Generals Walk-Off Cane Cutters for 8-7 Victory
July 7, 2023 – Nicholls State 3B Gerardo Villareal’s RBI fielder’s choice was the difference-maker as the Victoria Generals walked-off the Acadiana Cane Cutters for an 8-7 win at Riverside Stadium. The triumph serves as the 10th-straight for Victoria, which improved to 20-10 this summer.
The Generals cycled through six pitchers, beginning with Houston LHP Bryson Walker, who allowed three runs on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts over four innings. Angelina College RHP Trace Sanchez walked a batter in one inning before UT-Rio Grande Valley RHP Alex Havlicek surrendered a pair of runs on three hits and a strikeout in one frame. UT-Arlington RHP Jack Hagan allowed one run in the next inning, while Murray State College LHP Ryan Dugas struck out two batters in the following frame. Kansas Wesleyan RHP KT Gearlds earned the win while allowing the Cane Cutters’ tying run on a hit and a walk in the ninth.
Victoria came home with the win despite being out-hit by Acadiana 12 to eight. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi LF Drake Kerr and UT-Arlington DH Tyce Armstrong paced the offense with two hits and two runs batted in each, while Texas State RF Xavier Perez collected two hits as well. Southeastern CF Cristopher Munoz drew three walks with Kerr scoring twice.
The Generals kicked off the back-and-forth affair with a 2-0 lead after Armstrong’s RBI single in the first inning and Abilene Christian SS Riley Bender’s RBI groundout in the second. Acadiana took a 3-2 lead with a three-spot in the fourth inning on a 2-run single and an RBI single, but Victoria tied it in the fifth on Armstrong’s second RBI single of the game.
The Cane Cutters reclaimed the lead in the next inning with runs on a passed ball and an RBI single, although the Generals responded with three runs in the bottom of the frame, as Kerr knocked a 2-run double before coming home himself on a wild pitch. An Acadiana batter was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the top of the seventh to knot the score at 6-6.
In the bottom of the inning, Victoria put the score in its favor once again at 7-6 as Kalamazoo College 1B Robert Newland raced home on a wild pitch. With one out in the top of the ninth, Acadiana tied the game at 7-7 with a successful squeeze play. Villareal’s fielder’s choice came with runners on the corners with one out In the bottom of the inning as Munoz scored the winning run.
Next up, the Generals travel to Edible Field in Bryan to take on the Brazos Valley Bombers at 7 p.m. on Sunday, July 9.
