A&M-Victoria baseball uses 10th-inning burst to notch 9th-straight win
| Final (10) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | R | H | E |
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0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 13 | 1 |
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0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
CROWLEY, La. — The Texas A&M University-Victoria baseball team had to be patient Wednesday night.
The Jaguars pushed across three runs in the 10th inning to secure a 4–1 win over John Melvin, extending the Jaguars' winning streak to nine games and continuing a roll that has carried them through a strong March stretch. It was just the second extra inning game this year for the Jaguars.
Behind 13 hits and a shutdown bullpen performance, A&M-Victoria improved to 21–9 overall and 10–2 in conference play.
The Jaguars produced traffic throughout the game but didn't break through again until extra innings, leaning on timely hitting from the heart of the order and a dominant outing from right‑hander Matthew Mejia, who threw six scoreless innings in relief to earn the win.
Key Moments
A&M-Victoria opened the scoring in the second inning when Ty Boozer delivered a two‑out RBI single, scoring Jose Montanez from third.
John Melvin tied the game in the third on an unearned run and, from that point forward, both teams settled into a prolonged pitcher's duel.
Starter Blane Zeplin and reliever Jacob Baker combined to allow just one hit through four combined innings, while Mejia entered in the fifth and immediately set the tone, retiring 18 of the first 20 batters he faced.
The Jaguars threatened in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings but left runners aboard each time.
The breakthrough finally came in the top of the 10th. Beck Zimmerman singled and advanced on a wild pitch before Connor Kaiser punched a go‑ahead RBI single into center. Garrett Smith followed with a run‑scoring double, and Jackson Purcell added an RBI single to extend the lead to 4–1. Mejia then worked a clean bottom half to finish off the win.
Top Performers
Smith led the charge with a four‑hit performance, extending his hitting streak to 11 games and his on‑base streak to 13.
Zimmerman added two hits, pushing his hitting streak to 12 games and his on‑base streak to 15. Purcell recorded two hits as well, moving his hitting streak to 9 games and his on‑base streak to 13.
Benitez's eighth‑inning single extended his hitting streak to 8 games, and Montanez reached base twice to push his on‑base streak to 18. Kaiser's crucial 10th‑inning RBI single also prolonged his impressive on‑base streak, now at 21 consecutive games. Boozer collected two hits and drove in the game's first run, while Zion Hankins added a double.
Mejia was the story on the mound, firing a career-long six innings of two‑hit, scoreless relief with four strikeouts for his third win this season.
Next up
The Jaguars head to New Orleans for a three-game Red River Athletic Conference series with Xavier (La.) this Friday and Saturday. The series starts with a 5 p.m. first pitch on Friday followed by a 12 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday.