College baseball roundup: Samford, North Alabama fall in conference title games

It was a heartbreaking Saturday for Alabama college baseball fans, as both North Alabama and Samford fell just one win shy of securing conference tournament titles. With their respective championship losses, both teams saw their seasons come to an end, missing out on coveted NCAA Regional berths.

North Alabama drops extra-inning heartbreaker

In DeLand, Florida, the North Alabama Lions (31-28) battled in an Atlantic Sun title game thriller, ultimately falling 5-4 to Lipscomb in 10 innings. The loss marked the second time in three days these teams pushed each other into extra innings, with the Bisons again coming out on top.

The Lions held a 4-3 advantage heading into the bottom of the ninth, but a two-out error allowed Lipscomb to keep their hopes alive. In the 10th, the game ended on a Kai Holm bases-loaded walk. Hunter Bell (0-2) was charged with the loss for UNA, while Lipscomb’s Caden Shanks (2-1) earned the victory.

Earlier in the day, UNA kept their tournament run alive by defeating Florida Gulf Coast 5-4. Nash Rippen powered the offense with two doubles and his 18th home run of the year, while Wes Walker contributed a two-run homer—his 15th of the season.

Samford silenced in SoCon final

Meanwhile, in Greenville, South Carolina, the Samford Bulldogs (31-25) were unable to overcome an early deficit in the Southern Conference championship, falling 3-1 to The Citadel. The Citadel, the tournament's fifth seed, never trailed as their pitching staff limited Samford to just four hits while recording 12 strikeouts.

The Citadel struck early with RBI singles from Christian Stratis and Zach Hunt in the first inning, followed by a Sam Dansky RBI double in the eighth. Samford’s lone run came in the sixth on a Pierce Dutton RBI groundout.

Samford mounted a serious threat in the eighth, loading the bases with two outs against pitchers Andrew Bufkin and Michael Gibson. However, Cade Carr grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the inning. Gibson proceeded to shut the door in the ninth, retiring the side in order to secure his 10th save of the year. Noah Berry (5-3) was credited with the loss for Samford. For further details on the original coverage, 205focus.com has you covered on all the latest local sports updates.