HARDEEVILLE — The University of South Carolina Beaufort baseball team clawed out of one hole but couldn't pull off a second rally Friday, falling 5-3 to No. 16 St. Thomas in the opener of a three-game Sun Conference series at Richard Gray Sports Complex.

The Bobcats (28-11, 15-4 TSC) scored single runs in the third and fifth for a 2-0 lead before Ryan Doeppel's RBI single and Ashly Morris' run-scoring groundout tied it in the bottom of the fifth. 

It didn't take St. Thomas long to answer, as Giovanni Zayas led off the sixth with a home run and Ricky Claudio added an RBI single in the seventh for a 4-2 Bobcats lead. 

USCB (15-17, 6-10) loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the seventh but could only push across one run on Blake Cilwick's sacrifice fly. 

The Sand Sharks also had the leadoff man on via Brandon Joyce's single in the eighth, but St. Thomas closer Ashley Bulluck came in to squelch the threat and pitched around a one-out single in the ninth for the save.

USCB starter Miles Galvin (2-5) took the loss despite a solid outing, allowing four runs — three earned — on seven hits over seven innings. Doeppel paced USCB's offense, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. Joyce and Ryan Walker each added two hits.

The series concludes with a doubleheader beginning at noon Saturday.