SAN ANGELO, Texas – JAKUB RAYFIELD delivered seven solid innings, and the Hilltoppers scored six runs over the final two innings to open the Lone Star Conference Championship round with a 10-7 victory over UT Tyler. 
 
St. Edward's shook up its pitching rotation to avoid short-rest starts from GEORGE HETTRICK and KOBE JARAMILLO, who pitched Saturday and Sunday in the first round against St. Mary's. The Hilltoppers turned to Rayfield, moving up from his regular third-game slot to open against last year's Pitcher of the Year, Rawley Hector.
 
The Hilltoppers got to the Patriot ace early, scoring two runs in the first on an RBI from MARCO BARRERA and an RBI single from CARLO FIGUEROA. Rayfield and the Hilltopper outfield stranded two runners in the bottom of the inning before a rain delay paused the game for nearly three hours. 
 
Rayfield returned when the game did, and Hector did not. St. Edward's senior picked up where he left off, retiring three of four in the second, striking out two. The Patriots loaded the bases with one out on two singles and a walk in the third, scoring on a sacrifice fly from Bryce Jewell to cut the lead in half. 
 
An error in centerfield loaded the bases for UT Tyler in the fourth, turning what would have been an inning-ending flyout to right field into a sac fly for LSC Newcomer of the Year, Justin Williams, to tie the game. 
 
The Patriots broke through for two runs in the fifth, scoring on Tanner Hornback's RBI single to centerfield with bases loaded, then again on Ryan Walker's groundout to second for the 4-2 lead. 
 
St. Edward's responded with a pair of runs with two outs in the sixth. CONNOR COX drove Dieo Solis in with an RBI single up the middle, and LANCE LITTLE drew a walk with TRAVIS CHESTNUT scoring on a wild pitch. 
 
After UT Tyler retook the lead in the bottom of the inning on Kaston Mason's RBI single up the middle, both teams went down in order in the seventh. 
 
The Patriots turned to Garrett Arredondo to start the eighth and were rewarded with two quick outs. Chestnut kept the inning alive with a walk, and Cox drove a single down the right-field line to put runners on the corners. 
 
An error on Little's grounder to shortstop extended the inning and scored Chestnut, then Arredondo hit Barrera to load the bases, setting up Figueroa's two-RBI single to left field for the 7-5 lead. 
 
Hettrick replaced Rayfield with two on and one out in the eighth, walking Mason to load the bases, but escaping unscathed by getting Jewell to fly out to right field and picking up the big strikeout against Blake Labuda to end the inning. 
 
Solis extended the lead in the ninth with a solo blast to center field, Chestnut added an RBI double, and Little closed the scoring run with an RBI single up the middle for the 10-5 lead. 
 
Atkinson opened the ninth with a double to left-center, but Hornback went down looking. After a pinch-hitting Dylan Blomquist drove in Atkinson with an RBI double, Hettrick froze Hammonds for a strikeout. Williams brought the Patriots to within three on an RBI single to center field, but Drew Schmidt flied out to right field to end the game. 
 
Rayfield (W, 6-4) went 7.1 innings and 120 pitches, striking out four with three walks and four of the five runs earned in the win. Hettrick struck out three in 1.2 innings and surrendered two runs to pick up his first save. 
 
Chestnut and Cox posted three hits each, combining for five runs and two RBI. Little hit 2-for-3 with two walks, an RBI, and two runs scored. Figueroa hit 2-for-4 with three RBI, and Solis was 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI.