SAN ANTONIO – University of Arkansas – Fort Smith Baseball scored five times in the first inning and the bullpen shut the door over the final four innings as the Lions earned a 9-8 win at St. Mary's Friday.

The Lions jumped on the Rattlers right away, loading the bases with no outs. Infielder Dan Taylor then drove in two on a double to left center, but the third runner was thrown out at the plate. Two batters later, outfielder Brandon Ulmer hit a three-run blast to right for a 5-0 advantage.

St. Mary's got one run back in the bottom half of the first then tied the game with four runs in the bottom of the fourth.

That knocked starter Luke Davenport out of the game, with Davenport finishing with three strikeouts over four innings. He allowed five runs on six hits, with only two of the runs being earned.

UAFS regained the lead in the fifth, scoring two runs on a bases loaded walk and a hit by pitch. The lead was short lived, however, as the Rattlers answered with three runs on just two hits in the bottom half of the frame.

Down a run in the seventh, catcher Nico Patrick led off with a double to right center. He then scored on a St. Mary's error with infielder Noah Davis later driving in Ulmer with two outs for the game-winning run.

Reliever Jakob Petross earned the win out of the bullpen by tossing four scoreless innings, striking out four while allowing just two hits. Logan Grant earned his first save of the season by striking out the side in the ninth.

Four Lions had multiple hits at the plate, led by Taylor, who finished 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs. Patrick crossed home plate three time while going 2-for-3 with a walk.

The teams continue the series with a doubleheader Saturday beginning at 2 p.m.