First conference series at home ends in split for AC

Perfection continued this past weekend for a pair of Amarillo College freshmen ace pitchers.

And the Badger bats set a new precedent in a four-game series split against Western Texas College on Friday and Saturday at Hodgetown.

Bret Deegan and Duncan Bowles improved their records as starting pitchers to 6-0 and 5-0 respectively in games one and three.

At the plate, Amarillo College set a program record for most hits in a series (60) and most hits in a single game (22) since the reboot of athletics.

In the series opener, Deegan became the first pitcher since the reboot of athletics to record a double-digit strikeout total in three games during a single season. The righty tallied 10 strikeouts and gave up no hits or earned runs in five innings, leading AC to an 8-1 victory.

Bowles started game three on Saturday and struck out nine batters for his second consecutive conference outing. The 6-foot-6 Randall High recorded his first complete game in the contest.

Amarillo College won game three 11-1 via a run-rule stoppage after five innings.

Second baseman Payton Bush batted a team-best .833 average in games one and three. The freshman from Randall High concluded the series with the second-highest BA on the team (.533) via eight hits in 15 at-bats.

Bush has proven to be one of the most improved players on the roster over the past two weeks. In 16 non-conference games, the infielder had a .324 batting average. Since WJCAC play began, he's hit a .483 average and improved his slugging percentage from .353 during the non-conference slate to .552 in the past eight games.

During last weekend's series, Bush was one of six batters who finished with a .350 batting average or higher. The group included Cam Saleh (.444), Chris Benavidez (.419), Grant Watkins (.385), and David De Hoyos (.357).

Game 4 Summary

Saleh's second home run of the series gave the Badgers a 2-0 lead in the second inning of Saturday's series finale.

Western Texas College took the lead for good in the top of the third frame, plating five runs to take a 5-2 advantage.

Amarillo College narrowed their deficit to 5-4 before the Westerners scored three runs in the seventh frame, one in the eighth, and two in the ninth.

The Badgers scored their two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning.

Ward, Watkins, and Prado tallied a team-best three hits apiece.

The Westerners outhit Amarillo College 11-6 and committed one less error (2-1) than the home team.