Tied with Montevallo 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth, UNA infielder Kyle Hubbach ended the game with a walk-off RBI single to give the Lions the 2-1 victory April 11.

In a defensive struggle, the Lions loaded the bases in the bottom of ninth to set up the winning run. Hubbuch found a gap between first and second baseman and drove it through the infield to secure the victory.

Hubbuch said his approach in his final at bat helped the Lions come away with the win.

“I got into a 2-0 count with the bases loaded, and I felt like he had to come to me, so I was looking for something to hit in the zone,” Hubbuch said. “We struggled against the soft pitching and had trouble sitting back and taking it the other way. But we found a way to win, and that’s all that matters.”

Hubbuch walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third to hand UNA the early 1-0 lead. Montevallo answered in the top of the fourth with a solo home run to even the score. The Lions drew nine walks in the contest.

The starting pitcher for the Lions, Shane Priest, also had a big night tossing 6 2/3 innings and giving up just one run on four hits. Priest bounced back after losing to Montevallo earlier in the season 11-5, giving up six runs without recording an out March 15.

“I’m actually happier about this outing because the one outing I haven’t played well this year was against that team so it was big to come out here and redeem myself,” Priest said.

Several Lions made critical defensive plays to stay in the game late. Sophomore Davis Elliot, junior Ben Cooley and junior T.J. Lockett made key defensive stops to save runs in game.

UNA Head Coach Mike Keehn was proud of the way his defense performed after challenging the team said he.

“I told the guys before the game that I wanted our defense to get better, and that’s what I was more proud of today than anything,” Keehn said. “Our defense won that game. Our outfield has been great all year, and I wanted our infield to get better.”

The Lions will be back in Gulf South Conference action April 14-15 at Union.