Belton, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor baseball team rallied from 3-0 and 5-3 deficits and pushed across the game-winner in the bottom of the ninth as the Cru posted a 6-5 victory over Trinity University Tuesday night in Belton. UMHB improves to 23-11 on the season with the victory. The Tigers, ranked 4th in the country by the American Baseball Coaches Association, fall to 30-8 and close out their regular season with the loss.
Drew Butler gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead with an RBI single in the top of the first inning. Trinity stretched it to 3-0 on another Butler RBI single and Jeremy Wolf's sacrifice fly in the top of the third. The Cru battled back to tie the game when Rob Loewe doubled home two runs and scored on a throwing error in the bottom of that inning. Wolf's two-run single gave Trinity a 5-3 lead in the top of the fifth frame. Tripp Reeves scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the fifth to cut the gap to 5-4 and Reeves singled home Tyler Taute in the bottom of the sixth to even it at 5-5. UMHB would put runners at second and third with one out in the bottom of the seventh, but left the bases loaded without scoring a run in that inning. Loewe ripped a one-out double in the bottom of the ninth and after the Cru wrapped an intentional walk and hit batter around a strikeout, Heath Spencer ripped a shot to third base. Colin Serkowski made a sliding stop, but Zack Whiddon avoided the tag attempt at third base as Loewe scampered home with the game-winning run. The umpires conferred briefly before agreeing to the safe call and setting off a UMHB celebration.
Mikey Bielamowicz earned the win to move to 1-0 for the Cru after pitching a perfect top of the ninth. Eight UMHB pitchers combined to scatter nine hits in the game. Teddy Turner took the loss for Trinity to fall to 4-2 on the year. Whiddon had three hits for the Cru and Loewe added two doubles. Butler and Christian Muscarello had two hits apiece for Trinity in the game.
UMHB will now travel to Longview for a key, three-game American Southwest Conference series against LeTourneau University this weekend. The two teams enter that series tied for second place in the ASC standings. The Cru and Yellowjackets will open the weekend with a 7:00 PM single game on Friday before closing out the series with a 1:00 PM doubleheader on Saturday.