San Antonio, Texas - The No. 2 Central Methodist baseball program picked up two wins on Opening Day, defeating (RV) Our Lady of the Lake by scores of 16-1 and 12-5 Friday afternoon in San Antonio, Texas. 

Central's offense came out swinging in game one, as Central tallied runs in the first, second, and third innings to take a 4-1 lead over the Saints in the bottom of the third. 

The big inning came in the top of the fifth, as Central scored seven runs on six hits to push their lead to 11-1. Solo home runs by Robbie Merced and Victor Plaz in the next inning pushed the advantage to 13-1. Merced capped the first game with a three run home run in the top of the seventh, solidifying a 16-1 victory. 

As a team, Central scored 16 runs on 15 hits. Freshman Tanner Sears collected four hits in five at-bats and two runs scored. Tommaso Giarola batted .600 including a two RBI single in the fifth inning. 

Merced finished the game with a pair of home runs including a three run home run in the seventh. Overall, the Central bats drew five walks and left only five Eagles on base. 

Senior ace Nick Merkel pitched a gem in his first game on the bump. The Spokane, Wash. native tossed six complete innings and gave up only one earned run on five hits along with seven strikeouts. 

Ryan Jeffers came in relief in the final inning, facing the minimum number of batters and ending the game on a 6-4-3 double play. 

In game two, a wild first inning concluded with Central holding a 4-3 lead over the Saints. The Eagles extended their lead in the top of the second with three runs on one hit, two walks, and an error by the OLLU infield. 

After tacking on a run in the sixth via a Bobby Nichols' home run, Central concluded the contest with four runs in the final inning. The Eagles drew two bases loaded walks and Khalil Thrasher singled to left to drive in the final two runers. 

Sebastian Escobar picked up his first career win as an Eagle, tossing four complete innings and giving up three earned runs on five hits. He also struck out five batters. Both Tyler Vicars and Jeffers came in relief over the next three innings to preserve the victory. 

Nichols led the offense with three hits including a solo home run, a walk and three runs scored. Merced and Logan McDonald each collected two hits. 

Central will finish the four game series with two games on Saturday, Feb. 5 at 12:00 and 2:30 p.m. in San Antonio. 

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