Sometimes, the best stories in baseball come from the most unexpected places. For the Arizona Wildcats, that story was written by a true freshman in their home finale at Hi Corbett Field.

Catcher Joe Forbes delivered a moment to remember, launching a solo home run on the ninth pitch of his at-bat in the bottom of the 8th inning to lift Arizona to a 6-5 victory over Houston on Sunday. The win snapped a seven-game conference losing streak and gave the Wildcats (18-32, 8-19 Big 12) a much-needed bright spot to close out their home schedule at 12-17.

It's been a season of struggles for a program that reached the College World Series just last year, posting a dominant 24-6 home record. Since moving to Hi Corbett in 2012, Arizona had only finished with a losing record at home once. But on this afternoon, the Wildcats showed the fight that defined their championship run.

"It's been rough on the record, but I still think the guys are playing hard," head coach Chip Hale said. "They're caring about each other. To see Joe Forbes do what he did with minimal at-bats this year, and grind that at-bat, that's a good sign going forward."

Forbes, the younger brother of redshirt freshman Jackson Forbes, had been 0-for-3 with two pop outs and a strikeout before stepping to the plate. But he refused to let his earlier struggles define his day. After fouling off pitch after pitch, he adjusted his approach and waited for the fastball he could handle.

"I kind of had a rough day before that, so I went into that at-bat with a new approach, trying to change things up," Forbes said. "He was fastball/slider to me only. After fouling off about five or six, it was like, just sit on fastball and be on time."

The Wildcats tied the game in the 7th on an RBI double from senior Maddox Mihalakis, who also had two hits including a game-tying triple in Saturday's 13-inning loss. Mihalakis is hitting .211 this season after batting .279 and starting 60 games on last year's College World Series team. Despite the drop-off, his veteran presence has been a steadying force.

"It's obviously frustrating," Mihalakis admitted. "You can't put it any other way. That's just how it's been, but also that's sometimes how it goes with the game. Personally, the only thing I've been doing is continuously putting my best foot forward, keeping still."

For a team that's faced more adversity than triumph this season, Sunday's win was a reminder that every game offers a chance to write a new story. And for Joe Forbes, that story started with a single swing.