SUN BELT TOURNAMENT

ASU falls short, faces elimination

Daniel Wright limited one of the best lineups in the Sun Belt Conference on Wednesday, but Arkansas State couldn’t score enough to take advantage.

ASU scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning, but the tying run was stranded on second base when Logan Uxa struck out looking to cap a 3-2 loss to No. 1 seed Troy in the first round of the Sun Belt Tournament in Lafayette, La.

Wright, a senior right hander named first-team All-Sun Belt Conference, held the Sun Belt leader in runs scored to 1 run in the second inning and 2 in the fifth while scattering 8 hits over 8 innings and striking out 3.

Troy’s Trae Santos hit his league-leading 16th home run of the season in the second inning, and Troy (40-16) made it 3-0 in the fifth when Brandon Brown hit an RBI single, advanced to third with a stolen base and an error and came home on Tyler Vaughn’s RBI double.

Wright held Troy scoreless the rest of the game, but ASU couldn’t make up any ground until the ninth. The Red Wolves (26-30) stranded 12 runners on base, including at least two in each of the first three innings.

Collin Massanelli led off the game with a double, then Stuart Levy hit a two-out single before Uxa struck out to strand both runners.

The Red Wolves loaded the bases with no outs in the second before Troy starter Jeremy McGowan got Dustin Jones out on an infield fly, struck Massanelli out looking and got Kevin Fitzpatrick to ground into a fielder’s choice.

After Santos gave Troy a 1-0 lead with a home run to right field in the bottom of the second, reliever Levi Tate worked out of a jam in the third. McGowan gave up a one-out single to Levy and walked Uxa. Tate came on in relief, and Ryan Roberts drew a two-out walk to load the bases before Alex Potts struck out looking.

The Red Wolves stranded single runners in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings before finally scoring in the ninth.

Jones led off with a bunt single, Drew Burks doubled, and Jones scored when Fitzpatrick grounded out before Burks scored on a wild pitch. Levy then walked and Kaleb Brown pinch-ran and stole second, but Uxa struck out to end the game.

ASU, the No. 8 seed, will play Western Kentucky at 9 a.m. today in an elimination game.

SOUTH ALABAMA 10, UALR 2

South Alabama scored four runs in the first inning, added four in the third and UALR committed four errors in the Jaguars’ first-round victory.

The No. 2 seeded Jaguars (41-16) chased UALR starter Chance Cleveland before the senior right-hander recorded an out in the third inning of what could be his final start for the Trojans.

Cleveland, a second-team All-Sun Belt pick, gave up 6 runs - 3 earned - on 6 hits and struck out 2.

The seventh-seeded Trojans (28-27) were held scoreless until David Guarno’s single in the fifth scored Bryson Thionnet and Sam Vogel’s home run to lead off the seventh made it 8-2. The Jaguars added two unearned runs in the seventh.

UALR will play Florida International at 12:30 p.m. today in an elimination game.

At a glance At M.L. Tigue Moore Field, Lafayette, La.

WEDNESDAY’S GAMES

Troy 3, Arkansas State 2 South Alabama 10, UALR 2 Florida Atlantic 5, Western Kentucky 4 La.-Lafayette 9, Fla. International 6

TODAY’S GAMES All times Central

Arkansas State vs. W. Kentucky, 9 a.m.

UALR vs. Fla. International, 12:30 p.m.

Florida Atlantic vs. Troy, 4 p.m.

S. Alabama vs. La.-Lafayette, 7:30 p.m.

Sports, Pages 23 on 05/23/2013

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