Box Score (PDF)

MOBILE, Ala. – Arkansas State's Kyle MacDonald delivered a three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning to lead the Red Wolves to a 6-3 series-opening win over the University of South Alabama baseball team Friday at Stanky Field.

ASU (14-24, 5-14 SBC) snapped a three-game losing skid to the Jaguars with the win, as well as a five-game SBC losing streak. 

South Alabama (24-16, 12-6 SBC) will return to action Saturday when it hosts Arkansas State in game two of the three-game set at 6:30 p.m. at Stanky Field. 

GAME FACTS
- Dylan Hardy reached on a one-out infield single in the bottom of the first inning, and advanced to second when ASU second baseman Tobias Johnson's throw to first sailed wide of the bag. Brendan Donovan reached on a hit by pitch before Carter Perkins delivered an RBI single to right-center field to score Hardy with the game's first run. Michael Sandle delivered a two-strike, two-out double down the left field line later in the inning to score Donovan and double the Jaguar lead at 2-0. 
- Winston Welch reached on a fielding error by Jaguar second baseman Hunter Stokes to lead off the top of the second inning, and moved to second on a single to right field by Johnson. Cullen Ray then reached on a fielding error by Wells Davis on a sacrifice bunt that loaded the bases with no outs. Jaguar right-hander Tyler Carr struck out Jaylon Deshazier for the first out of the inning, and induced a grounder off the bat of Drew Tipton to first which Davis fired to home for the second out of the frame. Grant Hawkins then delivered a two-out, two-run single to right field to score Welch and Johnson to tie the game at 2-2. Jeremy Brown followed with an RBI single back up the middle to score Tipton for a 3-2 ASU lead. 
- Donovan led off the bottom of the fifth with a double down the left field line, and tagged and advanced to third with one out on a flyout to right field by Perkins. Davis followed with an RBI groundout to second to score Donovan and tie the game at 3-3. 
- Johnson reached on a hit by pitch with one out in the top of the eighth, and moved to third on a single to right field by Ray to put ASU runners at the corners with one out. Jaguar right-hander Zach Greene struck out Caleb Squire for the second out of the frame, and induced an inning-ending popup off the bat of Tipton to end the threat and preserve a 3-3 tie. 
- Hawkins and Jeremy Brown drew consecutive walks to start the top of the ninth before Kyle McDonald lifted a 1-2 pitch from Greene over the right field wall for a three-run home run to give the Red Wolves a 6-3 lead. 
- Perkins and Davis each drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the ninth before Sandle reached on a fielder's choice that put runners at the corners with two outs. But ASU right-hander Bo Ritter induced a popup to first base off the bat of pinch-hitter Hunter Brittain to end the game. 

NOTES
- Donovan extended his on-base streak to 10 games when he reached on a hit by pitch with one out in the bottom of the first inning. He extended his hitting streak to eight games with a leadoff double in the bottom of the fifth inning.
- Swaggerty extended his on-base streak to 22 games with a two-out single in the bottom of the second inning. 
- Hardy went 3-for-5 with a double and one RBI to lead the Jags at the plate. Perkins and Sandle had one hit and one RBI apiece, and Donovan added a hit and two runs scored.
- Ray finished 3-for-4 with one run scored to lead ASU offensively.
- ASU left-hander Coulton Lee (3-5) tossed 3 1/3 scoreless relief innings, and allowed two hits with two strikeouts against three walks to earn the win.
- Ritter tossed two-thirds of a scoreless inning to record his third save of the season.
- Greene (2-3) allowed three runs on four hits with five strikeouts against two walks in 3 2/3 relief innings in the loss.

QUOTES
Head Coach Mark Calvi
- On the loss:
"You're not going to win many ballgames when you make two errors – we gave them three runs in the second inning. You can't win many games like that and leaving men on base. Give credit to Arkansas State; they got the big hit when they needed it, and took advantage of our two defensive mistakes. They worked their way on (base) and got the home run late, that was the difference. (Dylan) Hardy just missed one (home run) in the eighth (inning) that would have put us up – maybe our fate is a little different there in the end. But (Tyler) Carr and Zach Greene competed hard all game. We had our chances, but we need to be better and play better baseball across the board."

- On Tyler Carr's performance:
"I thought Tyler deserved a much better fate. He competed and should have zeros across the board, but sometimes that happens and when it does it's how you respond. He responded well; he pitched right through it and kept competing. It's disappointing we didn't make those plays behind him, but I was pleased with Carr's performance."

UP NEXT
South Alabama will return to action Saturday when it hosts Arkansas State in game two of the three-game set at 6:30 p.m. at Stanky Field. 

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

Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics. Contributions to South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give.