Western Kentucky redshirt junior Carlos Vasquez (center) celebrates with teammates Ryan Wideman (left) and Ethan Lizama after the Tops' 7-6 win against Florida International in the Conference USA Baseball Championships on Thursday in Lynchburg, Virginia. (WKU ATHLETICS)

Western Kentucky walked off Florida International for a 7-6 win in the second round of the Conference USA Baseball Championship at Liberty Baseball Stadium in Lynchburg, Virginia.

WKU redshirt junior Carlos Vasquez delivered a dramatic walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, propelling the No. 2 seed Hilltoppers to a victory and securing a spot in the CUSA Championship semifinals.

WKU (44-12) once again rallied back from an early deficit to defeat the No. 6 seed Panthers, scoring six unanswered runs to take the lead in the seventh inning. The win gives the Tops their 44th of the season, exceeding the 1985 and 1988 WKU teams for the second-most wins in a season.

This marks the third consecutive season WKU has advanced to the CUSA Championship and the first time the Hilltoppers have ever advanced to the semifinals without dropping a game since joining the league in 2015.

“Well, the first thing I would say is that we’re deserving to be home team just because of the regular season and the way we played and get a two-seed,” WKU coach Marc Rardin said in a news release. “Then, you are home team and that’s the first thing I want to let these guys know is you played your butt off throughout the season and you come out with a two-seed, and now it helps immensely with two wins in the tournament.”

FIU got on the board in the first inning with a two-run homer.

The Panthers extended their lead to 5-0 after a three-run home run in the second.

Joe Siervo and Vasquez put WKU on the board in the bottom of the frame with back-to-back RBI singles.

In the third, the Tops’ Ryan Wideman stole third, causing an errant throw to go into the dugout and bring him around to score. Following that, Kyle Hayes drove in the fourth run of the game to cut WKU’s deficit to 5-4.

Camden Ross came off the bench for a pinch-hit, two-RBI triple to give WKU a 6-5 lead.

FIU hit a game-tying solo home run in the ninth inning.

Carlos Vasquez walked it off with a solo home run in the bottom of the frame to win the game 7-6.

This is the sixth walk-off win for WKU this season, second in back-to-back days and the first true walk-off homer for the Tops since April 9, 2021 – a 1-0 win over Marshall. Three of the six walk-offs this season have come off the bat of Vasquez. Previously, he had hit a pair of walk-off doubles to beat Illinois State on Feb. 14 and Louisiana Tech on May 2.

Sophomore Drew Whalen earned the start for WKU in Game 2 of the tournament. The CUSA Pitcher of the Year had a cold start, giving up five runs on five hits through his first two frames. The right-hander settled in, tossing five consecutive shutout innings to allow the offense to crawl back into the game. He matched career-highs of seven innings and 112 pitches while striking out nine with just one walk.

Dawson Hall was the only arm to see action out of the bullpen. The right-hander surrendered one run on two hits in two innings while striking out two. He earned the winning decision to improve to 7-1 on the season.

The Tops scored seven runs on 14 hits and seven walks with six RBIs.

Vasquez paced the offense with his 11th three-hit game of the season. He finished the day with a home run, a couple of RBIs and a run scored.

Wideman reached base four times in a 3-for-4 effort with a run scored, a hit-by-pitch and three stolen bases. His program single-season stolen base record now sits at 45.

Ross had two RBIs with a triple in a pinch-hit situation. Hayes had an RBI in a 2-for-3 performance with two runs scored, a walk and a hit-by-pitch. Siervo had one RBI in a 1-for-4 day.

WKU moves onto the CUSA Championship semifinals to face the winner of No. 6 FIU and No. 3 Kennesaw State on Saturday at Liberty Baseball Stadium. First pitch is set for 8 a.m. CT.