CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Western Carolina scored four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to come from behind for a 10-9 win over Samford in the final game of a three-game series Sunday at Childress Field at Hennon Stadium.

"It was a really rough finish to a really good college baseball game for us," Samford head coach Tony David said. "Our guys played their guts out and had a lot of really big hits. We allowed too many free passes on the mound. And in these tight league games something as simple as the wind changing directions can be the difference in winning and losing. We had our chances to add on late. Their guy did a good job in relief. The bottom of the eighth wind started pushing out heavy to right and helped get that ball over the fence, then changed directions again to push Marshall's blast to make it a difficult fair-foul call that would have tied it. We found ourselves offensively this week and became the team we expect to be. We jump out of league play next weekend and will refresh and work some things out on the mound. We have to get Verm and Whitney back out there in key roles for our staff now that they are healthy."

With the loss, Samford fell to 9-13 overall and 1-2 in Southern Conference play. Western Carolina improved its record to 17-8 overall and 2-1 in SoCon action.
 
For Samford at the plate Eddie Marshall went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Jake Souders went 2-for-5 with an RBI, while Jeffrey Ince, Luke Boykin and Parker McDonald drove in a run each. Zak Spurrier (1-2) pitched 1.0 inning, giving up three runs on two hits to take the loss on the mound for Samford.
 
For Western Carolina, Trent Turner went 2-for-5 with a home run, a double and four RBI. Jaylen Jones went 3-for-3 for the Catamounts. Walker Fox also homered for the Catamounts, going 1-for-5 with two RBI. Bryant Kimbrell (4-0) pitched 4.1 innings, allowing no runs on two hits to earn the win for WCU. Owen Austin came on to get the final out and pick up his fourth save of the season.
 
Samford led, 9-6, entering the bottom of the eighth inning. Yates Sykes walked, Jones singles and Jackson Lyda walked to load the bases with no outs. Sikes scored the first run of the inning when Wyatt Stanley reached base on a fielder's choice. Turner then hit a three-run home run to right field to give Western Carolina the 10-9 lead. Samford got a leadoff single from Marshall in the top of the ninth, but the next three batters were retired, ending the game in a 10-9 loss.
 
Samford jumped on top early with three runs in the top of the first inning. Souders singled to drive in Ince for the game's first run. Cade Carr then scored on a sacrifice fly by Boykin. Marshall then singled to drive in Souders for a 3-0 Samford lead.
 
Western Carolina plated two runs in the second inning and two more in the third to take a 4-3 lead. In the top of the fourth inning, Ince doubled to drive in Gus Gandy to knot the score at 4-4. In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Catamounts plated two more runs to take a 6-4 lead.
 
Samford came back with five runs in the top of the fifth inning to take a 9-6 lead. Souders scored the first run of the inning on a ground out by McDonald. Boykin then scored on a wild pitch. Marshall then doubled to drive in Trey Higgins. Marshall and Gandy later scored on Western Carolina errors to give Samford a three-run lead.
 
Samford will step out of conference play to play at in-state rival Troy on Tuesday, March 24. The game is set for a 6 p.m. start from Troy's Riddle-Pace Field. The game can be seen live on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available. For links to follow all of Samford's games this season, click on the following link: 2026 SCHEDULE.
 
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