Belton, Texas – The top-ranked Tiger baseball team powered past the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor with a 16-7 road win on Tuesday night.

Trinity improved its record to 10-1 on the year behind the efforts of solid relief pitching from Joseph Chavana (Laredo, Texas / Alexander) and Cade McGahan (Davidson, N.C. / Hough), as well as five RBI and a pair of home runs from leftfielder Brian Schaub (Hatfield, Pa. / La Salle College HS).

The Rundown

The Tigers fell behind early after the Crusaders put up a four-run first inning, chasing Trinity's starting pitcher after just two-thirds of an inning.

Schaub set the tone for the second inning with a leadoff homer, sparking a seven-run frame that put Trinity in front 7-4. MJ Metz (San Diego, Calif. / Canyon Crest) and Rafe Chaumette (Sugar Land, Texas / Clements) both delivered RBI singles with the bases loaded later in the inning, while Mason Meredith (Houston, Texas / Memorial) had a two-run double that vaulted the Tigers into the lead.

Mary Hardin-Baylor took advantage of two Trinity errors in the bottom of the fifth, scoring three runs to tie things up a 7-7 through five innings.

Trinity's offense once again had an immediate response, beginning with an RBI single from Jack Vonderhaar (Woodinville, Wash. / Redmond) that put the Tigers in front for good. After another RBI from Schaub, Tyler Pettit (Round Rock, Texas / Round Rock) finished off the inning's production with a two-run single that made it an 11-7 lead for the visitors.

After single runs in the seventh and eighth to extend the lead to 13-7, Schaub capped his night with a two-run homer to highlight a three-run ninth inning for Trinity.

The Tiger pitching staff settled in after the fifth, tossing four scoreless innings to close out the game. The combination of relievers Chavana and McGahan allowed just one runner during that stretch and retired 12 of the final 13 batters they faced.

Numbers to Note

Schaub went 2-4 with four runs scored and five RBI in the game and now leads Trinity with six home runs this season. It marks his first multi-homer game with the Tigers and just the second of his career.

Chaumette went 3-5 with a double, scoring two runs and driving in another from his leadoff spot in the order.

Metz made the most of his season debut, going 2-3 with a double, scoring twice and collecting two RBI in the game. He also drew a pair of walks to reach base four times in five plate appearances.

Jack Baker (Sugar Land, Texas / Ridge Point) and Jack Wisniewski (San Antonio, Texas / Antonian) had two hits each in the game. Baker joined Metz in drawing two walks on the day, while Baker and Chaumette both had two stolen bases.

Pettit and Meredith drove in two runs each, while Vonderhaar had three RBI and two runs scored for the Tiger offense.

Chavana (3-0) earned the win after allowing just two hits over 3.2 shutout innings, while McGahan pitched a perfect ninth to finish the game.

Harrison Durow (Dallas, Texas / Lovejoy) also tossed 3.2 innings in relief, striking out a game-high six batters. Although he allowed three runs on three hits, all three runs were unearned after two errors in the fifth inning.

Up Next

The Tigers open up a three-game Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference weekend series at the University of St. Thomas (TX) on Friday, March 26, at 2:00 p.m. The teams will also play a doubleheader on Saturday, beginning at noon.