NCAA Division III Championship Tournament Central
 
MARSHALL, Texas – East Texas Baptist baseball team edged Trinity, 2-1, to capture the 2023 NCAA Division III Marshall, Texas Baseball Regional title and advance to the Super Regional round. ETBU had forced a second championship game againt Trinity after falling 8-6 in the first game.

Trinity (31-16) broke the scoreless tie with a home run in the fourth inning by Ezra Gore. ETBU (38-12) broke through with a pair of runs in the bottom of the eighth. Brett Wagner singled to right field for an RBI that scored Carson Wilson. Jase Jones followed with a base hit to score Jordan Hara. In the top of the ninth, Trent Clark worked his second scoreless inning and and used his lone strikeout to clinch the Tiger’s first regional championship.
 
Jagger Neely was strong through seven innings, as he allowed a run on five hits, walked one, and struck out six. He was also on the mound when ETBU captured the American Southwest Conference title and earned Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament.

In the first championship game, Trinity built a 6-0 advantage through five innings. ETBU clawed back with a pair of three-run innings in the sixth and seventh, but a two-run homer by Colt Harris gave Trinity another chance.
 
East Texas Baptist is the first ASC team to advance to a Super Regional round since Concordia Texas did in 2019. ETBU will face La Verne on May 26-27 with a Monday formal release of the Super Regional teams and host sites.

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