AUSTIN, Texas – St. Edward's baseball's balance of power, speed, and pitching knocked St. Mary's off kilter to open the Lone Star Conference Tournament with a 7-4 victory in the best-of-three series. 
 
CONNOR COX hit 3-for-4 with a home run early and two RBI, JOSH GRAHAM hit a two-run blast late, and pitchers KOBE JARAMILLO and JAKUB RAYFIELD combined for the victory. 
 
St. Mary's struck first, manufacturing a leadoff Jake Elizondo single up the middle into a run. Dillon Lopez moved Elizondo open with a sac bunt, and Garrett Brooks drove him in with an RBI double to left-center. Cox answered with a single swing, driving the ball to deep right field for the solo blast to tie the game, his 12th of the season.
 
KOBE JARAMILLO found his rhythm after surrendering a leadoff single in the second, retiring the next three hitters, striking out Raythin Malone and Jackson Daigre to close the inning. A rare 8-4 fielder's choice followed by DIEGO SOLIS throwing Lopez out trying to steal second in an inning where the Rattlers stranded two in the third. 
 
St. Edward's speed moving from the bottom to the top of the lineup paid off with four runs in the bottom of the third. 
 
DYLAN TATE sparked St. Edward's with a leadoff single through the left side, followed by TRAVIS CHESTNUT drawing a walk to put the Hilltoppers' fastest two runners on. Tate got a blazing jump on starter Hagen Rose's pitch to Cox, and in a brilliant piece of hitting, Cox poked the bat out and slapped the ball through the left side for the RBI single. 
 
LANCE LITTLE followed with another single through the left side, and Chestnut turned on the jets to score all the way from second. MARCO BARRERA bunted for a single to load the bases, but DIEGO SOLIS grounded into a 5-2-3 double play. CARLO FIGUEROA recaptured the momentum with a frozen rope that cleared leaping third baseman Dillon Lopez's glove for the two-RBI single, with Barrera stretching out the second run with his speed for the 5-1 lead. 
 
Jaramillo struck out two in the fourth and fifth innings before an error on a stolen base in the sixth at third put St. Mary's on the scoreboard for the first time since the first inning. 
 
JOSH GRAHAM extended the lead with a two-run blast in the sixth that exploded off his bat so quickly it practically teleported over the left-field fence. 
 
Jackub Rayfield replaced Jaramillo to start the seventh and surrendered a run in the seventh and eighth innings, highlighted by a solo blast from Hogan Heller to pull within 7-4. Rayfield returned to the mound to start the ninth, catching Daigre looking on a full count to open the inning, retiring the side for the save. 
 
Jaramillo was solid in six innings, striking out seven with two walks, seven hits, and two earned runs surrendered. St. Edward's and St. Mary's will continue the series tomorrow at 1:00 p.m.