Colin Smith 0228
4
Winner St. Xavier SXUB 5-1
3
Aquinas AQB 0-1
Winner
St. Xavier SXUB
5-1
4
Final
3
Aquinas AQB
0-1
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
St. Xavier SXUB 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 4 3 1
Aquinas AQB 0 0 0 0 2 0 1 3 5 1

W: Nick Crowe (1-0) L: Casterline, Michael (0-1) S: Will Hines (2)

8
St. Xavier SXUB 5-2
9
Winner Aquinas AQB 1-1
St. Xavier SXUB
5-2
8
Final
9
Aquinas AQB
1-1
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
St. Xavier SXUB 1 0 0 4 1 1 1 0 0 8 15 1
Aquinas AQB 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 4 9 14 4

W: Smith, Colin (1-0) L: Will Hines (0-1)

Game Recap: Baseball | | DJ Foster, Director of External Relations & Athletic Communications 

Lockwood’s Walk-Off Seals Saturday Season Opener Split

AQ overcomes 7-0 deficit to take nightcap by 9-8 final

The Aquinas baseball team opened the 2021 campaign on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 27) in Logansport, Ind. and the Saints were on opposite ends of one-run games against Saint Xavier (Ill.). The Cougars took the opener by edging out AQ 4-3 and looked to be in control with a 7-0 lead in game two before the Saints came roaring back and won on an Alec Lockwood walk-off single, 9-8.
 
It was the season opener for both schools, who are now 1-1. The teams play another doubleheader on Sunday (Feb. 28) to conclude the four-game series.
 
Saint Xavier was up 2-0 in game one when AQ tied the score on an RBI double from Brady Paganelli and a run-scoring single from Kelvin Aracena. The Cougars responded with single runs in the sixth and seventh innings for a 4-2 lead. Aquinas pulled within a run in the home half of the seventh, as Nick Brzezinski singled homed Joseph Kelley.

Brzezinski stole second and was in scoring range with two outs, but was stranded on a game-ending strikeout. AQ outhit the Cougars 5-3. Aracena was the only player for either team with multiple hits, as he went 2-for-2. 
 
Travis Keys started and pitched four innings of one-hit ball, totaling five strikeouts. Michael Casterline, Richard Steffan, and Bruce Buurstra tossed three innings of two-hit relief, allowing two combined runs.
 
A four-run fourth inning in game two propelled Saint Xavier to a 7-0 cushion and it was eventually 8-1. Lockwood entered the game for AQ in the seventh and made a huge difference in the next three innings. His two-run homer in his first at-bat made it an 8-3 game heading into the eighth.
 
Lockwood added an RBI single in the eighth and he moved up on a balk, which scored Chris Suriel Garcia for an 8-5 score. The Saints tacked on a few runs in the ninth on a Lucas Weinert RBI single and Weinert scored later on an SXU throwing error. 
 
AQ tied things up at 8-8 on a Michael Maher RBI double to bring Ryan Gillings across the plate. After Suriel Garcia was intentionally walked, Lockwood delivered again with a single through the right side to score Maher for the walk-off winner.
 
After just eight total hits in game one, the teams exploded for 29 in game two, with Aquinas collecting 14 of those safeties. Lockwood went a stunning 4-for-4 in just the final three innings, with a double, homer, two runs, and four RBI. 
 
Suriel Garcia (two walks, two runs), Weinert (two RBI), Sean Wing, and Colton VanderLeest all notched two hits. Gillings also scored a pair of runs in the win.
 
Mason Hill surrendered four runs in 3.1 innings and Hunter Morrison allowed two earned runs in 2.2 innings of relief. Colin Smith collected the win by giving up just one unearned run on two hits in 3.0 innings to close out the game. Morrison and Smith each recorded four strikeouts on the hill. 
 
First pitch for Sunday's twinbill is set for 12:00 p.m.
 
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