Mario Trivella Hits Walk-Off Grand Slam in Wild Comeback Win

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MIAMI, FL – Sam Houston opened the gates to this game with a quick 4-0 lead. Then, FIU hit three home runs in the second, to make it a 5-4 contest.

After extending their lead in the third, the Panthers gave way to a Sam Houston eighth inning rally. However, they responded big in the final inning, which was capped off by a Mario Trivella walk-off grand slam in a wild 12-11 comeback win.

“That was a huge swing in a big moment. It found a way to get us the win and gave us the momentum and energy we need heading into tomorrow,” said head coach Rich Witten.

Panthers Hit 3 Home Runs in the Second

The Bearkats began the game with three consecutive base hits, loading up the bases. Hunter Alvord and Cade Corcoran each hit sacrifice flies to open up a 2-0 lead. Then, they got two more with RBI singles from Ty Marthiljohni and Sean Bazmore, pushing the Sam Houston lead to four.

After a quiet first inning at the plate from the Panthers, they responded big in the second with three home runs. Mario Trivella got the party started with a two-run homer, his seventh of the season, scoring Samuel Fischer.

Bot 2nd
Sam Houston 4 | FIU 2

Mario Trivella smashes his team-leading seventh home run to cut the FIU deficit in half #FIU #Panthers #PawsUp https://t.co/3y5UMs4LP8

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) March 21, 2026

Caden Sammler got the start today at the dish, and he made a statement at the plate. He hit his first home run as an FIU Panther, scoring Luca Reyes. If that wasn’t enough, Cooper Rasmussen put FIU on top 5-4 with a back-to-back solo home run, his fifth of the season.

Bot 2nd
Sam Houston 4 | FIU 5

Cooper Rasmussen hits a home run off the foul pole in left, giving the Panthers back-to-back jacks#FIU #Panthers #PawsUp https://t.co/v0gX3QLqSD

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) March 21, 2026

In the third, FIU was able to plate two more runs on the scoreboard. Samuel Fischer hit a sharp double down the right field line, scoring Trey Freeman from first base.

Bot 3rd
Sam Houston 4 | FIU 6

Samuel Fischer doubles down the right field line, scoring Trey Freeman#FIU #Panthers #PawsUp https://t.co/ZdHLbs1fej

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) March 21, 2026

Fischer then scored after Mario Trivella hit an RBI single, extending FIU’s lead to 7-4.

Besides the four runs he surrendered in the first, George Adams had a few good innings going. He faced four batters in the second, retired the side in the third, and struck out all three batters he saw in the fourth.

Then, in the fifth, Adams gave up a two-run home run to Ryan Franden, cutting FIU’s lead to 7-6. He finished his day giving up nine hits, six runs, while punching out four in 4.1 innings.

Bearkats Retake Lead

Tyrus Riley replaced him in the fifth inning. He recorded the final two outs, delivered with a 1-2-3 sixth, and went through the seventh with ease. In the eighth, he walked the first two batters he saw and then threw a wild pitch. With runners in scoring position and no outs, Sam Houston’s Sean Bazmore hit a sacrifice fly to tie the game at 7.

pair of punchies in the seventh for Tyrus 💪#PawsUp pic.twitter.com/7eWfaHvalT

— FIU Baseball (@FIUBaseball) March 21, 2026

Riley tossed three innings, allowing two runs and walks on three strikeouts. Enrique Sierra came in as his replacement to get the final two outs of the inning, but he had to work his way through.

Caleb Cotton came up to the plate and cleared the bases with a single, giving Sam Houston new life with a 10-7 lead. A Sierra wild pitch prompted Jeric Curtis to score an unearned run, making it an 11-7 ball game. Tracen Cameron tossed a scoreless ninth and ended up earning the nod.

Mario Trivella Calls Game

For the Panthers, they just couldn’t get a response entering the ninth, going cold with just two hits since the third inning.

Known for their timely hitting, FIU utilized its patience at the plate. Rasmussen drew a four-pitch walk, Cole Cleveland got hit by a pitch, and Andrew Ildefonso won the full count battle with a walk.

Down to their last out, Fischer got walked on four pitches, giving the Panthers their eighth run. The spotlight was on Trivella to do something big, and that’s exactly what he did. His grand slam was the ultimate gamechanger, and he even had a dramatic bat flip to show for it. His 25 RBIs on the season lead the team.

“He had a huge day, and it’s funny because [the] last couple of games, he hasn’t been swinging it very well to be honest with you,” said Coach Witten. “I actually had a conversation with him before the game today, and something that can get overlooked is his defense in the field over the last little bit.”

“He’s been outstanding at shortstop, even though [in the] last couple of games, he wasn’t swinging the way he wanted to. His energy, the way guys are gonna rally around him, hitting’s gonna come and go a little bit.”

“But his defensive leadership, his energy, that’s gonna continue to stay infectious and contagious amongst the rest of the guys. So, I encouraged him to keep that up, and it’s funny how the game can reward you sometimes, and that happened today.”

Final
Sam Houston 11 | FIU 12

MARIO TRIVELLA HITS A WALK-OFF GRAND SLAM

He had 3 hits today with 2 HRs and 7 RBIs#FIU #Panthers #PawsUp pic.twitter.com/5awu5864JX

— Ricardo Urrusuno (@RickScores) March 21, 2026

The Panthers had nine hits as a team, led by Trivella’s three-hit game. Fischer had two hits and reached base four times. Rasmussen extended his hitting-streak to nine games with a two-hit performance.

“I think that’s just really what we needed. We needed something like that to happen today, and we’ve gotten a ton of tough breaks over the last couple of games, extra-innings losses, and those types of plays [that] have been going against us, so it was good to be on the right side of it today,” said Rich Witten.

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