Greenville, S.C. – Trent Turner laced a one-out double off the Green Monster in left field, sending
Jackson Lyda around to score the go-ahead run from first base, sliding around the tag at the plate as Western Carolina took its first lead in the 2026 Southern Conference Baseball Championship in the eighth inning of Thursday night's elimination game against No. 7-seeded UNC Greensboro.
WCU senior reliever
Davis Wright (4-1) then put an exclamation point on the come-from-behind victory with a pair of strikeouts in the top of the ninth inning to cap five scoreless innings on the mound as the Catamounts ousted the upset-minded Spartans from the tournament with a 4-3 decision at Fluor Field at the West End.
Western Carolina (36-22) advances into Friday's action, where it meets third-seeded Samford at 12:30 p.m. The Catamounts must win twice against the Bulldogs to advance to Saturday's winner-take-all championship game.
Friday's tournament bracket includes a 9 a.m. match-up between unbeaten fifth-seed The Citadel, which has advanced out of the single-elimination play, facing top-seeded Mercer, with a loss dropping the Bears from the tournament and a Bulldog win propelling The Citadel to Championship Saturday.
The semifinal matchups will be broadcast on ESPN+ (
paid subscription required) with live streaming audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats links of WCU's games available online at CatamountSports.com.
Gallery: (5-21-2026) SoCon Baseball Championship - vs. UNCG
Wright was strong out of the bullpen, scattering three singles over five shutout relief innings and striking out four. He did not allow a Spartan baserunner past first base over the final five frames in relief of starter
James Fordham, who fanned four over 3.2 innings.
Shane Huntsberger posted a crucial fourth-inning strikeout for his third of an inning, stranding the bases loaded with the game teetering at 3-1.
Western Carolina was limited to just three base hits in the winning effort, but each went for extra bases and plated runs.
Wyatt Stanley belted a solo home run to left in the second inning to put the Catamounts on the board, and
Jaylen Jones lined a solo shot to left-center in the fifth to pull WCU back to within a run, 3-2.
Turner secured the only other base knock in the victory, doubling off the wall in the eighth to score Lyda, who led off the decisive frame with a walk. The two reached base twice, both drawing first-inning HBPs.
UNCG (23-33) had six hits scattered among five players, with Jake Mueller singling twice in a 2-for-4 effort and scoring the squad's third run. Luke Holland (1-for-5) doubled and was aboard for the two-run homer by Jacob Budzik (1-for-4) in the first inning that staked the Spartans to an early two-run lead. Wyatt Bush reached base twice on an HBP and with a run-scoring single, with Jacob Dilley reaching twice with a single and a walk.
Down two after half an inning following the Budzik round-tripper,
Wyatt Stanley led off the second inning with a solo home run to trim the deficit back to one, though a second double-play in as many innings limited the rally.
The Spartans stretched their lead back to two in the fourth inning with a bases-loaded RBI walk by Ethan Brittain for the 3-1 lead.
Jaylen Jones led off the fifth inning with a second solo home run by the Catamounts, halting a string of eight-straight retired by the Spartans. Two batters later,
Cam Murray reached base on an infield error to keep the inning alive.
Jackson Godfrey then shot a liner to left field, where it was misplayed, allowing Murray to race around the bases and avoid the tag at home to knot the game.
Lyda walked to start the home half of the eighth before Turner just missed capping the top of the Monster in left, with Lyda racing around to score the game-winning run from first on the play.
The two teams combined for four double-plays, three by UNCG and one turned by the SoCon leader, WCU.
Among the final four teams remaining, Western Carolina is back in action at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, two wins over Samford shy of advancing to the conference championship game scheduled for Saturday.
2026 SoCon Baseball Championship Schedule | Bracket (PDF)
Presented by Holston Gases
Wednesday |
May 20 (ESPN+)
Gm 1: 9:00 a.m. – No. 5 The Citadel 21, No. 8 VMI 11 (8 inn.)
Gm 2: 12:30 p.m. – No. 7 UNCG 6, No. 6 ETSU 5
Gm 3: 4:00 p.m. – No. 5 The Citadel 13, No. 4 Wofford 7
Gm 4: 7:30 p.m. – No. 3 Samford 13, No. 7 UNCG 1 (7 inn.)
Thursday |
May 21 (ESPN+)
Gm 5: 9:00 a.m. – No. 5 The Citadel 9, No. 1 Mercer 2
Gm 6: 12:30 p.m. – No. 3 Samford 9, No. 2 Western Carolina 5
Gm 7: 4:00 p.m. – No. 1 Mercer 9, No. 4 Wofford 8
Gm 8: 7:30 p.m. – No. 2 Western Carolina 4, No. 7 UNCG 3
Friday |
May 22 (ESPN+)
Gm 9: 9:00 a.m. – No. 5 The Citadel vs. No.1 Mercer
Gm 10: 12:30 p.m. – No. 3 Samford vs. No. 2 Western Carolina
Gm 11: 4:00 p.m. – If Necessary
Gm 12: 7:30 p.m. – If Necessary
Saturday |
May 23 (ESPNU)
Gm 13: 7:30 p.m. – Championship Game (single-elimination)
