LYNCHBURG, Va. – Jacksonville State came out on the short end of a pitchers duel in the 2025 Conference USA Baseball Championship, falling 2-1 to top-seeded Dallas Baptist on Thursday evening at the Liberty Baseball Stadium.

Jax State junior Jackson Phipps went toe-to-toe with a pair of Patriot pitchers over the course of his career-high eight innings. Phipps, a lefty from Dallas, Georgia gave the team from the Texas version of Dallas fits all night. He was dominant throughout the outing with a career-high 12 strikeouts in 112 total pitches tossed. Phipps was touched for a run on three hits. The 12 strikeouts is the most by a Gamecock since Garrett Famer recorded 12 against UT Martin on May 11, 2018. It was also the longest outing by a Gamecock pitcher in a tournament game since Tanner Jones tossed 8.2 IP in the 2023 ASUN Tournament.

DBU's combination of Micah Bucknam and James Ellwanger were equally impressive as they combined for 14 strikeouts on the night.

After the first 24 batters were retired in order before Jax State's first base runner came in the fifth inning with back-to-back singles from junior Brady Thomas and junior Grayson Ashe. Jax State manufactured its run after Ashe attempted to take second base and Thomas scoring on the play.

The Patriots answered the Gamecocks' scoring frame with a pair of doubles off od Phipps. Both clubs had one other scoring opportunity before DBU loaded the bases in the night and remained in the winners bracket with a sacrifice fly by Ben Tryon.

Thomas finished with half of Jax State's hits, while junior Caleb Johnson joined Ashe with a hit in the setback.

The Gamecocks will look to bounce back on Friday when they face Louisiana Tech for the second time in the postseason. First pitch is set for 4:30 p.m. CT. After Jax State claimed a 9-7 win over LA Tech on Wednesday, the Bulldogs remained alive in the tournament by disposing of host-Liberty on Thursday.

The game will be streamed on ESPN+ and carried on the Gamecock Sports Network.