PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas – The Prairie View A&M Panthers gave the visiting Golden Lions of Arkansas–Pine Bluff a bit of payback Saturday as the teams split a Southwestern Athletic Conference doubleheader.
The Panthers won the opening game 17-3 before the Golden Lions took a series-clinching 9-0 win in the finale.
The doubleheader split improved moved PVAMU's (10-24) record to 5-15 in the SWAC's West Division. The Golden Lions (17-20) moved a half-game ahead of Grambling State for first place in the division with a 13-5 conference record.
Josh Wells (pictured) went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs while scoring four runs to lead the Panthers' 16-hit assault in Saturday's opener. His bases-loaded double with one out in the first inning provided the Panthers' first three runs and helped set the tone for the game as PVAMU jumped out to a 7-0 lead after one inning.
Six PVAMU players recorded multi-hit games in the opener, while four players collected two or more RBIs in the game.
Jaron Hicks went 2-for-5 and knocked in three runs, while
Gabriel Rodriguez went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs in the game.
Kevin Macias knocked home two Panther runs while going 2-for-4 and scoring two runs.
Angel Avalos and
Brashad Jones also knocked two hits apiece.
Kevin Lahaie and
David Drake were among the seven PVAMU players to score at least twice in the win.
Alex Richardson picked up the win in relief for his first decision as a Panther. Richardson tossed two and one-thirds innings while allowing only two earned runs.
Edward Robledo struck out three Pine Bluff players as he nailed down the final four outs of the game.
Charles Philpott started and seemed poised to pick up his second victory of the year after the Panthers gave him a 16-2 lead after four innings of play. However, he ran into trouble in the top of the fifth as the Golden Lions used six pinch hitters and rallied for six runs on only three hits. Philpott was relieved after giving up two doubles and walking two among the last four batters he faced.
With four and two-thirds innings pitched, Philpott could have still earned the win had the Panthers won the game via the 10-run rule after seven innings. Substitute catcher Michael Bradley closed the gap to single-digits with a bases-loaded triple to center field to make the score 16-8.
Nick Gurka made a diving play in centerfield to try to end the inning, but the ball was just out of his reach.
UAPB ended up scoring 11 of the game's final 12 runs, but was unable to string together a long enough rally against the PVAMU relievers. Starting pitcher Humberto Medina took the loss for the Lions after giving up six earned runs while lasting only one-third of inning.
The win was the first for PVAMU over the Golden Lions this season. UAPB swept a three-game series in Arkansas last month, outscoring the Panthers 44-2 during the series.
The final game of the evening saw a reversal of fortunes for both teams as the Golden Lions won 9-0 behind a complete-game shutout from pitcher Anthony Bowmaker. Bowmaker scattered six hits and struck out two batters while throwing only 103 pitches; he didn't walk a single batter.
Darrien Williams took the loss after the Lions scored six earned runs off him in four innings of work. He left the game in the fifth inning, a frame that saw the visitors score five to stretch their lead to 7-0. Williams started off strong, allowing only one hit and no runs through three before the Golden Lions opened the scoring with two in the fourth.
Robledo pitched the final five innings for the Panthers, striking out five batters while allowing three hits and two runs. For the day he struck out eight batters over six and one-thirds innings.
Julian Jones went 3-for-5 with three RBIs and two doubles for the Golden Lions in their win. Gurka and Avalos knocked two base hits apiece for the Panthers in the finale.
The Panthers return to action Tuesday when they host Houston Baptist. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Tankersley Field.
