BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Samford freshman designated hitter Eddie Marshall hit a walk-off two-run home run to lift the Bulldog baseball team to a 5-4 win over Little Rock in the first game of a three-game series Friday at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
 
With the win, Samford improved its record to 7-9 on the season. Little Rock dropped its mark to 8-9 with the loss.
 
Marshall's blast was the only home run of the game, going 1-for-4 with two RBI. Jackson Harris went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Jeffrey Ince went 2-for-4 at the plate, while Jake Souders and Cade Carr had an RBI each.
 
Trey Sanders (2-0) pitched 1.0 hitless inning in relief to earn the win on the mound for Samford. Joseph Lee started the game and tossed 5.0 innings, allowing three runs, just one earned, on three hits and striking out three batters. John Malone pitched 3.0 innings, giving up one unearned run on three hits.
 
For Little Rock, Kade Smith went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Jack Bilski and Jerdy Lopez also drove in a run each. Gage Haley (0-2) pitched 1.1 innings in relief, giving up two runs on two hits to take the loss for the Trojans. Brannon Westmoreland started the game on the mound and pitched 7.0 innings, giving up three runs on nine hits.
 
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the fourth inning when Harris scored from third base on a ground out by Carr for a 1-0 Samford lead. Little Rock took the lead with three runs in the top of the fifth inning. Bilski, Lopez and Smith drove in a run each as the Trojans built a 3-1 lead.
 
Samford cut the lead to 3-2 in the sixth inning when Souders reached base on a fielder's choice, driving in Ince. Little Rock made the score 4-2 in the top of the eighth inning when Cade Martin scored on an error. Michael O'Brien attempted to score on the play as well, but was thrown out at home.
 
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Harris singled to drive in Gus Gandy to cut the lead to 4-3. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Luke Boykin led the inning off with a double. With one out in the inning, Marshall homered to left field to give the Bulldogs the 5-4 walk-off win.
 
The teams will continue the series with a game Saturday at 2 p.m. at Joe Lee Griffin Field. The game can be seen live on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available. For links to follow Samford baseball this season, click on the following link: 2026 SCHEDULE.


 
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