TROY, Ala. – App State Baseball scored first but was unable to build on its early advantage, falling 10-3 to Troy in the series finale at Riddle-Pace Field on Sunday.
The loss snaps a nine-game winning streak for App State (28-18, 15-9) against Sun Belt opponents. App State had already collected a series win with a doubleheader sweep on Saturday, the team's fifth consecutive series victory.
The Mountaineers went just 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position on Sunday, stranding the bases loaded twice in the game, while Troy (23-25, 13-11) got a valiant relief effort from Drew Nelson and scored the final 10 runs in the contest.
The Mountaineers broke onto the scoreboard first in the third inning. App State loaded the bases on a
Tank Yaghoubi single, a
Charlie Evans walk and a hit by pitch of
Steven Smith.
Riley Luft plated a run with a sac fly and
Ethan Puigfollowed with a rocket shot that went through the right side and rolled all the way to the fence for a two-run double to take a 3-0 lead.
Troy loaded the bases in the home half of the frame, but
Tanner Nolan escaped trouble with a strikeout and a double-play ball to end the threat. Nolan struck out five in 4.1 innings and did not factor in the decision.
Troy starter Hayden Smith exited the game with a blister in the fourth inning but Nelson rose to the occasion in relief. He allowed just two hits over 4.1 scoreless innings to quiet the Mountaineer bats and earn the win in relief.
App State was held to just six hits in the contests, and just four hits outside of the three-run third inning.
Troy scored two runs in the fifth to cut the Mountaineer lead to a run and grabbed the lead with two more runs in the sixth inning on a Sean Darnell go-ahead two-run single.
The Trojans pulled away with five runs in the eighth, highlighted by Jimmy Janicki 15th home run of the season.
App State will return to action on Friday, as the team welcomes Louisiana to Smith Stadium for the final home series of the season. Senior day celebrations will take place before first pitch on Saturday and Sunday.
The 2026 App State Baseball season is presented by Chick-fil-A.
