Saturday, February 28
Louisville, Ky.
1:00 PM
University of Louisville
6-4
9
vs
8
Central Michigan
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7
8
9
R
H
E
Central Michigan
1
0
0
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1
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2
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8
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Louisville
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4
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1
4
9
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Photo by: Taris Smith | Louisville Athletics
Cardinals Rally Back to Walk-Off Central Michigan
February 28, 2026 | Baseball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville baseball team rallied from a three-run deficit in the ninth and secured a 9-8 walk-off victory over Central Michigan on Saturday at Jim Patterson Stadium.
Louisville (6-4) trailed 8-5 entering the bottom of the ninth. The Cards got their game-winning rally started on the backs of wildness on the mound.
Kyle Campbell led off with a four-pitch walk and Alex Alicea followed with the same. Lucas Moore then saw three straight out of the zone before a pitching change. The new reliever threw one strike to Moore but ultimately walked him to load the bases.
Tague Davis stepped to the plate and lined an 0-2 pitch back through the middle to score the first two runners and pull the Cards within one. After a strikeout, Jax Hisle singled home Moore to tie the game, however Davis was thrown out at the plate attempting to score the winning run.
The out at the plate didn't deter the Cards though. Bayram Hot singled through the right side to move Hisle to third and Griffin Crain delivered the final blow with a single into right for the walk-off winner.
The walk-off victory was the first of the season for the Cardinals, who had six of them during the 2025 campaign.
Crain was 3-for-4 in the victory with a pair of RBIs. Alicea, Davis and Hot added two hits apiece. Hot drove in three, while Davis and Hisle tallied two RBIs each.
Brandon Shannon (1-0) earned his first collegiate victory, allowing just one run over three innings out of the bullpen. The right-hander struck out a career-high six.
Louisville led 4-1 after three innings on Saturday, but allowed six unanswered runs in the middle innings to fall behind.
Central Michigan (6-3) jumped on the board immediately, getting a leadoff homer to start the afternoon.
After leaving a runner on third in each of the first two innings, the Cardinals finally cashed in a scoring opportunity in the third.
With Alex Alicea standing on third and two outs, Tague Davis was intentionally walked. Jimmy Nugent followed with a walk to load the bases and Jax Hisle was hit by a pitch to force home a run to tie it at one.
Bayram Hot then tucked a ball inside the bag at third and into the left field corner that scored all three runners and gave Louisville its first lead of the day.
It was all Central Michigan from there though. The Chippewas plated single runs in the fourth and fifth before getting two in the sixth and seventh frames to claim a 7-4 advantage.
The Cards got one run back in the eighth, with Griffin Crain dropping a double down the left field line to bring Hot home. However, CMU answered with a run of its own in the ninth before the late dramatics from the Cardinals.
Louisville and Central Michigan wrap up the weekend on Sunday with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE BASEBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on X, Facebook or Instagram at @LouisvilleBSB.
Louisville (6-4) trailed 8-5 entering the bottom of the ninth. The Cards got their game-winning rally started on the backs of wildness on the mound.
Kyle Campbell led off with a four-pitch walk and Alex Alicea followed with the same. Lucas Moore then saw three straight out of the zone before a pitching change. The new reliever threw one strike to Moore but ultimately walked him to load the bases.
Tague Davis stepped to the plate and lined an 0-2 pitch back through the middle to score the first two runners and pull the Cards within one. After a strikeout, Jax Hisle singled home Moore to tie the game, however Davis was thrown out at the plate attempting to score the winning run.
The out at the plate didn't deter the Cards though. Bayram Hot singled through the right side to move Hisle to third and Griffin Crain delivered the final blow with a single into right for the walk-off winner.
The walk-off victory was the first of the season for the Cardinals, who had six of them during the 2025 campaign.
Crain was 3-for-4 in the victory with a pair of RBIs. Alicea, Davis and Hot added two hits apiece. Hot drove in three, while Davis and Hisle tallied two RBIs each.
Brandon Shannon (1-0) earned his first collegiate victory, allowing just one run over three innings out of the bullpen. The right-hander struck out a career-high six.
Louisville led 4-1 after three innings on Saturday, but allowed six unanswered runs in the middle innings to fall behind.
Central Michigan (6-3) jumped on the board immediately, getting a leadoff homer to start the afternoon.
After leaving a runner on third in each of the first two innings, the Cardinals finally cashed in a scoring opportunity in the third.
With Alex Alicea standing on third and two outs, Tague Davis was intentionally walked. Jimmy Nugent followed with a walk to load the bases and Jax Hisle was hit by a pitch to force home a run to tie it at one.
Bayram Hot then tucked a ball inside the bag at third and into the left field corner that scored all three runners and gave Louisville its first lead of the day.
It was all Central Michigan from there though. The Chippewas plated single runs in the fourth and fifth before getting two in the sixth and seventh frames to claim a 7-4 advantage.
The Cards got one run back in the eighth, with Griffin Crain dropping a double down the left field line to bring Hot home. However, CMU answered with a run of its own in the ninth before the late dramatics from the Cardinals.
Louisville and Central Michigan wrap up the weekend on Sunday with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. ET.
FOLLOW LOUISVILLE BASEBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans can follow Louisville baseball on X, Facebook or Instagram at @LouisvilleBSB.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Shannon, Brandon (1-0)
L: Tyson Potts (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Harrison Bowman 2 ; Logan Keilen 1 ; Joey Milto 1
HR: Cole Prout 1
RBI: Cole Prout 2 ; Harrison Bowman 1 ; Logan Keilen 1 ; Joey Milto 1 ; Nathan Ball 1
SH: Greg Guzik II 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Cole Prout 2 ; Harrison Bowman 1 ; Brady Krzciok 1 ; Logan Keilen 2 ; Joey Milto 1 ; Greg Guzik II 1
SB: Miguel Correa Jr. 1
CS: Joey Milto 1 ; Miguel Correa Jr. 1
HBP: Drew Loikits 1 ; Cayden Smith 1
Batting:
2B: Davis, Tague 1 ; Hot, Bayram 1 ; Crain, Griffin 1
RBI: Davis, Tague 2 ; Hisle, Jax 2 ; Hot, Bayram 3 ; Crain, Griffin 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Alicea, Alex 2 ; Moore, Lucas 1 ; Davis, Tague 1 ; Nugent, Jimmy 1 ; Hisle, Jax 2 ; Hot, Bayram 1 ; Campbell, Kyle 1
SB: Davis, Tague 1
HBP: Hisle, Jax 1 ; Hot, Bayram 2 ; Crain, Griffin 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
0
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballLHP/1B
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
C
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballBSB: Bayram Hot Postgame vs. CMU (2/28/26)
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BSB: Dan McDonnell Postgame vs. CMU (2/28/26)
Saturday, February 28
BSB: Griffin Crain Postgame vs. CMU (2/28/26)
Saturday, February 28
BSB: Tague Davis Postgame vs. CMU (2/27/26)
Saturday, February 28
