Game 1
Game 2

ABILENE, Texas — Hardin-Simmons' baseball team split an American Southwest Conference doubleheader with Schreiner, falling 4-2 in the opener and winning the nightcap 6-4, Saturday afternoon at Hunter Field.

With the series win over Schreiner, the Cowboys moved to 13-11 overall and 5-4 in ASC West play. Schreiner came into the series as the ASC West leader with a 5-1 record. They are now 13-11 overall and 6-3 in league play. If Concordia beats Sul Ross State on Sunday, the top seven teams in the league would be separated by two games.

The Cowboys could never solve Schreiner Coton Hermes in the first game. The crafty lefthander struck out nine batters over six plus innings. He scattered six hits and allowed two runs to move to 3-2. Eric Roten (1-2) took the loss for the Cowboys as he went five and two-third innings allowing four runs.

HSU scored a run in the first inning, when Regan Dixon had a two-out double and scored on a J.T. Armstrong single through the left side of the infield. Schreiner tied it in the top of the second on a home run by A.J. Mann.

Schreiner added two more runs in the top of the fifth. J.D. Escobar scored on a balk and Oscar Ibieta had an RBI double. HSU cut it to 3-2 with a run in the bottom of the fifth on a Brian Weeks RBI double.

The Mountaineers made it 4-2 in the sixth on a Escobar RBI single. HSU had back-to-back hits off of Hermes in the seventh to chase him, but Korey Rose came in and got the next three batters to earn the save.

In the nightcap, Tim Kriegel pitched eight strong innings for the Cowboys. He scattered 12 hits and struck out five allowing only three runs (two earned). He left in the ninth after the leadoff batter reached on an error. Kriegel was backed up by four double plays that got him out of trouble.

HSU once again scored first as they picked up a run in the second. Taylor Berlin had a leadoff double and he moved to third on a James Gage single. Berlin scored as Schreiner turned a double play in the inning. Schreiner came back for a run in the third on an Ibieta RBI single.

The Cowboys scored a pair of runs in the fourth and fifth innings to make it 5-1. In the fourth, Morgan had a sacrifice fly and Jaxon Jordan had an RBI single. In the fifth, Roam homered to lead off the inning and Morgan had an RBI fielder's choice.

In the top of the sixth Schreiner had four straight singles to plate a run with one out. However, Kriegel got a double play ball to get out of the inning with the bases loaded. HSU added a run in the eighth on a Weeks two-out RBI single.

Schreiner's Rey Martinez had a two-run home run in the ninth, but Kyle Barton closed out the game.

Gage had three hits for the Cowboys and Weeks, Roam, Berlin and Ellison each had two hits in the Cowboys' 13-hit attack.

HSU is next in action on Wednesday when it plays Manchester at 3 p.m. at Hunter Field. That game was listed as a 6 p.m. start on some earlier schedules, but will be a 3 p.m. game.

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