Skip To Main Content

Houston Christian University Athletics

OFFICIAL SITE OF HCU ATHLETICS
HCU ATHLETICS
ESPN Plus Logo
Matthew Leiterman
Juan DeLeon Creative
9
Houston Christian HCU 26-22, 17-12 SLC
11
Winner Lamar University LU 39-15, 18-10 SLC
Houston Christian HCU
26-22, 17-12 SLC
9
Final
11
Lamar University LU
39-15, 18-10 SLC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Houston Christian HCU 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 3 3 9 9 1
Lamar University LU 0 0 7 1 0 0 0 0 3 11 12 0

W: Neal, Austin (2-1) L: Norton, Ben (1-2)

Game Recap: Baseball |

BSB: Huskies’ Late Surge Falls Short in 11–9 Loss to Lamar

Leiterman’s four-RBI night nearly fuels comeback before walk-off stuns HCU

BEAUMONT, Texas – Houston Christian University's late-game fireworks weren't enough to complete the comeback, as the Huskies fell 11–9 to Lamar University on Friday night in a Southland Conference battle at Vincent-Beck Stadium.

The night began with promise for the Huskies, who struck first in the top of the third inning. Matthew Leiterman reached base and later came around to score on a wild pitch, giving HCU a 1–0 edge. But the bottom half of the frame turned disastrous for the visitors. Lamar erupted for seven runs, quickly flipping the momentum. Matt Ryan opened the rally with a two-run single before Brayden Evans delivered a towering three-run homer to deep right-center. Zane Spinn and Bryce Grizzaffi tacked on two more runs with RBI groundouts, closing out the inning with a commanding 7–1 lead for the Cardinals.

HCU chipped away in the fourth. Trevor Payne scored when Tevis Payne grounded into a double play, narrowing the gap to 7–2. Still, Lamar answered right back in the bottom half, as Spinn drove in Ryan with a single to push the lead to 8–2.

From there, Jett Feltman quieted the Lamar bats. The right-hander tossed four scoreless innings out of the bullpen, giving the Huskies a chance to regroup and respond. They began to do just that in the seventh, when Tevis Payne lined an RBI single to score Jeremy Rader and cut the deficit to five.

In the eighth inning, HCU made things interesting. Leiterman came through with a two-run single to left-center, plating Katcher Halligan and Rhett Hendricks. Trevor Roper then drove in Leiterman with a groundout, making it 8–6 heading into the final frame.

The ninth inning saw the Huskies surge ahead. With the bases loaded, Halligan was hit by a pitch to bring in a run. Moments later, Leiterman struck again, singling up the middle and driving in two more to give HCU a 9–8 lead—their first since the top of the third.

But just three outs away from a statement road win, the Huskies couldn't close it out. In the bottom of the ninth, Heladio Moreno launched a three-run walk-off homer to right-center off reliever Ben Norton, delivering a crushing blow and sealing the 11–9 victory for Lamar.

Leiterman led the way for HCU, finishing 3-for-5 with four RBIs and two runs scored. Tevis Payne added two RBIs, while Halligan, Rader, and Hendricks each chipped in with key hits and runs. Feltman's four-inning relief effort helped keep the Huskies within striking distance, but Norton (1–2) took the loss. Austin Neal (2–1) earned the win for Lamar despite surrendering the ninth-inning rally.

HCU will look to bounce back on Saturday afternoon in Game 2 of the weekend series.
 
Print Friendly Version