HOOVER, Ala. -- Miles opened an early lead on Stillman Sunday afternoon  but fell apart in the middle innings, losing 11-8 to the Tigers at the Hoover Met Complex.

The Golden Bears (4-3) had not played in 11 days because of persistent rain throughout the state that caused the postponement or cancellation of seven games. At first, that did not seem to affect them. Will cantey led off the second with a triple, scored on a Ryne Benson RBI, then watched as Brandon Conner jacked a 3-run home run to left field to stake starter Jacob Schuster to a 4-0 advantage.

But Schuster (2-1), Miles' top starter, lost control in the third and came unraveled in the fourth as Stillman would ultimately score 11 straight runs over the next four innings to open an 11-4 lead. The Golden Bears continued to battle, getting a RBI triple from Cantey and a two-run single from Conner as part of a four-run seventh to cut the deficit to three runs. But DJ Sledge came on with one on and no out in the ninth to shut the door for the Tigers (4-1), making a winner out of Caleb Kilgore (1-0), who pitched 3 2/3 innings in relief to grab the win.

Miles is back in action on Wednesday, when it travels to take on Alabama Huntsville. The first game of the scheduled doubleheader begins at 2 p.m.