GREENVILLE, N.C. (ECU ATHLETICS) – No. 6 seed East Carolina scored three decisive runs in the top of the ninth inning Saturday afternoon inside BayCare Ballpark to knock out No. 3 seed South Florida 9-7 and advance to the title game of the American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship presented by Regions.
The Pirates (32-25) are into the championship game of the event for the third time in the last four years and will face No. 5 seed Tulane Sunday at Noon on ESPNNEWS. The Green Wave seek their third consecutive AAC Tournament championship after eliminating top seed UTSA earlier in the day. The Bulls finish their campaign at 31-25.
Ethan Norby (7-5) covered the final 1.2 innings to pick up the win as he allowed just one run on two hits with three strikeouts and no walks. Corey Braun (8-4) took the loss, surrendering five runs (four earned) on six hits, striking out six against no walks.
Braden Burress led the charge at the top of the lineup, going 3-for-5 with two runs scored, while Colby Wallace added two hits of his own. Dixon Williams and Austin Irby both finished with three RBI in the form of respective three-run home runs. Bradke Lohry paced USF with three hits and three runs scored.
Marcus Brodil opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning with a two-run single before South Florida extended its advantage to 4-0 in the second via a Carter Murphy RBI groundout and Carlos Jacome RBI single.
East Carolina cut into the deficit in the top of the fourth as, with no runners on and two outs, Johnson and Wallace drew consecutive walks before Irby stepped up and drilled one out to right center and onto the berm for a three-run home run. With reliever Ethan Young putting up zero after zero on the scoreboard, Williams hit a monster three-run bomb nearly to the highway past the right field wall in the seventh, his 12th long ball of the season, to give East Carolina a 6-4 lead. South Florida responded in the bottom of the inning with back-to-back solo home runs by Lohry and Murphy, however, that put the sides on even terms.
Burress led off the top of the ninth with what would be the big blow, his fourth home run of the season to left field, that afforded the Pirates a 7-6 lead. Ryley Johnson then tripled to left to score Williams and Wallace followed with an RBI single to plate Johnson and make it 9-6.
Murphy would produce an RBI double off the wall in right field to score Lohry to bring the score to 9-7 in the bottom of the ninth, but Norby slammed the door shut by inducing a liner to short.
2025 American Baseball Championship presented by Regions
BayCare Ballpark | Clearwater, Fla.
Tuesday, May 20
Game 1: No. 5 Tulane 6, No. 4 Florida Atlantic 3
Game 2: No. 1 UTSA 4, No. 8 Rice 2
Game 3: No. 2 Charlotte 7, No. 7 Wichita State 1
Game 4: No. 6 East Carolina 9, No. 3 South Florida 4
Wednesday, May 21
Game 5: No. 4 Florida Atlantic 8, No. 8 Rice 6 (Rice Eliminated)
Game 6: No. 3 South Florida 4, No. 7 Wichita State 3 (Wichita State Eliminated)
Thursday, May 22
Game 7: No. 5 Tulane 10, No. 1 UTSA 6
Game 8: No. 6 East Carolina 6, No. 2 Charlotte 5
Friday, May 23
Game 9: No. 1 UTSA 6, No. 4 Florida Atlantic 3 (Florida Atlantic Eliminated)
Game 10: No. 3 South Florida 7, No. 2 Charlotte 6 (Charlotte Eliminated)
Saturday, May 24
Game 11: No. 5 Tulane 6, No. 1 UTSA 3 (UTSA Eliminated)
Game 12: No. 6 East Carolina 9, No. 3 South Florida 7 (South Florida Eliminated)
Sunday, May 25
Championship Game: No. 5 Tulane vs. No. 6 East Carolina | Noon | ESPNEWS and ESPN+
All times listed are Eastern.
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