SAN ANGELO, TEXAS – The UT Tyler baseball team saw its run in the Lone Star Conference Tournament come to a heartbreaking end in extra innings, falling 3-2 to host Angelo State in a 12-inning thriller.
It was a classic pitcher's duel, with both teams trading momentum throughout the game. UT Tyler's Kyle Froehlich got the start and worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the second inning to keep the Rams off the board. However, Angelo State broke the scoreless tie in the third, capitalizing on a one-out triple and a sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead.
Both teams went down in order in the fourth before the Patriots tied it up in the fifth. Kyle Atkinson doubled to left field with one out, and Tanner Hornback followed with a ground-rule double over the right-field fence to even the score at 1-1.
The Rams regained the lead in the sixth, stringing together a leadoff double, a flyout, and a single to move ahead 2-1. From there, both teams went quiet through the seventh and eighth innings.
Down to their final three outs, the Patriots responded in the ninth. A leadoff walk was followed by a sacrifice bunt, and Atkinson came through again, delivering a two-strike RBI single to center to tie the game 2-2.
Nick Niebur, who entered in the eighth, held strong through the ninth, stranding a runner at third to force extra innings.
In the tenth, UT Tyler left a runner on second before Niebur escaped another Angelo State threat in the bottom half, helped by a key rundown and a strikeout looking. The Rams threatened again in the eleventh with a series of bunts and intentional walks, but the Patriots' defense shined — capped by a barehanded play from Mason Hammonds to deny a bunt single and keep the game tied.
The Patriots had one last chance in the twelfth after a ground-rule double but couldn't bring the run home. In the bottom half, Angelo State advanced a runner to third on a walk, bunt, and wild pitch, and a two-out error allowed the winning run to score, ending the Patriots' tournament with a 3-2 walk-off defeat.
Froehlich delivered a strong start, going 7.0 innings with seven hits, two earned runs, and five strikeouts, lowering his ERA to 2.05. Niebur was excellent in relief, tossing 4.2 innings with just two hits, no earned runs, and two strikeouts, improving his ERA to 1.58 in 40 innings pitched out of the bullpen.
Offensively, Atkinson led the way, going 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI, playing a part in both Patriot runs. He now holds a .345 batting average across 24 starts with 32 RBIs. Four Patriots recorded hits in the game, with two players notching multi-hit efforts.
With the loss, UT Tyler has been eliminated from the Lone Star Conference Tournament. The Patriots will await their postseason fate during Sunday's NCAA Selection Show.
