Aggies outlast NSU in LSC North twinbill

Game 1 Box»
Game 2 Box»

LAWTON, Okla. (April 9) - The Cameron baseball team once again used a pair of solid offensive performances to pick up a pair of Lone Star Conference North Division victories on Saturday.

Coach Todd Holland's Aggies (22-12, 8-1 LSC) belted out 28 hits, including four homers, defeating Northeastern State 8-7 in extra innings in the first game and 18-10 in the nightcap.

Saturday's win in the nightcap marked the 11th time the Aggies have scored at least 12 runs in a game this season and improved Cameron's team batting average to a conference leading .360.

Despite all the offense, Cameron needed some late-game heroics to take the victory in Game 1. The Aggies trailed 6-5 entering the bottom of the seventh, but after Corey Stang advanced from first to third on a failed pick-off attempt, Greg Patton tied the game with an RBI single up the middle.

Northeastern State regained the lead on a sacrifice fly by Matt Simmons in the eighth, but Cameron tied it again on a sacrifice fly by John Herbert in the bottom half of the frame.

The Cameron defense held in the top of the ninth and Clint Powell followed a Trey Chambers single and an NSU wild pitch with a single to left-center to score Chambers for the game-winner.

L.J. Willis, who entered the game to start the ninth, picked up his eighth mound win of the season. Derrick Mihecoby led the Aggies with a 3-for-5 effort at the plate, while Herbert collected three RBI.

Game 2 featured even more offense as Northeastern State took an early lead with a five-run third inning to make it 5-1. Cameron rallied with four runs in the bottom half of the inning, using a bases-loaded double by John Herbert and an RBI single by Patton to knot the score at 5-5.

Cameron took the lead for good with a seven-run fourth that included a two-run double by Stang and made it 13-5 on a solo homer by Brooks in the fifth.

Northeastern threatened to stage a comeback in the sixth off Cameron reliver Josh Smith. Nash Garcia provided the big blast of the inning - a grand slam to left field. Donnie Webb later added an RBI groundout and the Redmen trailed by just three at 13-10.

But once again, the Aggie bats provided the means to victory. Cameron plated five runs in the bottom of the sixth, including two on Rodney DeLong's homer to left to open a comfortable lead.

But Brad Passmore retired three of the four batters he faced in the top of the seventh to give Aggie middle releiver Josh Smith his first victory of the season. Smith allowed five earned runs in just under three innings of work, but benefitted from a Cameron offensive effort that produced 12 unanswered runs midway through the game.

Patton, DeLong and Trey Chambers each recorded three hits in the game for the Aggies. DeLong finished 3-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored.