The 20th — ranked Bison baseball team set the record for most consecutive wins to open a season since joining the NCAA in 1997.
Harding (7-1) opened the season winning their first seven games for the first time in 15 years. Head baseball coach Patrick McGaha said the record helped the team kick off the season with a positive attitude.
“It’s honestly a great start to the season,” McGaha said. “It gives us a lot of momentum and gets us off to a good start. I really didn’t know what the record was, but to start the season 7-0 is something to be proud of; so we’re excited about it.
The Bisons suffered their first loss of the season Tuesday to the University of Arkansas Fort Smith 15-2 at Jerry Moore Field.
Harding had the first lead of the game on a two-out single by junior left-fielder Anthony Guglielmi scoring senior second baseman Chase Presley in the first inning. The only two runs batted in for the Bisons were Guglielmi’s single to left in the first inning, and senior centerfielder Kyle Atkins’ sacrifice fly to right.The Bisons only had three hits in the loss, all of which came in the first inning from Presley, Guglielmi and junior third baseman Billy Ninemire.
They accounted for no more hits or runs for the remainder of the game. UAFS junior Ben Smith’s grand slam in the third inning gave the Lions the lead and sealed the game, as it ended after eight innings due to the NCAA’s 10-run rule. Senior pitcher Alex Smith received the first loss after going 3 1/3 innings.
Junior outfielder Paul Anzalone, who leads the Bisons in RBIs, still has a positive attitude for the games ahead.
“Tuesday’s game was tough,” Anzalone said. “We got knocked down and just didn’t recover. It wasn’t a good feeling getting beat the way we did, but our team is a group that picks one another up. When somebody fails there is always someone there to encourage.”
Despite the loss, three Harding baseball players made their first appearance in a college game.
Freshman Kolton Lane, who came in to relieve Smith of pitching duties, gave up only one hit. Redshirt freshman Shane Kinnear and freshman Kyler Offenbacker both reached base.
This weekend Harding looks to host William Jewell College from Liberty, Mo. McGaha said he looks forward to this weekend because it’s great to have another challenge.
“Especially after Tuesday’s game we are ready to kind of get that bad taste out of our mouths and hopefully play well against a quality opponent,” McGaha said. “I’m just looking forward to seeing if our hitters will respond to the challenge and start hitting the ball a little bit better.”
The Bisons take on the Cardinals in two seven-inning games tomorrow afternoon at noon and Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.
“I feel like Tuesday’s loss will help us to come out and play with more intensity this weekend,” Guglielmi said. “It’s just a reminder that if we don’t come ready to give it our all, any team can beat us on any given day.”
