Photo of Kolby McBee courtesy of UMHB Athletics
BROWNWOOD — 12-run losses are never easy to swallow. Especially at home. And even more so against a team you beat just a month prior.
But on Wednesday night under the lights at Howard Payne’s Don Shepard Park, UMHB put Tuesday’s 15-3 loss to Trinity in the rearview mirror, displaying its offensive firepower complemented by a steady dose of pitching from both starter Kolby McBee and the three relievers that followed.
When Drake Gaines fanned Jorge Salas for the final out, UMHB put the exclamation point on the dominant 15-3 victory over HPU. There aren’t many better ways to start a conference road series than that. It was the second-largest margin of victory for The Cru in 2025, only preceded by a 15-0 shutout of Texas Lutheran on March 15.
The Crusaders improved to 19-14 with the win, and 4-5 in ASC play, inching closer to getting back to .500 in conference action. UMHB will have the opportunity to do just that in Thursday’s 3 p.m. doubleheader against the Yellow Jackets, who remain winless in ASC play at 0-9.
UMHB is also closing in on the 20-win mark for the second straight season and the fourth time in head coach Mike Stawski’s five full seasons in Belton. The last time The Cru recorded four 20-win seasons in a five-year stretch came between 2010 and 2014, which included a 26-win campaign, the second-most in the program’s D-III history.
With Wednesday’s win in the books, here are three quick observations from The Cru’s 13-run victory in Brownwood.
The top of the order continues to produce in big ways
While there have been some offensive lulls in recent weeks, the top of the lineup has been fairly consistent and they were exactly that and more against HPU. The top four in the order—Carson Hagan, Easton Cline, Riley Bender, and Shane Melick—combined to go 11-of-21 at the plate, and accounted for 10 of UMHB’s 12 RBIs. Hagan, Cline, and Melick each had three hits apiece, and Bender, who went 2-for-5, lined two doubles in his first two at-bats.
Those are exceptional offensive numbers, and that quartet provided the spark early, staying aggressive at the plate. The top three began the game this way: Hagan – double to left center, Cline – double to right center (scored Hagan), Bender – doubled to right center. Though those three extra-base hits produced only a single run, it made a statement that UMHB was not only seeing the ball well, but more than capable of driving pitches into the gaps.
It seemed infectious as the game wore on, and when it was all over, UMHB had tallied seven doubles, a triple from Hagan, and a homer from Melick. It was the most extra-base hits in a game for The Cru this season, and tied for fourth-most doubles in a contest in program history (D3 era). Much of that was a credit to the top of the order getting the momentum rolling against HPU starter Bryant Chambers, who surrendered 15 hits in 6.2 innings of work.
McBee making his case as ASC Freshman of the Year
Several newcomers have made noteworthy impacts for The Cru this season, but Kolby McBee’s performances on the mound continue to impress in big ways. The true freshman from Hewitt, Texas has stepped up for the pitching staff all season, especially in recent weeks with an incredible string of outings in the heart of ASC play.
In his second Game 1 start of the year last night, McBee delivered a gem, scattering six hits through 6.0 innings with just one earned run and six strikeouts. Just three HPU baserunners moved into scoring position while McBee was on the mound, and he did not give up an extra-base hit. That followed up another 6.0 inning outing last Thursday at UT-Dallas — a squad that is currently 27-4 and hitting .342. In that start, McBee held the Comets scoreless, striking out three with just two hits allowed.
On the year as a whole? He leads all ASC pitchers in earned run average, at 2.23. The second-best ERA in the league? ETBU’s Tyler Bogusz, at 3.45. He boasts a 6-1 record on the year, and has gone at least 6.0 innings in five of his nine appearances. Over his last three starts, McBee has just 1 earned run to his stat line, and that came in the third inning on Wednesday night. To perform as consistently as he has, with the kinds of numbers he’s put up, is impressive to say the least. He struck out at least one batter in five of the six innings he pitched against HPU, making up for a strikeout-less fifth with two in the sixth, ending his day on a high note.
Birkhoff proving to be a reliable bat in the lineup as of late
The top of the order weren’t the only Crusaders who contributed heavily to the offensive onslaught. Catcher Jesse Hemmerling went 3-for-5 out of the seventh spot, scoring three times in addition to driving in Alejandro Sanchez III for UMHB’s fifth run. And right behind him in the lineup, second baseman Austin Birkhoff had a memorable performance of his own, recording his first multi-hit game as a Crusader.
The junior transfer from Lamar Community College was 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored, and it was a throwing error on his third-inning single that allowed Hemmerling to extend the lead to 6-0 in the third. The Plano native went on to score on a wild pitch in the seventh, and crossed the plate in the ninth when Cline was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Birkhoff’s recent surge at the plate has come as a welcome surprise after he went 1-for-6 in a limited role off the bench through mid-March. But beginning with the home series against ASC rival Hardin-Simmons earlier this month, he has been productive in the order, making the most of seven starts since April 3. The infielder has hit safely in six of those seven games, going 8-for-22 and raising his average from .200 to .286 over the last seven days.
Did you know? UMHB’s 15 runs on Wednesday night were the most by The Cru in a game against Howard Payne since Feb. 22, 2014, when they won 17-3 in Brownwood. Last night’s win also pushed UMHB above .500 in road games against the Yellow Jackets since 1999, with The Cru now 21-20 in Brownwood.
