DALLAS, Texas — Jax State baseball fought off Dallas Baptist's sweep bid with a 13-4 victory on Saturday afternoon at Horner Ballpark.
With the victory, Jax State finishes the regular season without getting swept or dropping more than two games in a row.
The Gamecocks improved to 42-13 and finished CUSA play at 23-7, claiming the title of outright regular season conference champions. DBU finishes the regular season at 31-24, 19-11 in CUSA play, and will be the No. 4 seed in next week's CUSA tournament.
Steven Cash earned his seventh win of the season to improve to 7-2, pitching five innings with four earned runs, fanning four. DBU starter Aiden VanDeHatert earned the loss with by giving up the first five (three earned) runs of the game to fall to 2-3.
Jax State put up six runs in the top of the first, the most in that frame this season, highlighted by a two-run double from Sam Richardson to drive Brady Thomas and Grayson Ashe home. Back-to-back bases-loaded walks by Jaxon Pate and Caleb Johnson closed out the inning at 6-0.
An RBI-single from Trey King and a DBU error allowed two more runs to come across in the top of the third, pushing the lead to 8-0.
DBU would answer with a solo homer in the bottom of the fourth by Luke Pettitte to get on the board.
In the top of the fifth, two Gamecocks homers would stretch the lead to 10 runs, with a two-run homer by Brady Thomas and a solo homer by Sam Richardson.
A three-run DBU homer in the home half of the same frame would break up the run-rule potential to cut the lead to seven runs at 11-4.
Jax State would score two more runs in the waning innings of the game, first with King scoring on an error by DBU in the top of the sixth, and Grayson Ashe knocking his first homer since April 7 in the top of the eighth to make the score 13-4, the eventual final.
Grayson Ashe and Trey Majette led the Gamecocks offensively with three hits each. Richardson went 2-4 with two runs and three RBI.
Top-seeded Jax State will take on ninth seed Middle Tennessee to open up CUSA Tournament play on Thursday. Times will be announced soon.
