MARSHALL, Texas – In their first American Southwest Conference game of the season, the East Texas Baptist University baseball team fell to Howard Payne University, 4-2. ETBU is now 0-7 overall and 0-1 in the ASC.

Jake Miller led the Tigers with two hits while both Brady Faulkner and James Rupert drove in a RBI. Peyton Miller received the start and took the loss allowing four runs on four hits while striking out eight in six innings of work. Adrian Stover would finish the final two innings allowing no runs and only two hits. RJ Roberts would lead HPU with three hits while Cade Varrichio collected two RBI. Xavier Haines was the winning pitcher with two runs allowed on five hits and four strikeouts in seven innings. Kory Owen recorded the save striking out three batters in the ninth.

ETBU found the first run of the game in the first inning as they would score a run on two errors with Faulkner reaching first while Spigener scored. HPU responded in the top of the second with four runs to lead, 4-1. The Tigers would load the bases in the bottom of the third inning, but came up empty as the Yellow Jackets preserved their three-run lead. The lead would stay the same until the bottom of the sixth inning, when after a Singletary double, Rupert would deliver an RBI single to cut the lead in half.

Stover came in relief for Miller in the top of the seventh and would hold HPU scoreless for three innings. In each of the next three innings, ETBU would bring up the tying run but were unable to knot the score at four as HPU went on to claim the victory.

ETBU will play HPU in a doubleheader tomorrow starting at 1:00 PM at Woods Field. The first game is slated to be a seven-inning contest while Game 2 is scheduled for nine innings.