OXFORD, Ala. | The University of Alabama in Huntsville baseball team opened play at the 2019 Gulf South Conference Baseball Championships as the fourth seed with a 7-3 win over fifth-seeded Montevallo on Friday afternoon at Choccolocco Park. UAH improves to 27-19, while UM dips to 22-27.
 
UAH looks ahead to a 7 p.m. matchup on Saturday against the winner of No. 1 seed West Florida and No. 8 seed Shorter.
 
The Chargers were guided to the 7-3 victory by starting pitcher Tyler Self who tossed the full 9.0 innings for his first career complete game, as the right-handed posted a career-best 11 strikeouts to go along with three runs allowed – zero earned – and one walk.
 
UAH's offense collected a total of eight base hits, led by freshman Landon Ezzell who went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI. Drake Hollingsworth finished second to Ezzell with a 2-for-4 performance with one run, one homer and three RBI.
 
After a scoreless inning by Self in the top of the first, the Chargers pulled ahead in the bottom half with a total of four runs – highlighted by a three-run home run by Hollingsworth – to give the squad a 4-0 lead heading to the second.
 
Montevallo cut the UAH lead to 4-3 with a trio of runs in the top of the second, but the Chargers responded with a two-RBI single to left by Landon Ezzell in the bottom half to extend the advantage to 6-3.
 
Both offenses settled down in the ensuing innings, as Self settled hurled six straight scoreless innings while UAH added one run on a Jack Stamper sac fly in the bottom of the fifth to extend the lead to 7-3.
 
This was the program's first meeting in the GSC tournament against Montevallo, which gave the squad its first win to open tournament play since the 2015 campaign.