(By Rio Grande Sports Information)
KINGSPORT, Tenn. - Paolo Montezuma hit a three-run home run to highlight a seven-run third inning and fuel top-seeded Tennessee Wesleyan past No. 5 seed Rio Grande, 15-4, in the Kingsport Bracket of the NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round, Tuesday night, at Hunter Wright Stadium.
The RedStorm, who posted a 5-4 triumph over No. 4 Indiana Tech earlier in the day, finished the day at 38-24 and will face the Indiana Tech-Middle Georgia State winner in an elimination contest, Wednesday, at 6 p.m.
The Indiana Tech-Middle Georgia State elimination game gets the Wednesday schedule underway at 11 a.m., with Tennessee Wesleyan and St. Thomas (Fla.) squaring off in a winner's bracket contest at 2:30 p.m.
The Indiana Tech-Middle Georgia State elimination game gets the Wednesday schedule underway at 11 a.m., with Tennessee Wesleyan and St. Thomas (Fla.) squaring off in a winner's bracket contest at 2:30 p.m.
Tennessee Wesleyan spotted Rio a 1-0 first inning lead thanks to a home run by junior Daryin Lewis (Circleville, OH), but the Bulldogs went in front to stay by scoring three times in the second - one on a home run by Omar Gomez and the other two on RBI singles by Pedro Barrios and Wardy Polanco.
The RedStorm made it 3-2 in the home second on a solo homer by junior Carlos Flores (Guayanilla, Puerto Rico), before Tennessee Wesleyan blew things open with the seven-run third.
Sully Rios Reyes had a two-run single, Barrios hit a sacrifice fly and Polanco singled home a run before Montezuma capped the explosion by greeting sophomore reliever Collin Powers (Janesville, WI) with a three-run home run.
Malik Stephens had a sacrifice fly in the fourth to stretch the Bulldogs' lead to 11-2 and that's how things stayed until the Bulldogs tacked on four more runs in the seventh, thanks in part to three of Rio's five errors.
Cody Stroud had a two-run single for TWC, while the remaining two runs scored on a throwing error.
Rio Grande set the final score with an RBI single by Lewis in the eighth inning and a run-scoring infield hit by junior Logan Walters (Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada) in the ninth.
Polanco led Tennessee Wesleyan's 18-hit attack by going 4-for-5 and driving in two runs, while Stroud had three hits and two RBI and Montezuma finished 2-for-4 with three RBI.
Barrios and Rios Reyes both had two hits and drove in two runs for the Bulldogs, while Gomez had two hits and scored three times.
Junior Luis Jimenez (Salinas, Puerto Rico) had three hits in a losing cause for Rio, while Lewis had two hits and two RBI.
Junior Trent Downs (Chillicothe, OH) started and took the loss for the RedStorm, allowing 11 hits and nine runs in 2-2/3 innings.
Diego Ibarra started and got the win for TWC, allowing five hits and two runs over seven innings.
In the opening game of the day, the RedStorm rallied late after coughing up an early 3-2 lead to post a 5-4 triumph over No. 4 seed Indiana Tech.
Jimenez hit the first pitch in the top of the ninth inning for his third home run of the season, snapping a 4-4 tie. He also had a double and drove in three runs.
Lewis went the distance to get his 11th win in 15 decisions this season, allowing six hits and three earned runs, while walking two and striking out a pair.
Senior Tyler Noel (Portsmouth, OH) also had two hits, including a double, and scored twice for Rio Grande.
Peyton Newsom went 3-for-4 with a double, while Charlie Sipe had a two-run triple for the Warriors (39-19).
Connor McLaughlin (2-3) suffered the loss in relief of starter James McReynolds, who allowed seven hits and four runs over 6-2/3 innings.
Rio took a 2-0 lead in the first on a run-scoring double by senior Lance Montano (New York, NY) and an RBI single by senior Chris Ford (Athens, OH), but Tech answered with the two-run triple by Sipe in the bottom of the inning to tie the game.
Jimenez put the RedStorm back in front with a two-out, run-scoring double in the second, but the Warriors tied the game in the third with the aid of three Rio errors and a wild pitch.
Tech took a 4-3 lead in the fourth when Newsom led off with a single and scored on a two-out hit by Alex Delk, but Rio tied the game in the top of the seventh when Noel led off with a double, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on sacrifice fly by Jimenez.
After the RedStorm took the lead in the ninth on the Jimenez home run, the Warriors got a leadoff single by Newsom and a sacrifice bunt by Keith Tatum to put the tying run in scoring position, but Lewis retired Mark Carpenter on a popup to first base and Delk on a ground ball to third for the final out.