Baseball is a crazy game.
After a wild situation in the top of the eighth inning after Evangel had tied the game 2-2, the Coyotes got a walk-off single by Blake Dale to complete a three-game sweep of Evangel on Saturday at Dean Evans Stadium.
Fast forward to the eighth inning. KWU held a 2-1 lead over the Valor, but back to back hit by pitches to start the inning put two on and a sacrifice bunt would move the runners into scoring position. A squeeze bunt by the Valor brought home the game-tying run.
Another hit batter loaded the bases again, and that's when the craziness started. Cade Beshore bounced a ball to the right side of the infield that was fielded by KWU first baseman Fernando Ruvalcaba. Quentin Edwards, the runner at first, made contact with Ruvalcaba while he was fielding the ball, but Ruvalcaba was still able to throw him out at second. Meanwhile, a run scored, appearing to give Evangel the lead, and when the throw back to first was errant, it appeared a second run scored.
After the play, the umpires got together and had a lengthy discussion and ruled that Edwards interfered with Ruvalcaba, and was called out. The result of the play was then a dead ball, meaning both runners that appeared to have scored had to return to their bases and no runs scored. A pop out then ended the inning and the score remained tied.
In the bottom of the inning, the Coyotes nearly grabbed the lead. Dale and Logan Arndt walked, but Evangel got an out on a fielder's choice on Tyler Nordyke's sacrifice bunt attempt. Nordyke and pinch runner Lakin Franz then both moved up on stolen bases and a walk to Niko Olson loaded the bases.
Carter Allen then sent a ball into center field but Evangel's Evan Jno-Baptiste made an incredible diving catch to end the inning.
In the top of the ninth, Evangel got a runner aboard as Peyton Gayer walked but he would be thrown out trying to advance to second after a strikeout while the KWU defense wasn't paying attention. The Coyotes then got a strikeout to end the inning.
In the bottom of the frame, Garrett Garfield was hit by a pitch to start the inning and then went to third on a double by Ruvalcaba. Chris Finocchario then sent a ball into right field that was caught and Garfleld dashed down the line but the throw beat him by a millisecond for a double play.
Up stepped Dale. After getting two quick strikes, he sent the next pitch up the middle and through to score pinch runner Chase Aurand from third and win the game for the Coyotes.
The Coyotes broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth inning as Allen doubled, Garding was hit and then Ruvalcaba reached on a fielder's choice. Finocchario then doubled to left center to bring in Garfield and Ruvalcaba.
Evangel got on the board in the sixth on a Heath Perry double and a Nate Nunes single when the ball squirted out of Ruvalcaba's glove as he dove to try to make a catch on a hard hit liner. Jno-Baptiste drove in the run reaching on a fielder's choice beating out the throw to first on a double play attempt by the Coyotes.
Allen had two of Wesleyan's seven hits. Thalen Wright put together seven outstanding innings before exiting in the eighth. Daniel Turnham improved to 2-0 on the early season allowing one hit in an inning and two-thirds.