HOUSTON – Needing to sweep their final two games of the regular season to advance to the postseason Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament, the University of St. Thomas baseball did exactly that Saturday as they swept a doubleheader from Centenary.
At Schroeder Park on the campus of the University of Houston, the Celts (17-23, 11-10 SCAC) secured the fourth and final berth into the SCAC Tournament by defeating Centenary 11-1 and 8-7.
The Celts entered the weekend with a two-game lead over Southwestern (Texas) for the final spot. UST needed to finish ahead of the Pirates for fourth place as Southwestern held the tiebreaker by having taken two out of three from the Celts earlier this month.
And while the Celts were tasked with playing the conference's third-place team in Centenary (24-15, 14-7 SCAC), Southwestern predictably swept a home series from UDallas, which ended its season on a 19-game losing streak.
In what was essentially two elimination games for UST, the Celts recovered from a 19-1 loss to Centenary on Friday and claimed the program's first conference tournament bid since the reviving the program in 2020.
Chris Parsons went to the mound for the Celts in the opener was almost unhittable when his team needed it most. The junior from Katy, Texas (Seven Lakes) allowed just one hit – a home run in the top of the fifth inning – while walking two and striking out eight in a shortened, eight-inning contest.
In keeping the visiting Gents at bay, Parsons ran his scoreless innings streak to 15. By the time Centenary got on the board with a home run, the Celts still led 8-1.
The Celts took a 4-0 lead after one inning, with Knight Newcomb hitting a two-RBI single which was followed by Dylan stealing home as part of a double-steal.
Newcomb had three RBIs in the game, while Tristan Pitkin went 3-for-5 with three RBIs. Leo Galvan went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored in the opener.
In game two, Newcomb had four RBIs, including a two-RBI single in the first inning as the Celts again jumped out to an 8-1 lead. This time, UST had to fend off a late rally from the Gents before the celebration could commence.
Starting pitcher Luke Sebesta allowed just one earned run over seven innings pitched for the Celts, allowing only three hits and striking out three batters.
Kameron Craig earned his second save the season when he was brought into the game in the ninth inning after a three-run Centenary home run cut UST's lead to 8-7. He hit a batter, induced a flyout, hit another batter, then got a groundout to third base that was completed when Newcomb made a great stop and got to the bag before the Centenary runner and sent the Celts and their fans into celebration.
The Celts begin play at the SCAC Tournament on Friday, May 6, at the Depot in Cleburne, Texas. Game times will be announced by the SCAC later this week.
