Itta Bena, Miss. – Situational hitting limited the Wildcats' offense as they dropped game two with Mississippi Valley State, 3-2, in Itta Bena, Miss.
 
How It Happened
 
The Wildcats (12-15, 6-2 SWAC) crossed the plate first in the opening frame as Malik Stephens beat out an infield single, swiped second, and scored on a throwing error. The Wildcats put two more runners in scoring position, but had to settle for the 1-0 lead.
 
Mississippi Valley State (8-11-1, 3-5 SWAC) countered in the bottom of the first with some small ball. The Delta Devils nearly brought a run home on a double steal, but the runner was caught in a rundown on the way to the plate. MVSU still managed a run on a wild pitch to tie things at 1-1.
 
The Wildcats retook the lead in the fourth when Brian Perez scored on a Coby Tweten fielder's choice.
 
The Delta Devils took the lead for good in the fifth with a pair of runs on two-out singles that made it 3-2.
 
"We just didn't execute like we could have today," Wildcats head coach Jonathan Hernandez said postgame. "We had a few opportunities to score and we didn't do our jobs. Hats off to MVSU for the way they played today. We still have an opportunity to win the series tomorrow – We'll regroup and be ready to go."
 
Despite the loss, Nolan Santos did his part with another excellent outing. He threw six innings, allowing three runs – two earned – on seven hits and a walk with 11 strikeouts. 11 punchouts ties a season-high for Santos from back on March 5 at Stetson. That is the highest single-game total for a Wildcats pitcher this season.
 
Knickolas Billings wrapped up the final two half-innings, allowing only one hit with a walk and a pair of strikeouts.
 
 
Notes

• Brian Perez continued his hot stretch with a 2-3 afternoon including a double. He has reached base in 12 straight games.
• Billings improves his ERA to a team-leading 1.93.
• Santos ranks third in the SWAC in strikeouts despite posting the fewest innings pitched among the top five.
• The Wildcats left 10 men on base.

 
 
Up Next
The Wildcats will look to take the series as they wrap things up in Mississippi, tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m. ET.
 

Follow Bethune-Cookman Baseball on Twitter (@BCUDiamondCats) for all of the latest news and updates. For all Bethune-Cookman Athletics news, follow us on Twitter (@BCUathletics), Instagram (@BCUathletics) and www.bcuathletics.com.