PLAINVIEW, TEXAS — After a good opening weekend on Friday, Feb. 3rd in Shreveport, Louisiana, the Bluejays went 1-1 and are looking forward to improving their record. The Bluejays traveled southwest to face Wayland Baptist University in a four-game series, two games on Friday, Feb. 9th, and two on Saturday, Feb. 10th.
Head Coach Mark Standiford said, "I know we didn't get the outcomes we wanted, but I felt we played fairly well. Saw some good things from the pitching staff and offensively. We haven't had the chance to practice on our field and that makes it tough when you play good opponents. Hopefully, we get a chance to get outside this week before we start conference play this upcoming weekend."
On the first day in Plainview, the Bluejays went 1-1 with the Pioneers playing seven innings.
GAME ONE- Bluejays 10 Pioneers 9
Senior Cutter Smith was the starting pitcher to face the Warriors. Wayland got ahead in the bottom of the first but it didn't take the Jays long to answer back the next inning. Aidan Martinez got on base by a fielder's choice. Marcelo Aguirre moved Martinez by hitting a single to left. Trotter Boston was walked and the bases were loaded for Mikey Acosta. After Acosta hit a double, the bases were clear making the score 3-3 with one out. A RBI single by Tyler Mata Lloyd scored Acosta and a single to left scored Mata Lloyd to make it 5-3 Tabor in the top of the second.
After scoring in the third, fifth, and sixth, the Bluejays looked like they were in a good position. Sergio Gutierrez came in to save the game and add a win.
GAME TWO- Bluejays 4 Pioneers 8
Junior Xander Roberts started game two for the Bluejays. In the bottom of the second and fourth, Wayland scored three in each inning and the Bluejays had yet to respond. Going into the fifth the Bluejays changed pitchers to Wyatt Drouhard. The sixth inning was when the Bluejays finally got it going. Garryn Plummer singled to center and Tyler Mata Lloyd came in to pinch run. Micah Dvorak singled to get on base and move Mata Lloyd. A wild pitch moved the runners into scoring position and Isaiah Cohens hit an RBI grounder to score Mata Lloyd. Aidan Martinez doubled to score Dvorak. Cody Moore got walked and runners advanced to scoring positions on a passed ball. Juan Rosa-Gonzalez hit an RBI double to score Martinez and Moore to make the score 4-6 in the top of the sixth. It wasn't enough for the Bluejays to pull out a win and lost game two.
DAY TWO
Day two in Plainview, Texas didn't go as planned for the Bluejays, dropping two games to Wayland Baptist playing seven innings.
GAME THREE- Bluejays 2 Pioneers 4
Senior Payton Tinkler was on the mound for the Bluejays. In the bottom of the first, the Pioneers got their first run across and added two more in the third. In the fourth inning, the Bluejays scored to get on the board. Jackie Jimenez got the inning going by hitting a single to left and advancing to second on a wild pitch. In scoring position, Aidan Martinez hit a single to get Jimenez to score. The next inning, Garryn Plummer got on with a hit to shortstop and advanced to second on a ball hit to center by Mikey Acosta. Bases were loaded when Tyler Mata Lloyd bunted to get on base. Miguel Ramos III hit a ground ball that scored Plumber making the score 2-3 and in the sixth inning, the Pioneers got their fourth run across making the score 2-4 Wayland.
GAME FOUR- Bluejays 0 Pioneers 5
Sophomore Quintin Holman was the starter for the Jays. Wayland scored in the first, second, fourth, and sixth to make the score 0-5. The Bluejays were hitting the ball well but the Pioneers were in the right spots.
The Bluejays play their first conference game against Friends University on Friday, Feb. 16 at 2 p.m. in Wichita, Kansas.
Be sure to stay up to date with all information regarding Bluejay Athletics by following us on X at @gotaborbluejays, on Instagram and Facebook @taborbluejays, and on our official athletic website, taborbluejays.com.
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).
