SAN ANTONIO (April 24, 2022) – On a beautiful Sunday afternoon for baseball that saw 17 combined runs and 25 combined hits, the FIU baseball team fell 9-8 in a back-and-forth series finale to the UTSA Roadrunners.
The infield duo of
Jorge Ramirez and
Noel Perez paced the Panther offense on Sunday. Perez collected his first three-hit game of the season, while Ramirez tallied two base knocks, two RBIs, two walks, and scored a season-high four times.
Jayden Melendez and
Ruben Carpio also drove in a pair of runs in the series finale.
FIU reliever
Angel Tiburcio was handed the loss after allowing the final three UTSA runs over two innings of work.
The scoring started early and often in south central Texas on Sunday. Ramirez started the fireworks show with a two-run no-doubt home run in the top of the first that scored
Alec Sanchez. The dinger was Ramirez's fourth of the season and first since April 8 at WKU.
UTSA got on the board in the third before Carpio ripped a two-run double to left center in the fourth to extend the Panther lead to 4-1.
In the fifth, UTSA answered with a five-run inning to take a 6-4 advantage before promptly giving away the lead in the next frame.
With bases loaded in the sixth, pinch hitter
Matthew Gonzalez slapped a groundout ball to the left side that the Roadrunner shortstop committed an error on, allowing Perez and Ramirez to tie the game at six-all.
Melendez made it an 8-6 contest in the top of the seventh when the freshman catcher dropped a single into right field to plate Ramirez and Sanchez.
The homestanding Roadrunners answered by scoring two in the seventh and one in the eighth to prevail 9-8.
UP NEXT
FIU returns home on Tuesday, April 26 for the final midweek of the year as the Panthers are slated to host Bethune-Cookman. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. Tickets can be found here.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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