CULLOWHEE, N.C. - A late-game comeback attempt was too little too late for the Tennessee Tech baseball time on Friday evening as the Western Carolina Catamounts defeated the Golden Eagles behind a strong offensive performance.

The Golden Eagles made a strong push in the final inning of the contest, scoring five runs on several miscues by WCU. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done and the Catamounts earned their 32nd win of the season with an 18-7 victory.

The top bat for Western Carolina was outfielder Cody Jones, who drove in five runs off two hits, including a three-run home run. Catamount starter Jeremy Null put together a solid start, scattering seven Tech hits in six innings of one-run work. He recorded eight strikeouts while allowing just the one earned run.

Junior slugger Zach Stephens had a brilliant day at the plate for the Golden Eagles, going 3-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored. Daniel Miles and Austin Wulf recorded the only RBI for Tech in the contest, both on sacrifice flies.

Western Carolina had to record four outs to finish off the feisty Golden Eagles, as senior Michael Morris reached base on a wild pitch after striking out for what would have been the game-ending out. Tech took advantage of several Catamount mistakes in the ninth, scoring three of its five runs on wild pitches and one more on an error by the WCU catcher. The final run was the RBI by Wulf.

The Golden Eagles will look to redeem themselves with a rematch on Saturday. Ross Spurgeon will take the hill in a 1 p.m. CDT contest as Tech looks for its 34th win of the season.