Houston outfielder Malachi Lott (13) celebrates with the team after hitting a homer, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Houston, Texas. | Raphael Fernandez/The Cougar

Redshirt sophomore infielder Xavier Perez’s four-hit, 3-RBI night helped Houston baseball cruise to a 9-1 midweek win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at Schroeder Park on Tuesday, clinching a winning homestand.

“I want to come out here and be locked in every at-bat,” Perez said. “It’s about not giving away, being locked in and looking for something I can drive.”

Perez launched a towering two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to inflate Houston’s lead to 8-1, capping off his performance with three extra-base hits and three runs scored.

He helped open up scoring for the Cougars, when after doubling down the right field line with one out, he scored on a two-out wild pitch to tie the game 1-1 in the bottom of the first.

From that point, Houston went 0-for-8 at the plate until a one-out double by redshirt freshman outfielder Evan Haeger.

An errant throw into the Houston dugout by A&M-Corpus Christi junior outfielder Christian Smith-Thompson allowed Haeger to score, giving the Cougars their first lead of the evening at 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth.

Houston began padding on to their lead, as back-to-back two-out solo home runs in the inning from sophomore catcher Riley Jackson and senior two-way player Malachi Lott made it 4-1.

In the bottom of the sixth, Perez recorded his second extra-base hit of the night with a one-out RBI double to left field to make it 5-1.

After a steal of third, an RBI groundout by senior infielder Aaron Lugo allowed Perez to score, making the score 6-1.

A two-out RBI double by senior infielder Trey Cruz in the top of the first opened scoring in the contest for A&M-Corpus Christi, but Houston’s efforts remained unanswered as sophomore pitcher Alex Solis and the Cougar bullpen combined for a full nine innings of one run ball on eight hits, recording six strikeouts.

Junior pitcher Chris Scinta’s 1-2-3 top of the fourth inning secured him the winning decision to improve to 3-1 on the season.

The Cougars, at 16-12, will look to improve on their 3-6 conference mark on a weekend road trip to Waco, Texas to begin a three-game series against Baylor at Baylor Ballpark on Friday, April 4, at 6:30 p.m.

sports@thedailycougar.com

—
“Island time: Houston baseball outsurfs Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in midweek matchup” was originally posted on The Cougar