GRAMBLING, La. (Interstat) — In a wild Southwestern Athletic Conference series finale that defied projections, the Grambling Tigers scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to erase a late deficit and edge the Prairie View A&M Panthers 7-6 on Sunday at Memorial Gym.

The victory completed a three-game sweep for Grambling (15-22) over its rival, while Prairie View (5-29) saw its losing streak extended despite a resilient effort.

The game’s pivotal shift came in the seventh. Trailing 6-4, Grambling mounted a two-out rally against Prairie View reliever Kenneth Haynes. After two walks and a wild pitch put runners on second and third, catcher Micholas Jackson delivered a clutch two-run single to tie the game. Ryan Davis followed with another single to left, driving in Jackson with what proved to be the decisive run.

That outburst overturned a lead the Panthers had built just a half-inning earlier. In the top of the sixth, Prairie View capitalized on a Grambling error. With two outs and a runner on second, second baseman Dylan Diaz lined a two-run single to right-center, scoring two unearned runs to give the Panthers a 6-4 advantage. Diaz finished 2 for 3 with three RBIs.

Grambling’s early offense was keyed by center fielder Dillon Braxton, who went 2 for 2 with three RBIs, including a two-run single in the third that gave the Tigers a 4-1 lead. Starter Trevor Esparza was solid for Grambling, allowing one earned run over 5 2/3 innings with four strikeouts to earn the win.

Prairie View starter Kamar Dove provided four hitless innings of relief, but was charged with three runs. The Panthers’ bullpen ultimately could not hold the lead, as Haynes was tagged for four runs in the seventh despite striking out six over three innings.

Grambling reliever Rafael Capistran secured the win with two scoreless innings, and Trenton Shaw recorded a key out in the seventh to strand the bases loaded. Prairie View threatened in the ninth, scoring a run on Michael Burroughs’ RBI single, but Capistran induced a game-ending flyout with the tying run in scoring position.

The Tigers collected nine hits to the Panthers’ eight. The result was a stark contrast to the pregame projection by Interstat, which had forecast a low-scoring 4-1 Grambling victory and gave the Tigers a 67.4% probability to win.

Grambling next travels to face Louisiana-Lafayette on Tuesday. Prairie View visits Houston Christian the same day.