BEAUMONT, Texas – No. 2 Lamar relied on dominant pitching performances throughout Saturday to survive elimination twice and force a decisive Beaumont Bracket Final against No. 7 Stephen F. Austin at the 2026 Southland Baseball Championship.
The Cardinals and Lumberjacks will meet Sunday at 1 p.m. with the winner advancing to the championship series.
Game 5 — (2) Lamar 8, (6) Northwestern State 0
Lamar opened Saturday with its most complete performance of the postseason, shutting out Northwestern State behind a dominant effort on the mound and a balanced offensive attack. The Cardinals scored in five different innings and never allowed the Demons to build momentum offensively.
Jarret Williams set the tone early, tossing 5.1 scoreless innings while allowing just three hits and striking out five. Blayne Fritcher followed with 1.2 hitless innings in relief before Ethan Oceguera closed the final two innings to complete the shutout as Lamar limited Northwestern State to just four hits all afternoon.
Offensively, the Cardinals consistently applied pressure from the start. Beau Durbin collected three hits and drove in two runs, while Jake Wagoner added three hits and scored twice. Brayden Evans drove in a pair of runs, and Tab Tracy reached base four times and scored three runs as Lamar steadily extended the lead throughout the game.
Northwestern State threatened only briefly in the sixth inning when Brooks Leonard and Thomas Marsala III reached base with one out, but Fritcher escaped the jam to preserve the shutout. The Demons struck out nine times and were held scoreless for the first time this postseason.
Game 6 — (2) Lamar 4, (7) Stephen F. Austin 2
Lamar completed the Saturday sweep later that evening, leaning once again on strong pitching to hand Stephen F. Austin its first loss of the Beaumont Bracket and force Sunday’s winner-take-all finale.
After SFA grabbed a 2-1 lead in the second inning, the Cardinals steadily regained control. Hector Rodriguez drove in two runs and delivered key hits in both the first and third innings, while Balin Valentine added the go-ahead RBI single in the fourth to put Lamar back in front for good.
Cooper Carlgren delivered one of Lamar’s biggest pitching performances of the season, working 7.2 innings while limiting the Lumberjacks to just two runs on four hits. Carlgren repeatedly escaped traffic, including a critical sixth inning when SFA advanced runners into scoring position with one out before the Cardinals stranded both runners to preserve the lead.
Julius Carpio closed the final four outs for the save, helping Lamar lock down another strong pitching effort. Stephen F. Austin managed only five hits on the night despite entering the game unbeaten in bracket play.
Tab Tracy added a key insurance RBI single in the ninth inning, while Lamar’s pitching staff combined to retire 11 of the final 13 SFA hitters to secure the victory and extend the Cardinals’ season into Sunday.