HOUSTON – UIW rallied for four runs in the top of the sixth to take its first lead of the game, but HBU answered with a four-spot of its own in the bottom of the seventh to escape with an 8-7 victory and a sweep of the Southland Conference series Sunday afternoon at Husky Field. With the win, the Huskies moved into a tie for first place in the league with McNeese and Nicholls.
 
Junior catcher Kevin Ortiz went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs, whie junior designated hitter Parker Edwards was 2-for-5 with a pair of doubles and an RBI for the Huskies (18-27, 11-7 SLC). Senior leftfielder Lane Botkin was 1-for-1 with a triple, a walk, a hit by pitch, a sacrifice fly and three RBIs. Junior first baseman Brennen Bales singled in his final at-bat to extend his hitting streak to 11 games.
 
Junior righthander Javan Smitherman (2-1) earned the win, holding UIW scoreless over 1.1 innings. Junior Tyler Zarella notched his first save of the season, allowing pair of unearned runs on a pair of hits over the final 1.1 innings. After hurling four shutout innings, junior starter Matthew Charles ended up allowing five runs on six hits with four strikeouts and a walk in 5.2 innings.
 
Hernan Yanez was 2-for-3 with a home run, a double, two RBIs and two runs, while Roberto Gonzalez was 2-for-3 with two doubles, three RBIs and a run for the Cardinals (16-24, 6-12). Jimmy DeLeon singled and scored twice.
 
Aaron Celestino (3-4) took the loss, giving up four runs on four hits in 1.2 innings. Starter Isaiah Zavala  allowed three runs, two earned, on six hits with four strikeouts and three walks in five innings.
 
HBU scored an unearned in the first then took a 2-0 lead on Botkin's sac fly in the fourth. UIW got on the board in the fifth when Yanez doubled and scored on Ridge Rogers' sacrifice fly, but the Huskies got the run back on Ortiz's RBI single in the fifth.
 
Gonzalez delivered an RBI double in the sxith, then Alec Carr's single to center tied the game, 3-3. Yanez followed with a two-run home run to right to give the Cardinals the lead.
 
Ortiz came through with an RBI single in the seventh, then Botkin ripped a two-run triple down the rightfield line to put HBU back on top, 6-5. A wild pitch plated pinch runner Christian Dumont for a two-run lead. Edwards added an RBI double in the eighth to extend the lead to 8-5.
 
After an HBU error put two aboard for UIW in the ninth, Gonzalez's two-out double to leftcenter trimmed the Huskies' lead to 8-7, but Zarella got Carr to ground out to end the game.
 
The Huskies return to action when they face No. 10 Texas Tuesday night in Austin, before returning to Southland Conference play in a three-game series against Southeastern next weekend in Hammond, Louisiana.