Conway, Ark.- Warrior baseball hosted postseason Southern Athletic Association play in Conway for the first time since the 2019 season. The Berry Vikings traveled from Georgia for the best-of-three series in a newly reformatted Southern Athletic Association tournament. In previous years the top two teams have each hosted half of the bracket the first weekend of play. This year the top four teams hosted the bottom four teams for a best-of-three series, and the winners of this past weekend's contests will all converge on Birmingham for the second half of the tournament.
Game 1: As the sun began to dip towards the horizon in Conway, fifth-year Warrior star Andrei Stoyanow took the mound. Stoyanow was 5-0 on the season heading into the conference tournament. From the first pitch, it was evident that Stoyanow had some of his best stuff. He overpowered many Viking hitters, fanning six over the course of his outing. He shut the Viking offense down for the first five innings before allowing one run in the fifth and two more in the top of the eighth. Stoyanow's final line was: 8.0 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, 6 K. Cade McWilliams came on in relief of Stoyanow in the top of the ninth. Berry extended their 3-0 lead to 6-0 against the junior left-hander. McWilliams allowed, in 0.2 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 1 BB while striking out two. Bobby Fowler notched the final out of the frame on a strikeout.
The Warrior offense was slow to kick it into gear at the plate. Through the first eight innings, the Warrior bats had only notched four hits, but they had failed to deliver with runners in scoring position. In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Warriors looked poised to make a comeback from their 6-0 deficit. The bottom of the ninth began with a pair of hits from Drake Job (his third hit of the game) and Rally Miller before a 40-minute lightning delay. Following the delay, Rail Gilliam hit an RBI single in a 2-2 count. The tying run was aboard at the end of the game, but the story of the Warrior offense in Game 1 was too little, and too late. Berry took Game 1 with a score of 6-3.
Game 2: Senior right-hander David Blackburn took the hill in a must-win Game 2. Through his first eight full innings, Blackburn allowed one run in the top of the seventh. On the season, he had two complete games (both seven-inning contests) and he pitched a season high eight and two-thirds innings on Saturday. The Berry bats found their stride against Blackburn in the last inning, scoring four. Blackburn's final line: 8.2 IP, 5 R, 5 ER, 12 H, 3 BB, 5 K. Ethan Thomas came out of the bullpen and collected the save (his first of the year) by striking out the final Viking hitter.
The Warrior bats completely reversed course from how they were in the first game. The Warriors plated eight runs on twelve hits, beginning with a two-run second inning, scoring again in the fourth and sixth innings. Zach Marriott delivered where it counted, knocking in three runs on three hits. Jacob Carpentier and Hogan Ralston both had a two-hit showing in the batter's box, driving in a run each and scoring once each as well. David Ripple notched two hits and was driven in twice while also swiping a base. The Warriors defeated the Vikings 8-5.
Game 3: It all came down to a winner-take-all third game. Fifth year right-hander Jack Hodgins toed the rubber in his first start of the season, giving the Warrior faithful a taste of classic Jack Hodgins: 8 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 H, 3 K. The two runs came on solo homeruns in the first and eighth innings. Warrior closer John Henry Fowler took the hill in the ninth and delivered a shutout frame in typical Fowler fashion.
The Warrior bats had a handful of opportunities with runners in scoring position, but only managed to deliver on the Adam Bland leadoff double in the first inning when he was driven in by Zach Marriott. Jacob Carpentier doubled in the second inning but did not score. Bland followed his first at bat up with a one-out triple in the third inning, but a tough break on a well-struck line drive and a strikeout slowed the Warriors' roll. In addition to Adam Bland's two-hit game, David Ripple had two hits in the game. The Warriors' season ended with a 2-1 loss in Game 3. Their final record was 27-15, 12-9 in SAA play, making them the third-winningest team in Hendrix history.
