The Faulkner State Sun Chief baseball team won its opening game Saturday in the Junior College World Series, defeating Temple College of Texas 12-6.
Playing in Grand Junction, Colo., coach Wayne Larker's Sun Chiefs exploded for 15 hits in their first World Series appearance.
Faulkner now moves into today'sMonday's winner's bracket, playing the winner of Saturday's late game between Pitt Community College and Southern Nevada. Today's game is slated for 2 p.m.
FSCC, now 38-19 on the year, fell behind 2-0 in the first inning against Temple but tied it with two in the second then added two more in the third, a solo run in the fourth and three more in the fifth to go ahead 7-4.
A five-run seventh put the game out of reach.
Josh Fein, the second of three Faulkner hurlers, picked up the win. Fein tossed 3 2/3 innings while Patrick Shreve started and went 3 1/3 innings. Both scattered six hits before Joe Hernandez entered to shut down the Texans in the final two innings.
Josh Huggins, Stephen Clarke and Drew Prichard led FSCC with three hits each. Douglas Turo had two hits while Jared Brannon, Brian Knuckles, Michael Corso and Randall Kizer had one hit apiece.
Huggins blasted a solo home run while Clarke and Turo drove in two runs each. Huggins, Clarke, and Prichard each scored three times.
Prichard led off the second with a single, stole second and scored on Clarke's RBI single to center.
Corso followed with a single to center and one out later, Kizer tied it with an RBI fielder's choice. Huggins had a one-out single in the third and Prichard knocked him in with a double. Two errors on the play also allowed Prichard to score, making it 4-2. A Turo single in the fourth along with a Kizer sacrifice bunt, a hit batsman and a wild pitch made it 5-2.
Huggins opened the fifth with a solo home run to left and a double by Clarke and a RBI single from Turo made it 7-4.
FSCC then scored five in the seventh to wrap it up. Huggins and Prichard had back to back one out singles and Clarke followed with an RBI single off loser Duncan McGee. Corso was hit by a pitch and Turo's base on balls drove in another run. A wild pitch made it 10-4 and Kizer's two run single upped the lead to 12-4.
Temple added two in the bottom of the seventh but Hernandez retired the Leopards in the 8th and 9th frames to nail down the victory.
By: Larry White
Mobile-Press Register
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