Heading into the ninth inning tied 3-3, the Brazos Valley Bombers had every reason to think the momentum from their last two victories could carry over to Monday night.

Momentum can't throw strikes.

The Bombers walked three batters in the ninth and gave up six runs in a 9-3 loss to the Coppell Copperheads at Brazos Valley Bank Ballpark.

"I don't think the score was indicative of the game," Brazos Valley head coach Brent Alumbaugh said. "That ninth inning got away from us. We didn't do a good job of keeping the double play in order. We had situations where we had runners on first and second with one out and a double play gets us out of the inning, but we get a ball to the backstop or something like that and let the situation get away from us."

Brazos Valley's Garrett Fanchier (2-1) was pinned with the loss, pitching one-third of an inning while allowing two hits, six runs (two earned) and three walks.

The biggest blow of the inning came two batters after Fanchier left the game. Reliever Geoff Lomax gave up a bases-clearing double to leadoff hitter Joey Fuda, giving the Copperheads a six-run lead.

The Bombers still had a chance in the bottom of the ninth, loading the bases with nobody out on two walks and a single. After a strikeout, catcher John Cannon hit a ball up the middle that was just barely nabbed by shortstop Adam De La Garza, who stepped on second and threw to first for a game-ending double play.

"Down six when we come to the plate, I felt we could have packed it in," Alumbaugh said. "That's not the attitude they had, though. We loaded the bases there in the ninth. We didn't give away any at-bats there in the ninth. It just didn't work out for Cannon there in the end. If that ball sneaks through, we'd score two and maybe get something going there."

Bombers' starting pitcher Jake Liedka lasted seven innings, allowing seven hits and three earned runs. The junior from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi struck out six while walking two of the 31 batters he faced.

After giving up a run in the second and two in the third, Liedka was taken off the hook for a loss when Brazos Valley scored a run in the third and two more in the fifth.

Bombers center fielder Clifton Thomas drove in Robby Graham with a single in the fifth, then scored from second on a hit-and-run play.

Second baseman Wes Schill hit a grounder to De La Garza, who double-clutched before throwing to first for the out. Meanwhile, Thomas never stopped running after rounding third and slid home just under the throw from first.

Thomas got into trouble on the bases in the bottom of the eighth after hitting a single to start the inning. Before the next pitch, Thomas was picked off of first. Schill followed with a double that would have at least put Thomas on third, if not scored him from first on the play.

"That's what he brings to the table, his speed on the basepaths can cause chaos," Alumbaugh said. "We talked about it after the game about when he got picked off. We have to just play in control. He made a mistake, but he's a good enough baserunner to learn from it."

The Bombers (15-12) begin a six-game road trip to East Texas, Victoria and McKinney on Tuesday before returning home July 23.

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NOTES -- The teams combined to throw 59 pitches in the ninth inning. To put that into perspective, Coppell starter Kendal Carrillo needed just 76 to get through six innings. ... Texas A&M junior Nick Anders started at shortstop for the Bombers on Monday after not starting any games there last season at A&M. Anders made three assists and had one throwing error. ... The Bryan West Senior Boys team was honored before the game for winning the District 33 championship.

Coppell 9, Brazos Valley 3

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Kendal Carrillo, Teddy Nowell (7), Jason Stover (9) and Austin Goolsby; Jake Liedka, Andrew Velez (8), Garrett Fanchier (9), Geoff Lomax (9) and John Cannon. W -- Nowell. L -- Fanchier (2-1).