Game One Box Score  //  Game Two Box Score

SAN ANGELO – Jake Feckley's 108th pitch was a called strike three and sealed a 2-1 Lone Star Conference win for Angelo State over Texas A&M-Kingsville in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader at Foster Field.

The Rams (15-8, 1-2 LSC) dropped the opener 5-4 after leading 3-2 through five innings and were in a must-win situation to salvage the series. Feckley, who was making his first start since Feb. 9, matched his career-high with nine strikeouts and set the Rams up for the opportunity to split the series in the finale at 1 p.m. on Sunday back at Foster Field.

“These are the situations you live for with the pressure on you,” Feckley said. “We had to have this win and I knew that I needed to pick the team up with a strong performance and get us going. This is just one win but hopefully this can get us rolling.”

Texas A&M-Kingsville (17-5, 2-1 LSC) managed seven hits against Feckley and would score its lone run on a Chris Ballou sacrifice fly that scored Joe Tallerine who led the game off with a double. Feckley would settle in and work his way through potential jams throughout the night by attacking the Javelina hitters by keeping his pitches low in the strike zone.

“They had been hitting the ball well all weekend when we leave the ball up,” Feckley said. “I wanted to throw a lot of strikes, but also keep the ball down. I had four pitches going pretty good tonight and were able to keep them low in the zone.”

“It was a big-time start that we had to have,” ASU head coach Kevin Brooks added. “It gives us a chance to even the series tomorrow and hopefully we can carry some momentum over. It's really disappointing that we aren't walking out of here with two wins today.”

Angelo State scored its two runs in the first and second inning off a first-inning RBI triple to center field by Christian Summers and a second-inning RBI single from Tyler Coughenour. The Rams finished the game with nine hits, but also stranded six runners on base.

“Our hitting approaches are not consistent right now,” Brooks said. “We aren't going up there with a strong mentality at all times. You have to have that to beat quality teams.”

Ryan Greer and David Goggin led the Rams with two hits each in the nightcap against A&M-Kingsville's Cody Wallace (1-2). Wallace also threw a complete game, striking out six and not walking a single Ram in the no-decision. Tallerine and Chris Ballou each had two hits for the Javelinas.

Coughenour and Andrew LaCombe each finished the day's first game with two hits each, while Quaid McKinnon, Christian Summers and Ryan Greer had a hit a piece. Greer's hit came on a solo home to leadoff the second inning which also saw a Ram run produced by a Brett David squeeze bunt which scored LaCombe who had doubled.

ASU, which had dropped a 12-0 decision on Friday, opened the second game of the series with one run in the first inning from an RBI single from Summers to center field.

Austin Church (0-1) received the loss after coming into the game in the fifth inning for starter Mike Weatherly. Church recorded a strikeout to strand the bases loaded in the top of the fifth, but would give up a solo home run by pinch hitter Ryan Guedry to lead off the sixth and was charged with his second run when Matt Perez had hit a two-RBI single against Michael Lange who had entered for the Rams in relief with one out and one on.

Weatherly, who was the victim of three fielding errors by the ASU defense, finished the game with five strikeouts in 4.2 innings of work in the no-decision. The senior scattered five hits and was charged with two earned runs in an 88-pitch outing. Lange completed the game, striking out three in 1.2 innings of relief in his seventh appearance of the season.  

“He (Weatherly) threw great and the errors made him throw at least 20 extra pitches,” Brooks said.

Zachary Pettiford (3-1) earned the day's opening win after striking out seven and holding the Rams in check through 5.2 innings of work. Jeremy Flores came in for 1.1 innings for his fifth save of the season, including getting out of a bases loaded jam in the sixth inning.

Angelo State senior Bryant Rutledge (2-1) is scheduled to start for the Rams in the series finale and will be making his fifth start and seventh appearance of the season.