McGuire shows potential, Bower finds success in return during series defeat to No. 7 Midland College

Amarillo College went toe-to-toe against the seventh ranked team in the country, Midland College, on Sunday and Monday at Wilder Park in Canyon.

The Badgers (17-23, 10-10) were tied with the Chaparrals (34-4, 18-2) heading into the final inning of game one and game three, but were unable to secure a win in either contest as MC swept AC to improve their winning streak to 16 games.

"We were right there with them two out of the four games. They're a very good team and those games could have gone either way," AC head coach Brandon Rains said. "They didn't walk guys and played great defense. MC had timely hits, and unfortunately we did not."

Brooks Carter tied game one at 5-5 in the fifth inning with an RBI double. Midland College responded with a three-run sixth, capped by a Colin Fisher two-run homer, which proved to be the game sealer to open the series.

AC rallied from a 3-0 deficit during game three on Monday, tying the contest at 3-3 in the bottom of the fourth inning via a pair of sacrifice flies from Payton Bush and Dylan Steele.

Zyon Hamilton sparked the Badgers' comeback with a double to begin the frame.

Freshman Trent Bower returned to the mound for the first time in two weeks and held the Chaps offense, which entered the matchup with the top batting average (.386) at NJCAA D-I level, at bay for a majority of his six-inning stint as the game three starter.

Bower finished Monday's opener with four strikeouts, four walks, and five earned runs. The Colleyville native recorded the second-lowest batting average against mark (.143) on the Badgers staff during the homestand.

"He did a great job against a good hitting team," Rains said. "I think at one point he was able to retire 12 guys in a row. He bounced back from injury, and we're proud of him."

In the seventh inning, Midland College plated three runs to claim a 6-3 victory and a 3-0 series lead. After a pair of walks to begin the frame, a Drew Martin RBI single, Dylon Myrow sacrifice fly, and Josh Wulfert double capped the Chaps' game-winning sequence.

Midland College won game two 16-4 in seven innings and closed out the series with a 14-6 victory.

Former Canyon Eagle baseball star Christian McGuire led the Badgers at the plate in his hometown.

McGuire started at second base the entire series and finished AC's final home series in Canyon with team-high marks in batting average (.600), slugging percentage (.700), OPS (1.392), and on-base percentage (.692).

"His approach is consistent and he doesn't try to do too much. We need guys like him to step up and he did a great job of executing his gameplan," Rains noted. "He played great defense as well."

The freshman was 6-of-10 at the plate, including a double and three walks.

Additional AC batters who tallied a .350 batting average or higher against Midland College were Carter (.467), Hamilton (.429), and Payton Bush (.357).

AC moved to 10-10 in conference play following the 0-4 showing against the Chaps. The Badgers enter week six of the Western Junior College Athletic Conference slate tied for fifth place with El Paso Community College.

AC is currently four games out from being tied for the fourth and final postseason qualification slot as they approach the final 16 games of the regular season.

"As a coach and team, all we can ask for is to have the opportunity to have everything in front of us. If we take care of business, we go to the postseason," Rains said.

The Badgers are scheduled to host New Mexico Junior College (28-11, 18-2) on Friday and Saturday, April 11-12, at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview.

Friday's doubleheader is set to begin at 11 a.m., followed by a 1 p.m. start on Saturday.

Admission is free to both games.