Down by seven runs in the eighth inning, Galveston College rallied to come from behind and defeat Tyler Junior College, 9-8, on Thursday at Leroy Dreyer Field in Brenham, and advanced to the second round of the NJCAA Division I Region 14 Tournament.

GC played against tournament host and South Conference rival, Blinn College, in the second round of the regional competition Friday night. The game had not concluded at press time.

“We did everything we could to avoid elimination and it paid off,” said GC Head Baseball Coach, Brian Reinke. “Tyler has a talented team and they had us against the ropes. I’m proud of the way our players responded and I give our guys credit for not giving up and finding a way to come back and win the ballgame.”

The victory over the Apaches was the Whitecaps' second consecutive come-from-behind win. GC came back from a two-run deficit to defeat Wharton County Junior College, 8-7, on May 3 in the regular-season finale.

In Thursday’s first-round matchup, the Whitecaps got in trouble early on and fell behind 2-0 in the first inning and were down 5-1 after two frames.

GC’s freshman starter Zachary Fetchel was chased out of the game in the second inning. He allowed five runs on six hits and struck out a pair of TJC batters.

Despite a platoon of relief pitchers used to relieve Fetchel, the Apaches added single runs in the third, fifth and sixth innings to take a seven-run advantage, 8-1.

The tide turned in the eighth inning for the Whitecaps. GC scored six unanswered runs to come within striking distance of TJC, 8-7.

With the momentum from the previous inning, the Whitecaps scored twice in the ninth to take a 9-8 lead. GC freshman catcher Ethan Hughes hit a line drive up the middle to score infielder Ashton Beaird with the game-winning run.

Whitecaps sophomore left-handed pitcher Kade Foulke came on in the ninth inning and struck out two of the three batters he faced to seal GC’s comeback victory.

Offensively, GC designated hitter Evan Aslaksen went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, right fielder Saul Soto went 1-for-2 with one run scored and two RBIs, Hughes went 1-for-2 with a pair of RBIs and shortstop Marcus Delgado went 1-for-4 and drove in two runs.

For more information about the Galveston College Whitecaps baseball program, rosters and season schedule, visit https:/www.gcwhitecaps.com/landing/index.

ABOUT GALVESTON COLLEGE

Galveston College was founded in 1967 and is a comprehensive community college providing the residents of Galveston Island and the surrounding region with academic, workforce development, continuing education and community service programs.