By Cade Haak
TEXARKANA, Texas (July 30, 2024) – The Rhinos were able to get leads in both games of the double header early, but a continued offensive onslaught from Joplin was enough to win both games.
Texarkana struck first in game one of two in the evening when they brought across a single run in the bottom of the first frame. They were seeing the ball well to start, as Rylan Evans led off the game with a single, which was subsequently followed by doubles from Lane Epperson and Neil Jansen, both. The double from Jansen carried to the base of the left field wall and was able to score Rylan Evans from third base and give the Rhinos their first run of the day.
The bottom of the third inning started in a similar fashion to the first, as Evans and Epperson both got on base safely. Neil Jansen then continued his hot start with a single that scored both of the two Rhinos on base for his second and third RBI of the game. Jansen scored himself shortly after when Tahj Cunninghame hit a sacrifice fly into center field to put the score at 4-0 in favor of Texarkana.
Joplin finally responded with two runs of their own in the top of the fourth inning. Both of the two runs for the Outlaws came on a single swing when John Curran doubled for two RBIs. In the bottom of the fourth, Texarkana added a run on a sacrifice fly from Lane Epperson that scored Sota Suzuki, who got on base by singling into left earlier in the inning.
Joplin scored three more runs in the top of the fifth as they tied the game, and their offensive momentum continued to swell. Texarkana once again took the lead when Niko Platre came across on a balk for the Rhinos sixth run. In the final scheduled frame of game one, Joplin was able to score three runs with two outs to take the lead at 8-6, their first lead of the game.
In the bottom of the seventh, Texarkana tied the game when Sebastian Huerta came up to the plate as a pinch hitter. In his first appearance at the plate, Huerta hit a single into left field to score both Tahj Cunningham and Alex DeLeon.
Extra innings were kicked off by Joplin as they scored two runs to take another lead and apply pressure on the Rhinos offense in the bottom of the eighth. The Rhinos responded with a single run when Rylan Evans scored on a ground ball off the bat of Neil Jansen, but the comeback efforts were halted, and Joplin stole the win in the first game with a final score of 10-9.
In Game 2, the Rhinos jumped out to an early lead again; the first two runs were scored in the bottom of the second inning. The first runner to score for the Rhinos was Aiden Otano. Otano scored when Carter Harris got both his first hit and his first RBI for the Rhinos on a single swing. Harris then scored his first run in a Rhinos uniform when Sebastian Huerta hit a single into left field.
The Rhinos lead was short-lived due to a bounce-back top of the third inning, where the outlaws tied the game at two runs each. In the fourth inning, the Rhinos took their second lead of the game when Harris scored the third run for Texarkana. Harris singled with two outs, then made his way to second base when Sebastian Huerta was walked, and eventually scored on a single from Sota Suzuki that was lifted into shallow center field.
From this point in the game on, it was all in Joplin’s favor. The Outlaws scored two runs in each of the next two innings and went on to get the win in game two with a final score of 6-3.
