JACKSON, Tenn.— The Thomas Night Hawks jumped on Loyola early with a four-run first inning and leaned on timely hitting and clean defense to secure an 8-4 victory Thursday morning at the SSAC Tournament.
The Night Hawks showed urgency from the first pitch, capitalizing on a Loyola error, a sacrifice fly from Cameron Tyson, a squeeze bunt from catcher Brayden Lawhon and a two-RBI double from Michael Sowers to open up a 4-1 lead after one. Senior outfielder Hunter Kern was a sparkplug at the top of the order, going a perfect 4-for-4 with a double and three runs scored.
Thomas added insurance runs in the fifth, seventh, and eighth innings. Senior Cameron Rosario provided the offensive punch with two hits and two RBIs with one hit being an impressive bunt down the third base line, while Lawhon added a sacrifice fly to drive in another.
On the mound, Dustin Letchworth battled through 5.0 innings, scattering five hits and surrendering just one. Reliever Reilly Kuhar (2-1) earned the win with 4.0 strong innings out of the bullpen, and after giving up a homer in the ninth, retired the next two batters to shut the door and earn the save.
Thomas played error-free defense, executed small ball efficiently and turned a key double play. Loyola struggled to capitalize despite nine hits, hampered by four defensive errors and missed scoring chances.
The win puts Thomas at 1-1 in pool play going into Friday, where they need a loss from ABAC and win against Mobile to stay in contention for the championship game. The Night Hawks will play the Rams tomorrow, May 2nd at 1:00PM EST / 12:00PM CST
