CHAMP CENTRAL
BOX SCORE
HIGHLIGHTS
COACH WHITTING INTERVIEW
PHOTO GALLERY
CLEARWATER, Fla. – First baseman Joe Davis hit a grand slam and Seth Romero set a tournament-record with 11 strikeouts to lead fifth-seeded Houston to a 5-3 win against top-seeded Tulane Thursday at the American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship at Bright House Field.
Houston (35-22) improved to 2-0 in the tournament and advances to the semifinal round, where it will face either Tulane or UCF Saturday at 10 a.m. Tulane (38-18) suffered its first loss of the championship, sending the Green Wave to a Friday elimination game against UCF at 11 a.m. ET.
Davis’ grand slam came with one out in the bottom of the third inning as he sent an 0-2 breaking ball over the fence in left-center for his 12th home run of the season. It was Davis’ second grand slam of the year and the first by any player in the three-year history of the American Athletic Conference Championship. The Cougars had loaded the bases on Justin Montemayor’s leadoff single and a pair of walks.
Stephen Alemais had two RBIs for Tulane as he staked the Green Wave to a 1-0 lead with a double in the top of the third inning and cut the deficit to 4-2 with a base hit in the fifth. Tulane cut the Houston lead to one when pinch hitter Matt Rowland laced an RBI single to center, but Houston reliever Nick Hernandez took over for Romero and struck out Alemais to end the threat.
Houston added an insurance run on Corey Julks’ RBI single in the bottom of the eighth.
Romero struck out 11 in 7.2 innings, breaking the tournament record of 10, set by teammate Andrew Lantrip against USF May 26, 2015. He improved to 6-4 with the win, while Hernandez registered the last seven outs for his 10th save of the season.
Emerson Gibbs took the loss for Tulane, falling to 7-3 after allowing four runs and four hits in seven innings.
Houston will make its third straight appearance in the American Athletic Conference Championship semifinal round. The Cougars won the inaugural tournament in 2014 and reached the tournament final in 2015.
The latest information on the American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship is available on the conference’s Championship Central page at
www.TheAmerican.org/Baseball.
2016 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
Bright House Field · Clearwater, Fla.
Tuesday, May 24 (CBS Sports Network)
Game 1 – No. 5 Houston 9, vs. No. 4 Cincinnati 1
Game 2 – No. 1 Tulane 4, No. 8 UCF 3
Wednesday, May 25 (American Digital Network)
Game 3 – No. 7 USF 4, No. 2 East Carolina 2
Game 4 – No. 3 UConn 6, No. 6 Memphis 2
Game 5 – UCF 7, Cincinnati 6 (10 innings) ........................................ (Cincinnati eliminated)
Thursday, May 26 (American Digital Network)
Game 6 – Memphis 5, East Carolina 4......................................... (East Carolina eliminated)
Game 7 – Houston 5, Tulane 3
Game 8 – UConn (34-22) vs. USF (24-31)........................................................................ 7 p.m.
Friday, May 27 (American Digital Network
Game 9 – Tulane (38-18) vs. UCF (26-32)...................................................................... 11 a.m.
Game 10 – Loser of Game 8 vs. Memphis (20-37)........................................................ 3 p.m.
Saturday, May 28 (American Digital Network)
Game 11 – Houston (35-22) vs. Winner of Game 9..................................................... 10 a.m.
Game 12 – Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 10................................................. 1 p.m.
Game 13 – Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 11 (if necessary)................. 4:30 p.m.
Game 14 – Loser of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 12 (if necessary)................. 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 29 (ESPNews)
Game 15 – Semifinal winners.............................................................................................. Noon