No. 1 Seeds Upset On Day 3 Of SWAC Baseball Tournament

Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M keep their championship hopes alive after winning both games on Friday.

Friday was a must-win for Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M. The Florida schools each had to win an elimination game, then turn around and take the field against the two No. 1 Seeds in the tournament. It was a tall task, but the Rattlers and Wildcats stole the show with two impressive wins each. So how did they do it? Let's find out. 

Florida A&M Shuts Out Prairie View To Advance To The Semifinals

Florida A&M’s Dallas Tease throws at the plate against Prairie View A&M / Reily Rogers - SWAC

Friday's opener differed from the Thursday slate, where every game had at least 11 total runs. The Rattlers' 1-0 win against the Panthers was the lowest-scoring game of the tournament (the previous low was a Southern 4-2 win over Bethune-Cookman on Wednesday). 

The low score had much to do with the starting pitchers, who both delivered strong outings. Prairie View's Matthew Krall pitched a complete game and struck out seven batters, but he did not have offensive support. Not only did the Panthers fail to score, they only had four hits after having 19 over the last two games.

Florida A&M's offense only produced one run after scoring 17 over its first two games. Still, the offense did enough for starter Dallas Tease, who pitched seven shutout innings with three walks and two strikeouts, and Zach Morea, who closed the last two innings for the Rattlers.

Their semifinal matchup will be against the team that sent them to the losing bracket - Alabama State.

Bethune-Cookman Uses Strong Second Half To Defeat Southern

Bethune-Cookman’s Hylan Hall shouts as the Wildcats face Southern University / Reily Rogers - SWAC

The phrase "second-half surge" accurately described the Wildcats' offense against the Jaguars. 

• Runs in innings 1-5: 0
• Runs in innings 6-8: 10

It's also of note that Southern handed Bethune-Cookman a loss on the tournament's opening day.

Bethune-Cookman trailed 3-0 going into the 6th inning, but the comeback started when Irvin Escobar hit a fly ball to right field, but Southern's Jonathan Evans lost the ball in the Sun, and it fell, allowing Escobar to reach safely. 

Evans then tried to throw out Robert Moya, who was breaking for third base, but the throw was too high and landed on the tarp. Because of that, the runners were awarded two bases, meaning Moya scored the Wildcats' first run, and Escobar advanced to third base.

Jeremy Garcia then hit an RBI single for the second and final run of the inning, and the score was 3-2.

After Southern scored two runs in the top of the 7th, Bethune-Cookman loaded the bases. The Wildcats took advantage, hitting three consecutive singles to score four runs and take a 6-5 lead. Garcia then earned his second RBI with a single to make the score 7-5 after seven innings.

The Jaguars made it a one-run game with an RBI triple from Jah'li Hendricks, but three more Wildcat runs in the bottom of the 8th secured a 10-6 victory and a date with the Grambling Tigers.

Florida A&M Avenges Second-Round Loss To Alabama State

Florida A&M's Sebastian Greico celebrates with his teammates after hitting a three-run home run against Alabama State / Reily Rogers - SWAC

Alabama State needed a magical 9th-inning rally to hand the Rattlers a 9-8 loss on Thursday afternoon. Because of that, Florida A&M had to defeat Prairie View to earn a rematch against its Eastern Division rival.

The Hornets got on the board first in the 3rd inning after Randy Flores, who hit a leadoff double and advanced to third base on a sacrifice, scored on a wild pitch after Ian Matos was walked.

Matos then scored the second run of the inning on a sacrifice fly from Corey King to give Alabama State a 2-0 lead.

Both teams added a run over the next few innings to make the score 3-1 going into the 8th, and that's when the Rattlers erupted.

After Florida A&M loaded the bases, Ty Hanchey scored on a passed ball. Sebastian Greico steps into the box with two runners in scoring position and smashes a home run to dead center field. The Rattlers took the lead 5-3.

But it wasn't over. After Will Brown hit a double, Adam Haidermota drove him home with an RBI single, but Haidermota was thrown out trying to leg out a double.

The final punch came when Jalen Niles and Ty Jackson hit back-to-back singles, and Hanchey, who took his second at-bat of the inning, drove them home with a double down the right-field line. When the final out was made, the score was 8-3 Florida A&M.

Alabama State would need another miracle at the bottom of the 9th. And it appeared that it might happen early on.

With one out and the bases loaded, Ian Matos hit a single to left, bringing home a run. Jack Hay was then walked with the bases loaded to force home another run, making it 8-5.

The Rattlers made a pitching change, but Ali Lapread continued the momentum, hitting another RBI single to cut the lead to two runs. 

It looked like the Hornets had another rally, but a popout and a flyout ended the 9th-inning rally and gave Florida A&M the win.

"Alabama State is the reigning champ for a reason," head coach Jamey Shouppe said. "Champions don't quit, and we saw that today. We're going to enjoy this one tonight, get a good night's sleep and be ready to go tomorrow. "

The teams will meet at noon on Saturday to determine who will play for the tournament title on Sunday.

Bethune-Cookman Uses Steady Offense To Down Grambling

Bethune-Cookman's Malik Stephens delivers a high-five to teammate Brian Perez as the Wildcats won its Friday matchup against Grambling State / Reily Rogers - SWAC

Outside of the two-run home run by Grambling's  Keylon Mack in the 1st inning, Thursday's nightcap was a display of high-IQ baseball, using more singles and walks to get runners on base, move them over and eventually across the plate instead of extra-base hits.

That's how the Wildcats tied the game in the 4th, with two singles from Robert Moya and Manny Souffrain, followed by an RBI double from Irvin Escobar. Then, Colton Olasin hit a sacrifice fly to drive home Souffrain, and the score was tied 2-2.

After both teams scored a run in the 5th inning, the offenses were quiet until Bethune-Cookman scored two runs in the 8th and 9th to take a 7-3 victory.

In the 8th, the Moya-Escobar connection struck again as Escobar drove Miya home with an RBI single. A couple of walks later, Luis Tuero drove home the Wildcats' fifth run on a fielder's choice.

The 9th inning saw Malik Stephens, a pinch-runner, reach third base on a wild pitch and a sacrifice. Moya, who went 2-for-3 with two walks, was on second base. That's when Olasin had his only hit of the night - a two-run double to ice the game.

"It comes down to the group's resiliency," head coach Jonathan Hernandez said. "We did a good job putting pressure on their pitcher and getting into their bullpen in the 5th inning, which was huge for us.

"It sets us up for a game tomorrow and a chance to compete for the first SWAC championship in school history."

The Wildcats and Tigers will face off at 3 p.m. ET  on Saturday for the second spot in the SWAC title game.