LONGVIEW, Texas – A great starting pitching effort fell short Friday evening as Southwestern dropped a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to LeTourneau University on a walk-off walk in non-conference baseball action.
Pirates' starter Jason Stading threw six solid innings scattering just four hits and striking out three. Stading would leave the ballgame tied at 1-1 as both teams were able to scratch a run across the plate in the first inning.
Southwestern would take the lead in the top of the seventh with aided by two hit batters a small ball from the Pirates. Jake Pawelek was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt before Ben Little drove him home.
Will Cates – who was also hit by a pitch – would score two batters later on a RBI single from Zach Lynch. Lynch was the only Pirate with multiple hits in the loss as the Pirates took a 3-1 lead.
LeTourneau would fight back adding a run in the bottom of the eighth before back-to-back bases loaded walks pushed the winning run across the plate for the Yellow Jackets.
The loss dropped the Pirates record to 0-5 on the season as the game was the season opener for LeTourneau. Three of the Pirates five loses this season have been one run defeats with two coming in the bottom of the ninth.
Both teams return to the diamond Saturday as Southwestern will look to move into the win column for the first time in 2014. First pitch is scheduled 1 p.m. from Conrad-Vernon Field as the teams will finish the series with a double-header.