Luke Pluckeck’s (1-1) game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth inning gave the Sam Houston State (SHSU) Bearkats a 3-2 win over the University of San Diego Toreros.

Plucheck pinched-run for leftfielder Hayden Simerly (0-1) in the bottom of the eight inning.

“I was lucky enough to bring it to a 3-2 count, so I was looking for a fastball,” Plucheck said. “I kept my hands in and drive it through.”

The win was the first under new head baseball coach David Pierce, who took over after Mark Johnson retired last year.

“I am proud of the guys because they fought back and never gave in,” coach Pierce said. “We earned that win.”

The Toreros struck first in the top of the third on a single by Corey LeVier (3-4) that scored Bryan Haar (1-4) to make it 1-0. Haar singled with two outs in the inning and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. He stole third base that allowed him to score.

The Bearkats couldn’t get anything going as starting pitcher Paul Sewald had a no-hitter going for six innings.

Julian Duran’s (3-4) two-out RBI double in the top of the sixth inning to increase the lead to 2-0.

The Bearkats tied the game at two in the bottom of the eight inning on catcher John Hale’s (2-4) two-out two run single to right field. Hale broke up the no-hitter in the seventh inning with an infield single.

“I was trying to get a pitch to hit because I knew that a single would score two,” Hale said.

Thirdbaseman Kevin Miller’s (2-4) double with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning and scored the game-winning run on Plucheck’s single.

Reliever Michael Oros went three innings and got the win while Toreros reliever James Pazos got the loss.

Starting pitcher Cody Dickson went three and one-third innings, giving up a run and five hits. He struck out two while Sewald got the no-decison.

The final game of the series will be tomorrow at Don Sanders Stadium on the campus of SHSU. Game time is at 1 p.m. For more information on the team, visit gobearkats.

Here are the two hits that gave the Bearkats their first win of the season called by Jason Barfield, play-by-play announcer for Bearkat Sports Network:

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The University of Toledo Rockets defeated the Sam Houston State Bearkat men’s basketball team 59-58 on Saturday. The game was a part of the Sears BracketBuster.

Guard Konner Tucker and forward Steven Werner led the Kats with 14 points each.

“I thought we played good tonight, but it was not enough to win,” Tucker said.

The first nine minutes of the first half was a battle between the two teams as they were a total of 30 points exchanged between them with the game tied at 15.

The Rockets went on a 10-7 run to lead it by the score of 27-22. They closed the half on a 7-4 run to lead it 34-27.

The Bearkats opened the second half with a 5-2 run to cut the lead to 36-32.

They maintained they moment with a 9-4 run to take the lead by the score of 41-40.

The Rockets answered with 5-0 run on back-to-back three pointers to regain the lead by the score of 46-41.

The Bearkats went on a 6-0 run to regain the lead by the score of 47-46.

The Rockets did not went away as they went on a 7-0 run to tie the game at 51 with 4:05 remaining in the game.

It remained tight between them as they exchanged a total of five points with the Rockets leading 55-53 with 1:27 left in the game.

The Rockets held off a Bearkat rally in the final minutes of the game to take this year’s Bracket Buster game.

“I thought our guys played hard today,” Bearkat head basketball coach Jason Hooten said. “They wanted to win the game.”

Forward Reese Holliday led the Rockets with 14 points, 4 rebounds and one assist. Guard Julius Brown and guard Rian Pearson contributed with 12 points each.

The Bearkats are now 11-16 for the season. The loss does not affect their Southland Conference record because the Sears BracketBuster was a non-conference game.

“If I had to choice of which one I want to win, I’ll choose a conference all the way,” coach Hooten said.

The Bearkats next game will be at Northwestern State on Wednesday, February 22. Game time is at 7 p.m. For more information, visit gobearkats.com

The University of San Diego Toreros defeated Sam Houston State Bearkat baseball team by the score of 5-3 on Friday night at Don Sanders Stadium. It was the first game under new head baseball coach David Pierce

The Bearkats struck first in the bottom of the first inning when centerfielder Colt Atwood (1-3) scored on a sacrifice fly by infielder Jesse Plumlee (0-4) that gave them a 1-0 lead.

Atwood led off the inning with a infield single and advanced to second and third on junior thirdbaseman Greg Olson (1-3) and senior catcher John Hale (1-3) bunt singles, respectively.

