Box score

MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama baseball team used a quality start from right-hander Hunter Soleymani and a six-run fifth inning to defeat Southern Mississippi 9-3 Tuesday at Stanky Field. 

Soleymani (1-0) allowed three runs on six hits with four strikeouts and one walk in 6 2/3 innings to earn his first win of the season. Mike Dolloff tossed 2 1/3 scoreless relief innings, and allowed three hits with one strikeout and one walk.

"This was a total team effort that started tonight with senior Hunter Soleymani on the mound," head coach Mark Calvi said. "They (Southern Miss) is a really good team. They are coached well; they have a very good coaching staff that coaches hard and recruits well. But I am proud of our guys tonight and the way they came out and kept battling until the end."

The Jags pushed the game's first run across in the bottom of the third. Drew LaBounty reached on a one-out walk, and Jared Barnes followed with a single to right field to put runners at the corners with one out. Ben Gann then lifted a sacrifice fly to right-center field to plate LaBounty with the first run of the game. Danny Martinez and Matt Bolger drew consecutive two-out walks to load the bases. But USM right-hander Austin Millet worked out of the jam with an inning-ending strikeout of Tanner Halstead.

USM (7-1) answered to tie the game in the top of the fifth. Chase Scott drew a leadoff walk from Soleymani, and scored to tie the game later in the inning on a two-out RBI triple to the left-center gap by Nick Dawson.

USA (7-1) responded with its biggest inning of the game in the bottom of the fifth to take a six-run lead. LaBounty led off the inning with a walk from Millet, and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Barnes. Gann followed with a base on balls, and Martinez drew a walk from USM left-hander Luke Lowery to load the bases with one out. Bolger followed with a two-run single back up the middle to score LaBounty and Gann for a 3-1 Jaguar lead. Halstead then reached on a fielder's choice to third to load the bases for Adam Wolfe, who lifted a 1-0 pitch from Lowery over the left-center field wall for a grand slam and 7-1 USA advantage. 

"I was just trying to stay back and wait for my pitch," Wolfe said. "I was waiting for a fastball, and he left one up and I put a good swing on it."

The Golden Eagles pushed across their final runs of the game in the top of the seventh. USM scored its second run of the game on a two-out RBI single to right field by Dawson to cut the Jaguar lead to 7-2. A walk by Dylan Burdeaux from USA right-hander Mike Dolloff loaded the bases for Jake Sandlin, who then delivered an RBI single back up the middle to cut the USM deficit to 7-3.

South Alabama responded with the final two runs of the game in the bottom of the seventh. Bolger led off the inning with a walk, and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt from Halstead. Wolfe then reached on a hit by pitch before Brendan Donovan singled to center field to load the bases. Cole Billingsley then reached on a fielder's choice to second to score Bolger and extend the USA lead to 8-3. Wolfe scored later in the inning on a wild pitch with the final run of the game.

Millet (1-1) allowed two runs with three walks and one strikeout in 1 2/3 relief innings in the loss. Wolfe finished 1-for-3 with a home run – his second in as many games – four RBI and two runs scored to lead the Jags at the plate. Bolger went 1-for-3 with two RBI and two runs scored, and Billingsley and Gann drove in one run apiece. Dawson finished 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBI to lead the Golden Eagles offensively.

South Alabama will return to action Wednesday when it faces Southern Mississippi at 7:05 p.m. at MGM Park in Biloxi, Miss.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).