SUGAR LAND, Texas _ The eighth-seeded Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks survived a five-hour rain delay and came back to knock off the fifth-seeded University of Central Arkansas Bears 10-4 in an elimination game in the 2016 Southland Conference Tournament on Friday night at Constellation Field.
The Lumberjacks (28-29) took the lead for good in the bottom of the seventh inning, just before thunderstorms and lightning brought on a 4-hour, 55-minute delay in a game that was already delayed two hours at the start by the longest game in SLC Tournament historyin the day's first matchup. When play resumed, the Lumberjacks picked up where they left off, scoring three more runs to set the final and beat the Bears for the first time this season. UCA had swept the regular-season series in March in Conway.
"We let the lead go and I thought the rain came at the right time because they had all the momentum,' said UCA head coach Allen Gum. "Maybe the rain delay was just too long. But they had an ace in the hole. The lefty (Tyler Starks) they brought in (after the delay) was really good. He was throwing 90-plus. He had it going tonight and it was just too much for us to overcome. And of course, they added to it, too.
"It was momentum. They had it when the rain started and they kept it at the end. They just beat us tonight, there's no doubt about that.'
UCA struck first with a run in the top of the first off SFA junior starter Jarred Green. Senior Tyler Langley singled to left field to open the game and advanced to second on an error on the SFA left fielder. A sacrifice bunt by Brooks Balisterri moved Langley to third before Brandon Montalvo rolled a ball to first base that was booted, allowing Langley to score.
In the bottom of the first, SFA's Kyle Thornell was hit by a pitch and was thrown out at the plate on Garrett McMullen's double to left. Left fielder Brandon Montalvo threw to Balisterri, who relayed to William Hancock at the plate. Thornell, who entered the game hitting .347, was tagged out, argued the call and was ejected from the game.
The Lumberjacks tied the game in the third inning with a double by Clark Kahawaii, a sacrifice bunt and an RBI ground out by Tyler Kendrick. UCA quickly went back in front with a run in the fourth on Preston's RBI single to center that scored Montalvo. SFA grabbed its first lead of the game with a pair of runs on three hits in the fifth.
The back-and-forth game went back in UCA's favor in the top of the sixth. Junior second baseman Butch Rea came through with a two-run single to left field against SFA reliever Austin Hearn, scoring Hunter Strong and Logan Preston to give the Bears a 4-3 lead. A walk to Ty Tice loaded the bases again and brought on another SFA pitching change. Austin Smith, the fourth SFA pitcher of the inning, finally got out of the bases-loaded jam as UCA stranded three.
The Lumberjacks exploded for four runs in the seventh inning with four hits and a UCA error. Designated hitter Connor Fikes had the big blow, a two-run triple to the right-field corner. The seventh run came in when UCA attempted to throw out a base runner between first and second base, allowing Fikes to score before the tag.
Senior Logan Preston finished 2 for 4 for the Bears, who managed just seven hits against six SFA pitchers. Junior second baseman Butch Rea had a pair of RBI. SFA finished with 15 hits, led by Nick Ramos and Garrett McMullen with three apiece.
"This was our second (five-hour rain delay) this year, we had one at New Orleans,' said Gum. "It's amazing the camaraderie that was going on in our dugout. A lot of conversations going on. Honestly, it's a really special time.
"And I'm really proud of our seniors for what they've done this year. And that's the kinds of things they'll miss sometimes, not playing the game, but they're going to miss that five-hour rain delay with their teammates. Our seniors, as far as the leadership, somewhere in that second half of the year, they took control of the team and really got us this position. We went from a spot midway through the year where we didn't know where we would end or if we would even make the tournament, to finishing with the best finish we've had in conference play in UCA history.
"And that's a credit to them for just fighting and staying with the course.'
The Bears, who opened the tournament with a 3-0 victory over fourth-seeded Lamar on Wednesday and then lost to No. 1 Sam Houston State on Thursday, finished the season 29-27 overall. Ten seniors played their final game for the Bears, including center fielder Tyler Langley, left fielder Brandon Montalvo, second baseman Matt Anderson, third baseman Logan Preston, second baseman Chris Townsend, outfielder Austin White, and pitchers Andrew Kemmerer, Connor McClain, Connor Gilmore and Derek Beier. Those closed their careers with 132 victories, including the school's first SLC championship (2013) and first NCAA Regional appearance (2013).
