Greenville, S.C. – Top-seeded East Tennessee State erased a one-run deficit with a four-run bottom of the eighth inning to outlast upset-minded No. 5 seed Western Carolina to survive and advance into the winner's bracket while the Catamounts drop into the loser's bracket at the 2025 Southern Conference Baseball Championship, presented by Holston Gases at Fluor Field.
 
Down by two, 12-10, entering the eighth inning, the Catamounts found a three-spot to surge back in front of Friday's see-saw affair. Brayden Corn singled, and Trent Turner was plunked to put two aboard before Mason Holton sliced a run-scoring double past the shortstop to trim the deficit to one. The next batter, Wyatt Stanley, then belted a two-run double to left-center as the Catamounts reclaimed the lead for the third time.
 
However, trailing 13-12, four of the first five Buccaneer batters reached in the home half of the eighth inning and each scored on four consecutive singles as ETSU retook the lead for the last time, 16-13.
 
WCU would not go quietly in the final frame, though, loading the bases with two outs. Corn drew a walk before pinch-hitter Cole Jones singled to right field to bring the tying run to the plate. Turner then coaxed a walk to load the bases before a strikeout ended the threat and the game, relegating WCU to the afternoon tilt with No. 3 The Citadel.
 
Trent Turner (3-for-4) finished a double shy of the cycle, reaching base five times with a single, two-run triple, and a two-run home run, accompanying a walk and an HBP. He drove home four runs and scored four times for the Catamounts.  Jack Spyke (2-for-6) plated three runs with an RBI single and a two-run homer, while Elijah Smith (2-for-5) singled and doubled with an RBI.
 
Nine of the 10 Catamounts that batted collected hits, including Cole Jones, who debuted in the tournament with a pinch-hit single in the ninth inning.
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ETSU had four players collect multi-hit games, led by catcher JD Yakubinis, who was 3-for-5 with a trio of singles and three RBI. Cody Miller (2-for-4) homered as part of his two RBIs, while Blake Jacklin and Cooper Torres finished 2-for-3. Torres reached base four times with a run-scoring HBP and a walk. Grant Gallagher (1-for-4) drove in a team-high-tying three runs.
 
ETSU (39-15) took a 2-0 lead through the first three innings as Miller was hit by the game's first pitch and promptly stole second and third base before scoring on a Torres sacrifice fly. Miller later hit a solo home run with one out in the third inning for the two-run advantage. Spyke tied the game with one swing of the bat in the top of the fourth with a two-run blast to right field that carried the outfield wall to knot the game at two apiece.
 
Western Carolina grabbed its first lead of the day with a six-run top half of the fifth inning. The frame opened with Trey Spees reaching on an error and Corn hit by a pitch. Turner then laced a one-out, two-RBI triple to right center that was overrun by both Buccaneers in center and right field. Spyke plated another run with a single up the middle. WCU capitalized on a second ETSU error with Elijah Smith's RBI double and a run-scoring single by Noah Quarless.
 
Momentum swung back the other way in the home half of the fifth as the opportunistic Buccaneers took advantage of a walk, two hit batters, and three consecutive two-out doubles that plated four runs. The first of the trio of two-baggers dropped in left field as WCU's left side of the diamond lost the ball high in the air in the mid-morning sun, with three runs scoring as the baseball plummeted to the ground.
 
Tied at eight, WCU reclaimed the advantage in the top of the sixth inning as Trent Turner belted a two-run homer to left center field for the 8-6 lead, which the Catamounts carried into the bottom of the seventh inning. ETSU, though, used a four-run, post-stretch rally as the top-seeded Bucs pulled back in front, 12-10.
 
Like a playground teeter-totter, momentum swung back to WCU in the top of the eighth inning as Corn singled, Turner was plunked, and Holton doubled home a run. The next batter, Stanley, laced a two-run double to left-center to push WCU back in front, 13-12, setting up the final two frames.
 
Freshman Carter Burnette tossed 4.1 innings in the starting role, striking out three against three walks allowing five runs on just two base hits. Brandon Langley tossed an inning and a third with three walks and three strikeouts, surrendering three runs on two hits. Ryan White struck out one over two-thirds of an inning, with Evan Langston (1-1) suffering the loss, tagged for three runs on four hits with a walk and a strikeout.
 
For ETSU, starter Carter Fink was knocked out of the game after 4.1 innings, allowing six runs, four earned, on six hits with a walk. Reliever Brady Frederick (8-1) scored the win out of the bullpen, though the Catamounts tagged him with five runs on six hits with four strikeouts against a pair of walks. Andrew Ronne collected his third save of the year, issuing a walk and the game-sealing strikeout that stranded the bases loaded in the final frame.
 
No. 5 Western Carolina returns to face No. 3 The Citadel in the first elimination game of the double-elimination portion of the tournament on Friday evening at Fluor Field.
 
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