SUGAR LAND, Texas _ An early deficit was too much to overcome for the University of Central Arkansas Bears on Thursday in the 2018 Southland Conference Baseball Tournament.

In a rematch of last year's SLC championship game, the top-seeded Sam Houston State Bearkats scored four runs in the first inning and made them hold up for a 4-2 victory over the fifth-seed Bears in a loser's bracket elimination game at Constellation Field. The Bears (32-25) scored single runs in both the third and fifth innings and seemed to have some momentum before a 1:44 minute weather delay.

When the teams returned, the Bears went in order in the eighth and ninth innings against SHSU's Dakota Mills, the SLC relief pitcher of the year.

UCA junior righthander Cody Davenport allowed the four first-inning runs but nothing after that. The Bearkats managed just one hit off Davenport over the next six innings before the delay. Senior Will Brand finished the game for the Bears, striking out two and allowing just one hit.

"It wsa just one of those things, they got their hits,' said UCA head coach Allen Gum, who has led the Bears to seven straight SLC tournament appearances. "They put together that big inning and we just didn't get any breaks.Whether it be last night or today, we were hitting the ball on the nose but we were hitting it right at people. That's part of it, it's baseball.

"And then I thought we got the momentum back. I thought we had momentum and then here comes the rain. Sometimes it's just not meant to be. Sometimes the ball doesn't bounce your way, and it sure as heck didn't this week. Whoever wins this (tournament), you'll see. Something like that is going to happen, they'll get a break and take advantage of it. It just wasn't our year as far as the tournament goes.'   

The Bearkats (39-19), the regular-season champion, turned fight hits into four runs in the first inning but did not score again. The early rally started with a leadoff walk to Blake Chisolm and consecutive singles by Jack Rogers and Andrew Fregia. A sacrifice fly brought in the first run, followed by RBI singles by Hunter Hearn, Ben Haefner and Gavin Johnson.

"Dav's one of those guys, if you're going to get him, usually you got to get him a little bit early,' Gum said, "because he gets stronger as it goes. It was just one of those things, they found the holes early. And then he just got going and made adjustments and made the pitches he needed to. All we ask out of our starter is to give us a chance to win and he definitely did that.' 

The Bears chipped away at the deficit with a run in the third inning on senior Keaton Presley's base hit to left that scored Josh Somdecerff. In the fifth, junior second baseman T.J. Black was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and eventually scored on Hunter Strong's ground out. Presley finished 2 for 4 for the Bears, who managed only six hits against SHSU's Hayden Wesneski and Mills.

"I always hope after a delay (like that) that we're on offense,' said Gum, whose team, as the home team, was in the field to start the eighth inning. "That's what I always hope for. But unfortunately, again, there wasn't one thing that lined up for us. You just have to try to get loose and get going again, and it's hard. It's like starting a new game over, a new pitcher, you've been sitting for a little while. 

"We didn't have four or five innings to get going again, we only had two. And they brought in the closer of the year and he came in and threw strikes.' 

The Bears had 11 seniors who played their final game in a UCA uniform. That group combined to win 124 games over the past four years and made two appearances in the SLC championship game.

"I'm proud of these guys, proud of these seniors,' said Gum. "They represented UCA, Conway and Arkansas really, really well. Just a tremendous group of guys. They are going to be remembered well by their teammates. It's not what we wanted, no doubt about that. But we've had a lot of success here and this time it just wasn't our turn. But I'm proud of the overall work our guys did for sure.

"As far as the overall year, the commitment level of our players, especially the leadership of our seniors, it was tremendous. And I'm proud of that.'