Box Score SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – UT Tyler's run in the LSC Tournament came to a close on Friday after a defeat at the hands of St. Edward's in the first elimination game.
The Patriots were the visiting team for the second consecutive day but could not follow yesterday's start and went down in the top of the first without a run.
Nick Niebur got the start for UT Tyler and induced a popup to start the contest. However, three straight Hilltoppers reached on a single, walk, and a hit by pitch before the first run came across on another hit by pitch. An RBI groundout followed, and a single to right center field plated two more runs to give the Hilltoppers the quick 4-0 lead.
Mitchell Lee came on to close out the inning, and in the second he worked a 1-2-3 inning to hold St. Edward's at bay. That hold from Lee became crucial, as it kept the Patriots in the contest early.
In the top of the third,
Riley Lambert led off by reaching on an error, and then moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. After a strikeout,
Tommy van de Sanden stepped to the plate and reached on an error that allowed Lambert to score and put the Patriots on the board.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Hilltoppers sandwiched a pair of doubles around a flyout to plate another run and increase the lead back to four. A walk followed, and the next batter homered to left field to make it an 8-1 game.
The Patriots refused to go away, and plated another run in the top of the fourth to keep chipping away at the lead.
Dylan Blomquist led off with a double, and was brought home on an RBI single by
Tanner Roach to cut the lead down to six.
A.J. Irvin came on in relief in the fourth and was tasked with keeping the Hilltoppers at bay. A pair of singles led off the inning, and an RBI groundout plated the first run. That was followed by a two run home run to left field before Irvin induced a strikeout and a groundout to end the inning.
That momentum for St. Edward's kept rolling in the fifth, as they plated another pair of runs to stretch the lead. After a leadoff strikeout, the next three hitters reached on a pair of singles and a walk. A single drove in one, and that brought
Hayden Collins in to try and record the final out. Another single brought home the second run of the inning, but Collins responded with a groundout to end the inning.
The sixth inning saw the Patriots reach back and try to start another rally.
Kyle McShaffry led off with a double to left field, and was promptly driven in by
Ethan Bedgood on an RBI single. Blomquist followed with a walk, and the Patriots had two runners on with nobody out. However, that is all they would get as a double play and a flyout ended the inning.
Collins went back to work in the sixth, and held the Hilltoppers off the board with three strikeouts while working around a walk and a single.
After a wild pitch scored a run in the seventh for St. Edward's, they held off UT Tyler in the top half of the eighth before plating five more runs in the bottom half. A hit by pitch and a walk led to an RBI groundout, and a single plated another. That was followed by another single, and two more runs came home on an RBI triple. The final run of the inning came on an infield single that stretch the lead out to 19-3.
In the top of the ninth, the Patriots were unable to put together a rally and get themselves back into the game.
The Patriots will now have to play the waiting game and see if they have put together a strong enough resume to make the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show will be aired at 9 p.m. on NCAA.com.
Six teams will be selected to compete at two different host sites in the South Central Region. The #1, #4, and #5 seeds will make their way to the #1 host site, while the #2, #3, and #6 teams will go to the #2 host site.
