BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Samford baseball built an early lead and held on late for a 4-2 win over cross-town rival UAB Wednesday evening at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
 
"I thought all of our pitchers did a really good job tonight," Samford head coach Casey Dunn said. "I'm really happy with the way we pitched. Offensively, we got off to a good start and then I think we kind of relaxed and took some things for granted. But, this was a good win tonight."
 
Samford used nine pitchers during the game, with the group combining for nine strikeouts and just one walk. Tristan Widra (1-1) pitched 2.0 innings, giving up no runs on one hit to earn the win for the Bulldogs. Andres Gracia tossed the final inning, without allowing a hit to pick up his ninth save of the season. Eric Wright, Caleb Maggio, Jesse Travis, Devan Traglia, Philip Flach, Mikel Belcher and Mark Donham also saw time on the mound for Samford.
 
For Samford at the plate, Heath Quinn went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. Alex Lee went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI for the Bulldogs. With Quinn's homer, Samford extends its nation-leading total to 61 so far this season.
 
UAB was led offensively by Esteban Tresgallo and Chase Davis, going 2-for-4 each. Jeff Schalk drove in both of the Blazers' runs, going 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI.
 
Ryan Ruggles (4-2) pitched 2.0 innings, giving up four runs on six hits to take the loss for the Blazers. UAB used five pitchers in the contest. The Blazers' five hurlers combined for seven strikeouts and no walks.
 
Samford jumped on top early with two runs in the bottom of the first inning. With one out in the inning and the bases loaded, Lee singled up the middle to drive in Quinn and Hunter Swilling to give Samford the early 2-0 lead.
 
The Bulldogs added two runs in the bottom of the second inning to push their lead to 4-0. With one out in the inning, T.J. Dixon reached base on an infield single. With two outs, Quinn homered to left field for a four-run Samford lead.
 
The score stayed at 4-0 until UAB got on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth inning. With one out in the inning, Griffin Gum singled up the middle. Schalk then homered to right field to cut the Samford lead to 4-2.
 
Neither team could score for the final three innings as Samford came away with the 4-2 win. Samford has now won 10 of its last 11 games against UAB. Samford improves to 24-19 with the win, while UAB falls to 23-19.
 
Samford will return to action Friday evening when the Bulldogs open a three-game Southern Conference home series with The Citadel. The teams are scheduled to play Friday at 6 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m, and Sunday at 12 p.m. at Joe Lee Griffin Field.