HUNTSVILLE, Texas – The FIU baseball program closed out the regular season in dominant fashion on Saturday afternoon, defeating Sam Houston 10-5 at Don Sanders Stadium to complete a three-game sweep.
The Panthers (30-25, 13-13 C-USA) reached the 30-win mark for the first time since 2017 and secured their highest Conference USA win total since 2018, finishing sixth in the standings. The sweep over Sam Houston marked FIU's second conference sweep of the season—joining the one over Western Kentucky—and their fifth conference series victory overall. In addition, it's the first time since 2016 to have a pair of conference sweeps in a single season.
FIU wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as Austin Dearing drove in Andrew Ildefonso and Brylan West with a two-run double to right field in the opening frame. Javier Crespo followed with an RBI single to center, giving the Panthers a quick 3-0 lead.
Sam Houston responded with two runs in the second inning, but Dearing answered in the third with a towering two-run homer—his seventh of the season—to extend FIU's lead to 5-2. Dearing capped off an impressive weekend with six hits, seven RBIs, two doubles, and two home runs.
Kishon Frett added an RBI single in the fourth to push the lead to 6-2. In the seventh, Adonys Velez launched his first career home run, a two-run shot to left field. Frett later delivered a two-run triple—his team-leading third of the season—in the ninth inning to seal the win before Sam Houston added with three in the bottom half.
On the mound, Juan Villarreal made his fifth start of the year, allowing two earned runs over 1.2 innings with two strikeouts. Ryan Reyerson tossed a scoreless inning, and Bryce Turner earned his second win of the season with 2.1 shutout innings and four strikeouts. Tracen Camerson added two scoreless frames with a pair of strikeouts, while Tristan Dietrich pitched a clean eighth. Shane Tucker, Bryce Greene, and Logan Voelz also saw action in the finale.
FIU finished with 11 hits in the game, with four players—Crespo, Dearing, Frett, and West—notching multi-hit performances. Cole Cleveland chipped in with a hit, his fourth of the weekend. Over the three-game series, the Panthers totaled 36 hits and 30 runs.
UP NEXT
FIU will now look to the CUSA Championships set in Lynchburg, Va from May 21 - 25. Bracket will be announced later tonight.
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