AUSTIN, Texas – The bats for St. Edward's baseball caught fire Saturday as the Hilltoppers shut out Harding, 16-0, to clinch the weekend series, 2-1.
 
The Hilltoppers tallied 17 hits in the game. CARSON COX, WILLIAM HAIRSTON, and TJ GISELBACH each went 3-for-4 at the plate with five combined runs and eight RBI. On the mound, BALLARD INFANTE pitched six innings of five-hit, shutout baseball to earn his first win of the season.
 
Saturday marked the first shutout of St. Edward's (3-3) season. Harding (1-5) gave up 29 runs to the Hilltoppers over three games.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• St. Edward's scored eight runs on seven hits in the first inning.
• Hairston opened the game with a single to center field before the Bisons recorded two quick outs.
• Three straight hits from GABLE WHITACRE, Giselbach and Cox made the score 4-0.
• A trio of singles from JACOB VASQUEZ, Hairston, and ZACHERY SCHINDLER accounted for four more runs.
• Over the next three innings St. Edward's recorded six more runs to extend its lead to 14-0.
• A pair of runs in the sixth made the final tally.

 
HILLTOPPER NOTES

• St. Edward's is 6-3 all time against Harding.
• The Hilltoppers scored runs in every inning except the fifth.
• Only three Bisons baserunners made it to second base.
• The last time SEU scored 16 runs in a game was April 22, 2016 against Panhandle State (16-2).
• St. Edward's last shutout came in the 2016 Heartland Conference Championship game against Oklahoma Christian (6-0).
• The Bisons were forced to use seven pitchers in six innings.  

 
QUOTE BOARD: HEAD COACH ROB PENDERS
"I told the guys after yesterday that we needed to build off of this, and it was impressive that they did. We really didn't take any at-bats off that game, which can be tough to do sometimes in a blowout. Sometimes guys get complacent or want to play for themselves, but we didn't do that, and that was really encouraging to see.
 
UP NEXT
St. Edward's travels to Laredo, Texas for a midweek game against Texas A&M-International Tuesday at 2 p.m. The contest will be a nonconference affair. Live stats will be available at GoHilltoppers.com.
 
GAME INFORMATION
Score: St. Edward's 16, Harding 0 (7 innings)
Records: St. Edward's (3-3), Harding (1-5)
W – Infante (1-0), L – Ward (0-2)
Attendance: 265
 
For the latest information on the St. Edward's University Baseball team, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at @SEUBaseball, or visit us at www.GoHilltoppers.com.