BEAUMONT, Texas – Putting up 10 hits on a team that has allowed double-digit hits only six times this season, Lamar University (4-12, 0-2 SLC) came up just short of Sam Houston State (11-14, 2-0 SLC) Saturday in a 5-2 loss. Robin Adames had three hits in four at-bats, and Noah Sills struck out five in five and two-thirds innings.

"It's starting to come together," said head coach Will Davis. "It's nice to have had 10 hits off one of the best teams in the conference, and I thought our pitching was pretty good today too. We never let them have a big inning and we minimized mistakes, but they have a veteran offense. We were just a couple of hits away from winning either or both of these games the last two days."

Scoreless through the first two innings, the Bearkats drew first blood with some well-placed bunts in the top of the third. A lead-off bunt directly at Adames turned into a single when no one was there to cover the base, and a second Bearkat reached first safely after a hit-by-pitch. A 5-3 sac bunt put runners on second and third, and a 6-3 grounder scored the run. Sills ended the inning with his second strikeout of the day.

SHSU scored one run apiece in the fifth and sixth innings off four hits, two walks, and an error, giving the Bearkats a 3-0 lead. Lamar fought back in the bottom of the sixth though.

Adames led off of with a single to left field, his third hit of the day, and he was joined on the base paths by Cole Coker, who singled through the right side on his second hit of the day. With one out Logan LeJeune drove one up the middle in what looked like a two-RBI single, but a diving stop made by the shortstop froze Coker on third. Adames was still able to score, and a flyout by Chad Fleischman drove Coker home anyway. Chad McKinney drew a walk to put runners on second and third, but a foul popup to the catcher ended the inning. After six Lamar trailed by only one run, 3-2.

A solo homer with two outs in the seventh gave Sam Houston a 4-2 lead, and two hits in the eighth put one more across for the Bearkats, placing SHSU ahead 5-2.

The series finale is scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch on Sunday with Jason Blanchard facing Gabriel Sequeira, but rain could play havoc with that. Stay tuned to LamarCardinals.com and @Lamar_Baseball on Twitter for all the newest updates. If no story is posted, the game will take place as normally scheduled.