LAFAYETTE, La.?Florida
Atlantic scored four runs over the first three innings and held on for a 4-2
victory over Sun Belt champion ULM
in an elimination game at the Sun Belt Tournament at M.L. “Tigue” Moore Field late Friday night.
The Warhawks finish play at the SBC Tournament with 34 wins for
just the eighth time in school history. ULM won the regular season title by a game-and-a-half over
New Orleans with a 20-10 record, which included
a three game sweep of UNO in New
Orleans.
ULM was exceptionally good during
weekend series posting a 24-11 record winning 7-of-10 Sun Belt series. The Warhawks were not swept in a three-game
series this year and have a combined 10-4 record against the remaining four
teams in the Sun Belt Tournament.
The Warhawks have set the single-season school record for
hits, doubles, home runs, RBIs, double plays and total bases this year and are
just one run shy of the runs scored record.
Hits were at a premium on Friday night with the Warhawks
out-hitting Florida Atlantic 5-4. ULM's Ben Soignier was
the lone player with multiple hits finishing the game 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Alex Silversmith was just 1-for-4 on the game for the Owls
(31-26-1), but the one was a big one as the catcher hit a three-run home run ?
his sixth of the year ? in the third inning giving FAU a 4-0 lead; he drove in all four Florida Atlantic runs on the game..
ULM (34-24) fought back with runs in
the fourth and fifth innings. Matt Collins
drove home A.J. Siggers for ULM's
first score at the game, but was called out at second base after the umpire
ruled that he had slide off the base.
Soignier pulled the Warhawks with two runs with a double in
the fifth scoring Matt Laird, who reached on an error by FAU shortstop Nick
Arata.
After ULM
starter Drew Graham (2-5) struggled to figure out the strike zone walking four
over the first two innings, Warhawk closer Derek Ward dominated the remaining six
innings allowing just one hit while striking out six Owl batters.
Adam Morrison (3-2) picked up the win for Florida Atlantic
tossing 5.1 innings of five hit ball allowing two runs ? one earned ? and striking
out four. Chris Eberhart closed out the
game retiring all 11 ULM
batters he faced for his first save of the season.
