Lumberjacks capture win in bottom of ninth, 10-9

Brewer delivers game-winner

The SFA Lumberjack baseball team won its fifth straight game — its second in as many days in the last at-bat — with a 10-9 decision over UT-Pan American Tuesday.

Coach Donnie Watson said he wouldn't expect it any other way.

"We are who we are," the third-year SFA boss said. "The one good quality about this team is that it doesn't quit."

SFA scored two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to defeat the Broncs, the game-winning hit coming on shortstop Jeff Brewer's third hit — a single to left-centerfield that scored Matt Whatley from second base.

Justin Roland had earlier scored to tied the game at 9-9 on a bunt single by Zac Gardner.

SFA defeated Texas-Pan American 11-10 Monday on Whatley's walk-off homer in the bottom of the 11th inning as the Lumberjacks overcame an early 8-1 deficit.

SFA finished with 14 hits — three by Brewer and two from the foursome of Kevin Crabtree, Brian Ferguson, Whatley and Jeffrey Kello.

Crabtree launched a two-run homer in the first inning to stake SFA to a 2-0 lead.

Kello hit SFA's other round-tripper — a three-run blast in the bottom of the seventh inning after his throwing error helped fuel a four-run inning by the Broncs.

With SFA's pitching struggling all season, high-scoring games are the norm rather than the exception for Watson's team, which is 19-25 overall.

"We have to have three guys who are hitting and three guys who are battling," Watson said. "Usually, the other three are blind as a bat.

"That's the way it's been all year."

Watson ran five pitchers to the mound in a quest to record outs against a pretty good Texas-Pan American offense. The visitors collected 11 hits, including three by lead-off hitter Roly Gonzalez.

Starter Eric Lehmann allowed four runs on seven hits in five innings.

Heath Honesheck, Erik Gregersen, Lance Luetge and Richard Folmer followed Lehmann, with Folmer (5-2) getting he win. He struck out to and walked one in 1 1/3 innings.

SFA hosts Texas State in a three-game Southland series, starting Friday with a 3 p.m. first pitch.