Butler sophomore Brett Macari hit a two-run single in the top of the ninth then sent down all three of the batters he faced in order for his third save as the Grizzlies recorded a 14-12 victory over the 12th-ranked Northern Oklahoma-Enid Jets.
Macari finished the day going 3-for-5 at the plate with four runs batted in for the Grizzlies, who have won their last six games after losing the first three of the season (two at Enid last month).
The Grizzlies opened up the scoring of the game with three runs in the top of the first on a RBI single by Macari, followed by a two-run double by J.C. Ochoa. Enid (6-4) came back with three runs in the bottom of the second on a RBI sacrifice fly by Chad Palmer, followed by a two-run home run by Sean Bignall.
Both teams scored a run in the third inning: Butler on a lead-off home run by Marc Waldron, and Enid off a Grizzly error in the bottom of the frame.
The Jets took the lead in the fouth on a RBI single by Jacob Inbody, and increased the margin to 8-4 on a two-run double by Matthew Abel and a RBI single by Bignall.
Butler took the lead with seven runs in the top of the sixth, with all but one of the runs coming with two outs. Sheldon Howell opened up the frame with a RBI sacrifice fly, followed by RBI singles by Waldron and Macari and two-run home runs by Kyle Kinman and Chris Murphy.
Enid tied the game again with two runs in the bottom of the sixth on a home run by Inbody and a RBI single by Blake Johnson, and a single run in the seventh on a home run by Dan Skelly.
Both teams scored single runs in the eighth — Butler on a RBI single by Kinman, while Enid on a RBI double by James Madison — before Macari’s heroics in the ninth.
Curt Lanham was the winning pitcher for Butler.
