CANYON, TEXAS – The UT Tyler baseball program secured the series opener on Friday afternoon with a dominant run-rule victory over West Texas A&M. The Patriots' pitching staff allowed just one earned run while the offense produced its seventh game of 10 or more runs this season.

The Patriots got off to a hot start as a four-pitch walk opened the game and a Luke Smith double put runners at second and third. Drew Schmidt lifted a sacrifice fly and an RBI groundout made it 2-0 after the first half inning. Caden Copeland took the mound for the Patriots and, after allowing a single and hit-by-pitch to begin the inning, recorded three straight outs to escape the jam.

The Buffs got on the board in the second inning when a leadoff triple later scored on a two-out error to cut the deficit to one.

UT Tyler responded in the next frame as a two-out RBI single from Bryce Jewell made it 3-1. Copeland followed with a clean third inning before the Patriots added another run in the fourth. A two-out walk and stolen base from Connor Clark set up Smith for an RBI single that extended the lead to 4-1.

Copeland then retired the Buffs in order to set up a massive inning for the Patriots' offense. UT Tyler scored seven runs, all with two outs. Tanner Chelette launched his first home run of the season to start the rally. After a single, Brock Bearden delivered an RBI triple. A walk brought Smith back to the plate and he delivered an infield single that plated a run. Schmidt followed with an RBI single of his own, and Kaston Mason capped the inning with a three-run home run to right field to push the lead to 11-1.

Copeland delivered another 1-2-3 inning in the bottom half while the offense was held scoreless for just the second time in the game. West Texas A&M briefly cut into the lead with a two-RBI ground-rule double to make it 11-3, but the Patriots put the game out of reach in the seventh with a six-run inning. A single, walk, and error plated the first run of the frame. Tanner Hornback followed with an RBI single, and three straight walks brought in two more runs. An infield single by Clark drove in another before the final run scored on a wild pitch to give UT Tyler a 17-3 advantage.

Ethan Stone closed out the game in the bottom of the seventh, holding the Buffs scoreless to secure the run-rule victory. Copeland earned his first win of the season after tossing five innings, allowing one unearned run on two hits while striking out three.

The Patriots' offense finished with 17 runs on 14 hits as nine different players recorded a hit and three posted multiple-hit performances. Smith led the way with a monster 4-for-5 night, scoring four times and driving in two runs. Schmidt went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and two RBIs, while Ketzner added two hits with a run scored and an RBI.

The Patriots will return to action tomorrow for a doubleheader against the Buffs beginning at 2 p.m. as they look to secure the series before Sunday's finale.