JACKSON, Tenn. – William Carey fell to Loyola University 12-5 on Friday night, finishing pool play with a 2-1 record in the 2026 SSAC Baseball Championship.
The Crusaders came out aggressive in the top of the first inning, putting immediate pressure on Loyola with three straight baserunners.
DeeJay Booth led off with a single, and after a walk and hit-by-pitch loaded the bases,
Franklin Hernandez delivered a clutch two-RBI single to left field to give Carey an early 2-0 lead.
The momentum carried into the second inning, when
Taylor Walters drove in Booth with a double to extend the advantage to 3-0.
Loyola began to chip away in the bottom of the second, as Jovan Swasey's RBI single cut the deficit to 3-1. The game shifted in the third inning, when two William Carey errors allowed Loyola to even the score with RBIs from Ayden Authement and Hunter Ponson.
The Wolfpack took control in the fourth inning, scoring four runs despite collecting just one hit. Taking advantage of three Crusader errors, Loyola built a 7-3 lead.
Loyola continued to apply pressure in the fifth, adding four more runs to extend the margin to 11-3. William Carey managed single runs in the sixth and eighth innings, including an RBI from
Jayden Mark, but could not close the gap. Loyola added its final run in the sixth on an RBI single by JJ Garcia to seal the 12-5 result.
With pool play complete, William Carey now awaits its postseason fate. At-large selections for the NAIA National Championship Opening Round will be announced May 6 at 4:00 p.m. via YouTube.
