The Ave Maria University baseball team earned a split with the Bobcats of St. Thomas University on Saturday, dropping the opener 10-0 before breaking a losing streak with a 9-6 win.
 
GAME ONE RECAP
In a game that spanned two days, the Bobcats claimed the opening contest of the series, shutting out the Gyrenes 10-0 in eight innings.
Ave Maria was held to five hits in the loss.
 
St. Thomas got out to a 4-0 lead through two innings on Friday night, but weather in Miami Gardens forced the remaining six innings to be played on Saturday afternoon. The Bobcats opened the scoring in the first inning, putting two of their first three hitters on base. With runners at first and second, an error allowed Michael Centeno to score. A sacrifice fly off the bat of Kendrick Gutierrez then gave St.
Thomas a 2-0 advantage.
 
The lead became four runs the following inning. Back-to-back doubles from Oscar Rodriguez and German Morales plated a run. Morales would then score when starter Austin Munn induced a double play ball from Bryan Bermudez.
 
Upon resumption on Saturday, the Gyrenes and Bobcats would play four scorless frames, keeping the game 4-0 into the seventh. Ave Maria releiver Austin Comesanas and St. Thomas' Alejandro Kan each provided the solid outings for those four innings.
 
St. Thomas broke through in the bottom of the seventh, putting the Gyrenes away with three more runs. Singles from the first three hitters in the frame pushed a run across, culminating in an RBI single from Oscar Aguirre. After a walk, Gutierrez drove in his second and third runs of the game to extend St. Thomas' lead to 7-0.
 
The game came to an end in the bottom of the eighth with three more St. Thomas runs. Doubles from Jose Gomez and Aguirre drove in the runs to give the Bobcats the win via the NAIA mercy rule.
 
Sean Trymbiski was the lone Gyrene to record a multi-hit game, going
2-for-3 with a pair of singles.
 
Kan was the winning pitcher for the Bobcats, while Munn was charged with the loss for the Gyrenes.
 
GAME TWO RECAP
Ave Maria broke a twelve game losing streak in the second game of the doubleheader, using an offensive surge to beat St. Thomas 9-6.
 
The Gyrenes opened the scoring in the nightcap, pushing a run across in the top of the second. Conor Sullivan and Ryan Keegan started the frame with singles, and moved to second and third on an Andy Hernandez groundout. A fielder's choice from Christian Sanchez allowed runner Chris Lentine to score the game's opening run.
 
Ave Maria extended their lead in the next inning, scoring twice to take a 3-0 lead. Max Nell began the inning with a double to left field, and then scored on a Sean Trymbiski RBI single. After a fielder's choice and a groundout, Rico Soto drove in his 35th run of the season on a single.
 
AMU's hot hitting continued in the top of the fourth, as the Gyrenes scored another two runs and extended the lead to 5-0. With one out, Hernandez singled to right field, and proceeded to score on a Sanchez double to left. A hit by a pitch and a wild pitch put Gyrene runners on second and third, leading to the second RBI of the game from Trymbiski, a sacrifice fly to center.
 
St. Thomas got on the board in the bottom of the sixth, putting three runs on the board and cutting the Gyrene lead to two runs. Each of the first five hitters in the inning reached safely via hit, with Steven Fischer and Jose Gomez recording RBI singles. The scoring concluded with Cesar Ramirez hitting a sacrifice fly to score Adam Duarte.
 
The Gyrenes scored again in the top of the seventh, re-extending their lead to three runs. Jack Yvars reached on an error with one out, sandwiched between a flyout and a lineout. With two outs, Soto drove in his second run of the game on a double. Soto's 36 RBIs are the fifth highest total in school history.
 
Ave's offense continued to roll in the top of the eighth inning, putting the Bobcats away with a three-spot. The Gyrenes started the inning with runners on the corners, thanks to two St. Thomas errors. A Nell sacrifice fly increased the lead to 7-3, and after a walk to Trymbiski, Yvars clubbed a two-run double to put the Gyrenes up by six runs. Yvars and Soto led the Gyrene offense with two hits and two RBIs a piece.
 
A home run from Ramirez got the Bobcats within five runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, and two runs in the ninth brought the tying run to the plate. However, Justin Bureau earned his seventh save by recording the final three outs of the game to give the Gyrenes the win.
 
Andrew Steele pitched well over five innings to earn his second victory, while Alex Hernandez took the loss for the Bobcats.
 
The Gyrenes will go for the series victory on Sunday, with first pitch of the rubber match set for 1 p.m.