Cougars Take Game One of the Don Sanders Cup

Tuesday, February 24

Huntsville, Texas

6 p.m.

University of Houston

6-2

Sam Houston

4-4

Houston

Sam Houston

Xavier Perez high fives third-base coach Kyle Cheeseborough as he rounds the bases.

2/24/2026 9:53:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Houston strikes out 15 enroute to victory in first true road game of the season

HUNTSVILLE, Texas – Houston Baseball claimed the opener of the Don Sanders Cup, 5-4, behind a stellar outing from junior Alex Solis on Tuesday night at Don Sanders Field.

Houston's (6-2) pitching staff combined for 15 strikeouts, including six from Solis (2-0) who took the win on the mound after tossing 5.0 perfect innings. Senior Tyler Bryan (3) added another save to his tally after throwing 1.1 perfect innings, striking out all four batters that he faced.

Jakob Holzer (0-1) suffered the loss for Sam Houston (4-4) after allowing three runs on three hits and a walk in 1.1 innings on the mound.

PLAYER HIGHLIGHTS

Alex Solis: 5.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K
Dylan Maxcey: 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, R
McClane Helton: 2-4, 2B, BB
Xavier Perez: 1-4, RBI, R

NOTABLES

Sophomore Jackson LaLima and redshirt sophomore Xavier Perez extended their hitting streaks to a team-best six games each.
Houston's 15 strikeouts against the Bearkats were the most for the Cougars since tallying 15 at Oklahoma State on April 18, 2025.
Bryan's third save of the year moves him into a tie for the second most nationally and leads the Big 12.
Solis secured his fifth career win.
The win marked Houston's 30^th in Huntsville, Texas.
Houston's leadoff batter reached in seven of the nine innings. Five of the seven earned hits, with two being for extra-bases.

KEY INNINGS
2^nd | Sam Houston grabbed the lead first with a pair of runs in the second inning. After a trio of walks loaded the bases, a pair of sac-flies allowed two runs to cross the plate to give the Bearkats a 2-0 lead.

4^th | Houston started the comeback in the fourth. Junior Riley Jackson led off the inning with a double down the left-field line. After advancing to third on a wild pitch, he came around to score as senior Antonelli Savattere picked up the RBI with a groundout.

5^th | The Cougars took the lead in next inning. LaLima earned a leadoff walk and was pushed to second on a sacrifice bunt from senior Tyler Cox. Two batters later, Perez drove LaLima home with a single to right field then scored as senior Cade Climie hit an automatic double to left field, giving Houston a 3-2 lead.

6^th | Senior Dylan Maxcey extended the lead in the sixth. Freshman Blake Fields drew a walk and Maxcey hit his first homer of the season, a two-run shot to left field to push the score to 5-2.

While Sam Houston used its own two-run homer in the eighth to cut its deficit, Bryan closed the door by striking out the side in the ninth to secure the victory for Houston.

UP NEXT
Houston heads to the Frisco Classic, its second non-conference tournament of the season. The Cougars battle #19 Oregon State at 2 p.m., Friday, to start the weekend, followed by Iowa (Noon, Saturday) and Alabama (3 p.m., Sunday).

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