Carson Hagan (pictured above) led The Cru with a 2-for-3 performance on Friday (Photo by Luke Zayas/True To The Cru)
MARSHALL, Texas— On Thursday afternoon, it was a big first inning from LeTourneau that sank UMHB in an eventual 19-9 loss at the ASC Tournament. But in Friday’s elimination game, the opposite unfolded. This time, an outburst in the ninth inning from Hardin-Simmons proved to be the difference.
In what had been a one-run game, the Cowboys plated six runs in the final frame, pulling away from UMHB en route to a 12-5 result that ended The Cru’s 2025 season.
UMHB, the No. 3 seed, went 0-2 at the tournament for the second year in a row, ending the season at 24-18 overall. Hardin-Simmons, coached by former UMHB assistant Mitch Wilson, advanced to play in Saturday’s 5 p.m. elimination game.
The Cru displayed exceptional resilience in the early goings, falling behind 2-0 in the top of the first only to take the lead just a half-inning later. Carson Hagan, Cameron Talburt, and Riley Bender went back-to-back-to-back with three straight hits to open the bottom of the first, responding quickly to HSU’s early surge.
After Hagan lined a base hit to right field, Talburt beat out an infield single to shortstop, setting up Bender for an RBI double that traveled down the left field line in fair territory. Hagan, the program’s leader in career stolen bases, showcased his speed as he scored from second on the double, cutting HSU’s lead in half. Shane Melick, who went 0-for-4 but had 2 RBIs on the day, tied the score on a groundout that scored Talburt from third, and Bender put UMHB in front when he tagged from third on a deep flyout to right field off the bat of Alejandro Sanchez III.
HSU ultimately took back the lead with five runs between the third and fifth innings, going up 6-3. But much like in the first inning, UMHB found a way to stay in it, scoring two runs in the bottom of the fifth on just one hit—a double from Hagan—to cut the deficit to 6-5. Four runners reached base in the inning, as HSU starter Bradley Fletcher began struggling with control. He walked two batters and hit another, along with two wild pitches that proved costly for the Cowboys. His second wild pitch put Hagan on third and Talburt on second, setting up an RBI fielder’s choice from Melick and an Austin Birkhoff sac fly that scored Talburt.
Despite both sides being limited in pitching depth—UMHB used four pitchers, including top reliever Mason Semmelmann on Thursday, and HSU was in its third game of the tournament—the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings were scoreless. But just when it seemed to be trending towards a tight finish, with the pitching having been stable for three straight innings, HSU found another strong offensive stretch. The six-run inning was a product of three hits, three walks, and two errors, including Luke Kirkbride’s two-out grand slam that pushed the Cowboys’ lead to 12-5.
Friday marked the conclusion of several college careers for key contributors on the UMHB roster, players who were especially impactful for The Cru in this current season and in past years as well. Five of UMHB’s position-playing starters against HSU were seniors, including Hagan, who went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a pair of walks in the leadoff spot, Talburt, who finished 2-for-4 and scored twice, and Bender, the power-hitting third baseman who had two hits of his own against the Cowboys. Starting pitcher James McGlumphy and reliever Isaac Brann joined the group of seniors who played their last game with UMHB on Friday, with McGlumphy finishing a career that saw him start at least 11 contests in three of his four years in Belton. True To The Cru thanks all of UMHB’s seniors for their contributions to the program during their time in Belton.
Notes from Woods Field
- Melick finished his junior season with 15 multi-RBI games, a team-high. Over UMHB’s final five games, the first baseman tallied three 2-RBI performances.
- With his 1-for-3 day at the plate, designated hitter Austin Birkhoff closed the 2025 campaign on a 12-game hit streak. It was the only active hit streak on the team longer than four games, and overall, was the third-longest of any hit streak for UMHB this season.
- Riley Bender and Shane Melick tied for the team’s longest hitting streak of 2025, with 14.
- Alejandro Sanchez III reached base via a hit-by-pitch with two outs in the third. It marked the 20th consecutive game that the senior second baseman reached base, the second-longest such streak on the team this season. Sanchez posted a .404 on-base percentage in his lone season with The Cru.
- Six of UMHB’s eight hits in the loss came from the top three in the order: Hagan, Talburt, and Bender. Both Hagan and Bender finished the season as two of UMHB’s three players (Melick is the third) to hit above .360. Unsurprisingly, that duo also combined for 28 multi-hit games this season — Bender (15), Hagan (13) — which ranked as the second-most and third-most on the team.
- Bender’s slugging percentage of .729 will go down in program history as the second-highest in a single-season during UMHB’s D3 era. His mark surpasses Earnest Pena’s .714, set in 2008, and is second only to Joseph Villegas’ .772, also set in 2008.
- Bender had 17 doubles, 2 triples, and 9 home runs this spring. His 9 HRs are tied with Ryan Vaughn’s mark from 2000 for the fifth-most in UMHB history.
