No. 8 ECU Holds Off Cougars, Evens Series

HOUSTON – One night after a furious comeback led to walk-off victory, Houston Baseball rallied but could not replicate the feat as No. 8 East Carolina evened the three-game series with a 5-4 win on Saturday evening from Sanders Field at Schroeder Park.

Houston (13-14, 1-1 American) scored twice in the eighth inning courtesy of senior Ian McMillan and sophomore Malachi Lott home runs but logged just a pair of hits with runners in scoring position (2 for 14) on the night.

ECU (20-7, 1-1 American) reached the 20-win plateau, making the most of eight hits. The Pirates were limited to two hits (2 for 11) with runners in scoring position and finished 3 for 13 with runners aboard.

Player Highlights

McMillan (1 for 2) registered his fourth multi-RBI performance and third in the last four contests, finishing with two. He has 10 RBIs in his last eight games.
Freshman right-handed starter Paul Schmitz (1-2) took the hard-fought loss. He allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits alongside two walks and as many strikeouts while throwing 90 pitches across 6.0 innings.
Houston's four-member bullpen limited the Pirates to two hits and one run over the final three innings to keep the Cougars in the matchup. The unit fanned five batters.
Junior Alex Lopez (2 for 4) and sophomore Cameron Nickens (2 for 5) provided a 1-2 punch in the heart of the lineup. Lopez has logged a hit in 13 of his last 14 contests (March 11-present) while Nickens' two doubles were a career high and stretched his hit streak to nine games.
Sophomore Brandon Burckel (2 for 5) registered his third multi-hit performance in the last four outings.

Key Innings:
2nd | Houston jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Sophomore Cameron Nickens opened with a double and came home to score two batters later on junior Justin Murray's RBI-single up the middle. McMillan added on with a sacrifice bunt. The Cougars totaled four hits in the frame.

4th | East Carolina evened things up thanks to two-out hitting and a Cougar miscue. After a two-out single and walk, junior Alec Makarewicz singled in a pair of runs, taking two additional bases on an errant throw.

5th | Two-out hitting continued to the be theme for the Pirates who drove in two more on junior Josh Moylan's two-run double, unlocking a two-all tie.

7th | ECU junior Carter Cunningham stretched the Pirates' advantage to three runs courtesy of a sacrifice fly, plating freshman Nathan Chrismon who reached on a fielder's choice following a leadoff double from sophomore Ryan McCrystal.

8th | After Nickens made a remarkable home-run saving grab in the top half, Houston's bats carried the momentum into the home half as McMillan and sophomore Lott left the yard. The home run was the second in the last four games for McMillan. For Lott, the homer was his first of the season and second of his career with the last coming March 25, 2022, against Western Kentucky.

9th | ECU threatened to add on in the ninth as McCrystal led off the frame with a double. With sophomore right-hander Kyle Ayers on to pitch, the Los Angeles native induced a groundout to strand a pair.

UP NEXT
Houston and No. 8 East Carolina close the three-game series at 1 p.m. Sunday from Schroeder Park. The Cougars have not announced a starter. East Carolina will send right-hander Josh Grosz (4-0, 1.82) to the hill. As part of Kids Day, all kids 12 and under get in free with their youth baseball jerseys. Tickets are priced as low as $5 for kids and $10 for adults by clicking here. The matchup can be seen on ESPN+ and heard on The Varsity Network.

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Team Stats

Alex Lopez

Cameron Nickens

Brandon Burckel

Malachi Lott

Players Mentioned

Kyle Ayers

Brandon Burckel

Alex Lopez

Malachi Lott

Ian McMillan

Justin Murray

Cameron Nickens

Paul Schmitz

Players Mentioned

Kyle Ayers

Brandon Burckel

Alex Lopez

Malachi Lott

Ian McMillan

Justin Murray

Cameron Nickens

Paul Schmitz

Upcoming Events

Recent Results