AUSTIN, Texas (April 16, 2023) – Lubbock Christian had a 4-2 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh inning with their sites set on upsetting No. 4 St. Edward's on their home turf, the Hilltoppers used a six-run fame to come back and beat the Chaps.
 
LCU tried to come back in the top of the ninth and pulled within a run thanks to Jarred Gibson's three-run home run, but the bid fell short as they moved to 24-18 overall on the season and 22-18 in Lone Star Conference play.
 
By the time Gibson came up in the ninth, the Chaps were already down to their final out, and they game should have already been over, but Carson Ogilvie had started the inning by reach first on an error. Eduardo Acosta was also on base after being hit by a pitch, allowing Gibson's three-run blast to bring LCU within a run of tying the game. A groundout ended the comeback attempt.
 
Lubbock Christian had led most of the game, adding an insurance run in the top of the seventh on a Nate Van Maanen single to go up 4-2, but disaster struck in the bottom of the frame.
 
Andrew Duran, who had started the game on the mound for the Chaps and allowed only a pair of runs to that point, struck out the first batter, but then walked one and hit another. LCU went to the bullpen, but two more walks for the new pitcher brought in a run.
 
Then came an error, which plated two runs and gave SEU the lead, forcing the Chaps to make another call to the bullpen. The Hilltoppers finally got their first hit of the inning after the pitching change, plating two more. Then another walk and a bunt single that plated the eighth and final SEU run, before a strikeout and a fly out finally ended the frame.
 
The lead LCU lost had been built with two runs in the first, one in the sixth and one in the seventh. Acosta scored the first run of the game on an error, and Gibson scored on another Hilltopper miscue. SEU committed six errors in the game overall.
 
St. Edward's had answered the two runs in the bottom of the first before Duran starting putting up zeroes, and the Chaps took the lead on a Hayden Blair double in the sixth. Van Maanen's single to score Ogilvie in the seventh gave LCU some insurance, but not enough as the Hilltoppers pulled off the comeback win.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
1 | Although the Chaps scored seven times in the loss, only one of the runs was earned. SEU's six errors committed in the game were the second-most in a single contest by an LSC school this season
57 | Lubbock Christian added one home run to their season total, bringing the number to a league-leading 57
79 | Chap pitchers plunked four batters on Sunday, bringing their season total to 79, which is the second-most in the LSC
 
NEXT UP
The Chaps return home for yet another battle with a team just ahead of them in the LSC standings, as West Texas A&M visits for four games.