San Antonio — Well, if this were to go down as the final St. Mary’s-Incarnate Word clash at V.J. Keefe Field, a better script couldn’t have possibly been written.

Stunning their cross-town rival in the bottom of the 12th inning, the No. 3 Rattlers won 6-5 on a Billy Richard slapper that drove in Derek Moczygemba with the bases loaded and two away Thursday night.

The victory, which marked St. Mary’s 17th in a row, helped the top-seeded Rattlers (46-8) move into the winner’s bracket, where they will play No. 4 Southeastern Oklahoma State at 3:30 p.m. Friday at V.J. Keefe Field.

Southeastern Oklahoma State dropped a 10-2 game to No. 3 Emporia State earlier in the day, while second-seeded Central Missouri avoided an upset to No. 5 Tarleton State with a 3-2 triumph.

St. Mary’s star closer Sammy Rivas (Sr., San Antonio) pitched the final three innings to pick up the victory, improving to 5-0 on the season. Rivas did not yield a run, dropping his season’s ERA to 0.22.

Third baseman Reagan Moczygemba (Sr., Bulverde, Texas) led the Rattlers at the plate, going 3 for 5 with two runs scored.

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