The Toreros tied it at 1 in the top of the fourth on a RBI double by leftfielder Lucas Hagberg (2-4).

Pinch hitter Dillon Checkal’s (1-1) two-run single in the top of the fifth gave the Toreros a 3-1 lead.

Shortstop Corey Toups (0-1) scored in the bottom of the sixth inning on a wild pitch by reliever James Pazos to cut the lead to 3-2..

Toups reached first with two outs in the inning on an error by shortstop Andrew Daniel (1-5) and advanced to second on a throwing error by James Pazos by firstbaseman Bryan Haar (3-5). Atwood was hit by a pitch to reach first. Olson walked to load the bases. Hale followed with a walked to load the bases before Jake Arrington (0-5) struck out to end the threat.

Haar’s two out RBI single in the top of the seventh inning increased the lead to 4-2. Rightfielder Kris Bryant (3-4) led off the inning with a double and advanced to third on a sacrifice fly by designated hitter Corey LeVier (0-5).

They added an insurance run in the top of the eight to make it 5-2.

Things got interesting in the bottom of the ninth when Hale reached first after being hit by a pitch. He advanced to second on a single by firstbaseman Ryan O’Hearn (2-5). He scored on a blop single by thirdbaseman Kevin Miller (1-5) to cut it to 5-3.

Plucheck (1-5) struck out to end the game.

Starting pitcher Calvin Drummond went 6 2/3 innings and got the win for the Toreros while sophomore starting pitcher Caleb Smith suffered the loss. Reliever Michael Wagner got the save.

“He (Drummond) settle in and got better as the game went on,” coach Pierce said. “He is going to win a lot of games for them.”

Game 2 of the weekend series will be tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. For more information, visit gobearkats.com.

College Station-

Texas A&M Aggies defeated the Bearkats softball team by the score of 7-4. The Kats are now 0-5 for the season.

In the top of the third inning, junior shortstop Shelbi Tucker blasted a solo home run that gave the Bearkats a 1-0 lead.

The Aggies exploded in the bottom of the third with seven runs on a pair of RBI doubles by junior leftfielder Brittany Walker and sophomore thirdbaseman Amanda Garza and a grand slam by junior pitcher/infielder Mel Dumezich that made it 7-1.

It got interesting in the top of the seventh inning when junior pinch hitter Ashley Isbell blasted a three-run home run to cut the lead to 7-4 with two outs. But all hope was gone as junior Kim Damian struck out to end the game.

Senior starting pitcher Tomi Garrison went 2 2/3 innings, giving up six runs, on five hits and got the loss. Sophomore pitcher Shelby Lancaster pitched three shut out innings in relief.

The Bearkats will travel to Denton this weekend for the Mean Green Invitational at the University of North Texas. For more information on the team and the schedule of the games, visit gobearkats.com

The Kats women’s basketball team defeated Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders by the score of 75-54. They are now 7-3 in the Southland Conference (12-9 overall).

Junior forward Britni Martin had 21 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds and one steal. She made 7 out of 10 from the three point line.

“Once I started hitting shots, it opened up for everyone else on the team,” Martin said.

The first four minutes of the game was a battle between the two teams as they exchange a total of 12 points to make it a 6-6. The Islanders went on a 6-0 run to lead it 12-6.

The Bearkats answered with an 8-2 run of their own to tie it at 14.

The Islanders exploded with a 14-3 run to lead it 33-20. The Kats finished the half on a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 35-29.

“We let them penetrate in the hole and that is what we were suppose to stop them from doing,” Martin said.

The second half was a different story as the Bearkats went on a 11-2 run to make it 40-37 and would go on to win by the score of 75-54.

Junior forward Sequeena Thomas had 21 points, 15 rebounds, 5 blocks, 3 steals and two assists.

The Bearkats shot 48.3% from the field for the game and went 56.3% from the free throw line. The Islanders shot only 33.9% from the field and made 91% of their free throws.

Senior forward/center Myeisha Myles led the Islanders with 11 points and 6 rebounds in the losing effort. They are now 4-5 in conference play (8-14 overall).

The Bearkats next game will be on Saturday, February 18 against the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, Arkansas. Game time is at 2 p.m. For more information, visit gobearkats.com.