MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — South Alabama baseball scored five unanswered runs in the final two innings and had the tying run at third in the bottom of the ninth inning, but fell to top-seeded Florida Atlantic 10-9 in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference baseball tournament Thursday at Reese Smith Jr. Field.

USA left-hander Lance Baxter (6-3) suffered the loss in 3Ð innings, allowing eight runs on seven hits, and struck out six with three walks.
Sean Bukovich went 3-for-5 with a double, one RBI and a run scored, and Raymond Church went 2-for-5 with a home run, two RBIs, two runs scored and a stolen base to lead the Owls at the plate.
Brad Hook went 3-for-4 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored to lead USA at the plate.Jake Overstreet went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored, and Taylor White went 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Adam Heisler finished 1-for-3 with a home run, two RBIs, one run and two stolen bases.
USA (32-26) returns to action Friday in an elimination game against Florida International at 9 a.m. With a win, the Jags would face FAU at 4 p.m. Friday afternoon.