeout.
Leading 1-0 in the first and following a walk to load the bases, Roesch launched a grand slam to left field to give UAPB a 5-0 lead.
In the second inning,
Jarficur Parker singled with one out, stole second, and
Ryan Mallison walked. Following a double steal, Parker scored on an error ahead of a Kreutzer's two-run double. Simon's single to center scored Kreutzer for a 9-0 Golden Lion lead.
Following a Prairie View A&M run, UAPB added six runs in the fifth, all with two outs. With one out, Austin Krezminski reached on an error. With two outs, Mallison singled to left ahead of Esparza's three-run homer to left. After Kreutzer reached on an error and a walk to Simon, Ricardo Gonzalez doubled to left center scoring both runners. Roesch then singled, scoring Gonzalez.
Game two of the series is Saturday at noon, with Sunday's game scheduled for 2 p.m. Live stats and live video links will be available via uapblionsroar.com.
