CLEARWATER, Fla. – Tulane’s Michael Lombardi struck out 11 as No. 5 Tulane defeated No. 4 Florida Atlantic, 6-3, in the first game of the 2025 American Baseball Championship presented by Regions, Tuesday morning, May 20 at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, Fla.
With the win, the Green Wave (31-24) will play against the winner of UTSA and Rice on Thursday, May 22 at 1 p.m. Eastern on ESPN+. Florida Atlantic will play in an elimination game on Wednesday, May 21 at 1 p.m. Eastern on ESPN+ against the loser of the UTSA/Rice game.
Lombardi (4-0), a first-team all-conference reliever that led The American in saves during the regular season, started for the Green Wave and struck out 11 batters while only allowing one run on two hits in seven innings of action. He outdueled fellow first-team all-conference selection Trey Beard (7-1) of Florida Atlantic, who allowed five runs (four earned) in six innings.
After the Owls (36-20) took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI double by Dylan LaPointe, Tulane responded in the top of the third on an RBI triple by Gavin Schulz that scored Tanner Chun.
The Green Wave took the lead for good with a run in the fourth and three runs in the fifth. Jason Wachs provided an insurance run on a home run to right-center field in the top of the ninth before the Owls plated two runs and had the bases loaded before Tayler Montiel struck out Ayden Garcia to end the game.
2025 American Baseball Championship presented by Regions
BayCare Ballpark | Clearwater, Fla.
Tuesday, May 20
Game 1: No. 5 Tulane 6, No. 4 Florida Atlantic 3 |
Box Score |
Highlights
Game 2: No. 8 Rice vs. No. 1 UTSA | 47 minutes after Game 1 | ESPN+
Game 3: No. 7 Wichita State vs. No. 2 Charlotte | 4 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 4: No. 6 East Carolina vs. No. 3 South Florida | 47 minutes after Game 3 | ESPN+
Wednesday, May 21
Game 5: No. 4 Florida Atlantic vs. Loser of Game 2 | 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 6: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 5 | ESPN+
Thursday, May 22
Game 7: No. 5 Tulane vs. Winner of Game 2 | 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 8: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 7 | ESPN+
Friday, May 23
Game 9: Loser of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 5 | 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 10: Loser of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 6 | 47 minutes after Game 9 | ESPN+
Saturday, May 24
Game 11: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9 | 9 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 12: Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 10 | 47 minutes after Game 11 | ESPN+
Game 13: Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 11 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+
Game 14: Loser of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 12 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+
Sunday, May 25
Game 15: Semifinal Winners | Noon | ESPNEWS
All times listed are Eastern.