SAN ANTONIO – The fifth-ranked Trinity baseball team opened up a three-game weekend series by sweeping Babson College 6-1 and 3-2 in a Saturday doubleheader.

The Tigers improved to 5-3 this season and have won four consecutive games. Babson opened up its season with today's games and the two teams will close the series with a single game tomorrow, beginning at 11:00 a.m.

Junior infielder Cristian Holloway (Brownsville, Texas / Veterans Memorial) opened the day's scoring with a solo homer in the bottom of the first inning of game one, then closed out the day with a game-winning solo homer in the bottom of the eighth of game two. He went 3-for-4 with two RBI in the opener and the late round-tripper was his only hit of the second game.

Ezra Gore (McKinney, Texas / North) also had three hits and a pair of RBI to match Holloway in the opening game. Gore also had two more hits in the second game and scored three total runs in the two games.

Joseph Chavana (Laredo, Texas / Alexander) improved to 1-2 on the season with his win in game one, striking out four batters over seven-plus innings, and giving up just one run on three hits. Michael Boeke (San Antonio, Texas / Antonian) struck out three batters and allowed just two hits over the final two innings to close out the game.

Cade McGahan (Davidson, N.C. / Hough) also went seven innings in game two, allowing two runs on five hits and recording five strikeouts. Harrison Durow (Dallas, Texas / Lovejoy) earned the win in relief to move to 1-1 on the season, striking out four over the final two innings and giving up just one hit.

Game One: Trinity 6, Babson 1
The warm welcome to the Alamo City for the Beavers lasted just four pitches into the Trinity half of the first as Holloway's leftfield homer opened the door for the Tiger bats. The tally doubled the following inning as Gore maneuvered to third for a one-out sacrifice fly from Hunter Nevilles (Corpus Christi, Texas / Calallen).
 
Holloway returned to the plate in the fifth to find Korson Hastings (San Antonio, Texas / Churchill) parked on second and promptly posted a two-out knock into left to score the junior that had been moved over the previous at-bat on a sac bunt.
 
Gore rewarded aggressive at-bats from Nicholas Lazzara (Carrollton, Texas / Jesuit) and Brandon Nelson (Missouri City, Texas / Ridge Point)—who each collected a hit in less than three pitches—as the dual-sport Tiger laced a double into right-center to push for a 5-0 advantage in the sixth. Trinity's bats added a final insurance run late in the inning as Gore trotted in on a groundout to short.
 
To that point, Chavana allowed just two hits and stranded four Babson runners in seven full innings. A lead-off base hit saw the junior get the hook for Boeke to come in and finish the job, though the Beavers were able to break up the shutout with a Michael Cook double before the end of the eighth. Boeke finished his relief outing on back-to-back backward Ks.
 
Game Two: Trinity 3, Babson 2
Babson's Cook wasted no time getting the Beavers on the board first in the twinbill b-side as he rewarded Tanner Santos's patience in his leadoff walk, plating the second baseman with an infield single to short.
 
Trinity answered soon after as Kai Tinker (Simi Valley, Calif. / Grace Brethren) was waved home on a balk, advancing Gore into scoring position in the process. Austin Davison (Park City, Utah / Rowland Hall) cashed in two at-bats later with a sac fly to bring Gore through, 2-1 Trinity.
 
Relentless, Cook fired another base hit to short in the next half-inning but a daring attempt by Brant Savage was foiled at the plate to leave the contest knotted at 2-2 in the early going.
 
McGahan answered the call in the middle innings to leave the contest dormant through the end of his start with seven complete. The junior allowed just one hit over his final four innings, stranding two Beavers in the process. Durow stepped into the 2-2 contest to start the eighth and immediately picked up a pair of strikeouts.
 
As if to be both bookends in Saturday's double-dose, Holloway went big-fly again in the eighth on the first offering from newly-entered Tim Person after Tim Noone had also taken his start seven innings.
 
Back-to-back punchouts ended the relief victory for the opportunistic Durow, improving him to 1-1 early on in 2023.

Up Next
Trinity and Babson close out the three-game series at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow. The Tigers will open up another three-game weekend series on Friday, March 3, hosting Concordia University (Wis.), at 6:00 p.m.