Western Carolina won its college baseball series against Samford on a strike three call so terrible that even the pitcher and catcher were stunned. The umpire really wanted to make it home in time for Sunday dinner.
It was horrible!
Although one single pitch does not determine the outcome of a entire nine-inning college baseball game, this specific call spoiled any chance at a ninth-inning comeback. What a bummer way to end.
Samford lost to Western Carolina.
As things currently stand, Western Carolina is one of the top teams in the SoCon. The Catamounts are tied with ETSU and Mercer with a 2-1 record in conference play and an overall record of 17-8.
Samford has not had the same success thus far. The Bulldogs sit at 9-13 with an a conference record of 1-2.
There is still a lot of season remaining but the Southern Conference will only get one automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament so the next few weeks are more important than the non-conference schedule. They will determine seeding for the SoCon Tournament which is the only path to a regional bid. Every win matters. Anybody can beat anybody regardless of their record.
This is not an earth-shattering revelation. I say all of this to stress the importance of each individual game. A single win can be the difference between first and last. A single pitch can be the difference between a win and a loss.
That leads us to Sunday.
Samford took game one of the three-game series at Western Carolina on Friday. The Catamounts battled back to win each of the next two games against the Bulldogs to win the series. It ended with controversy.
The college baseball umpire blew a strike three call.
Western Carolina held a one-run lead over Samford in the top half of the ninth inning. The Bulldogs had a runner on first by they were down to their last out. In fact, they were also down to their last strike.
Senior infielder Jeffrey Ince was at the dish. Senior Davis Wright was on the bump for the Catamounts.
The count held strong at 1-2.
Wright threw down to the plate but it was not close. His pitch missed the strike zone by at least six inches.
It should’ve been ball two. Ince and Samford would’ve lived to see another pitch but the umpire called strike three. Game over. That was it.
Even Western Carolina was baffled. Wright looked at his catcher in shock while his teammates rushed on the field to celebrate. They took a minute to get out of the dugout because they were also confused by the call. Ince had to walk back to the dugout in awe of what he just witnessed.
Samford loses the series finale to Western Carolina 10-9 after this horrifyingly bad strike three call to Jeffrey Ince.
— Samford Scoop (@SamfordScoop) March 22, 2026
I mean this is ridiculous. Even the WCU pitcher and catcher are stunned. pic.twitter.com/6pDzK4nNTx
Everybody except the umpire would agree it was ball two. Maybe the Bulldogs would’ve lost anyway. We’ll never know. The college baseball umpire delivered one of the worst strike three calls I’ve ever seen.