HUNTSVILLE, Texas – The FIU baseball program erupted for 13 runs Thursday night en route to a dominant 13-5 victory over Sam Houston to open the weekend series at Don Sanders Stadium.
With the win, FIU (28-25, 11-13 CUSA) officially clinches a spot in the 2025 Conference USA Championship, set for May 21–25 in Lynchburg, Virginia. The berth marks the Panthers' second consecutive postseason appearance—the first back-to-back showing since the 2017 and 2018 seasons. FIU also notched its highest win total (28) since 2017 and the most under third-year head coach Rich Witten.
The Panthers' offense paved the way, plating 13 runs on 14 hits—including seven extra-base hits. FIU wasted no time, jumping out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning. Brylan West led off with a solo shot to left-center field for his 11th home run of the season, matching his 2024 total. Later in the inning, Kishon Frett scored on a fielder's choice by Javier Crespo before Alex Ulloa drove in two with a double to right-center. Ulloa then came around to score on a defensive error.
Sam Houston (12-41, (6-19 CUSA) responded with a two-run homer in the bottom of the first, but FIU extended its lead in the third inning. Kareh Valentin crushed a two-run home run to left-center—his fourth of the season—making it 7-2. The Bearkats added two runs in the sixth to narrow the gap to 7-4.
FIU kept the offense rolling in the late innings. In the seventh, Ulloa drove in Austin Dearing with his team-leading 14th double of the season. Valentin then added an RBI sacrifice bunt, scoring Ulloa to extend the lead to 9-4.
In the eighth, West scored on a wild pitch before Dearing launched a two-run homer—his sixth of the year and third in the past four games. Cole Cleveland crossed the plate on a passed ball in the ninth. Sam Houston scored once more in the final frame, but the Panthers held on for the eight-run win.
Easton Marks made his 14th start on the mound, working one inning and allowing two earned runs. Jaydon Bishop earned his first win of the season with a career-high 4.1 innings of relief, giving up two runs and striking out three. Tracen Cameron, Kevin Martin, and Tristan Dietrich combined for the remaining 3.2 innings, with Martin tossing two scoreless frames and collecting a pair of strikeouts.
Every Panther in the lineup recorded at least one hit, with four players tallying multi-hit performances. Andrew Ildefonso recorded his first career three-hit game and 13th multi-hit effort of the season. Dearing added two hits, two RBI, and a homer. Ulloa chipped in three RBI with a pair of doubles, while Cleveland added two hits, including a double. Valentin finished with a team-high three RBI.
UP NEXT
FIU prepares for game two at Sam Houston on Friday, May 16. First pitch from Don Sanders Stadium is Huntsville,Texas is set for 7:30 p.m.
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