#11 Baseball’s late-game power offense continues in series-opening win at MHU

Mars Hill, N.C. —- The 11th-ranked Catawba College baseball continued with the hot bats on Friday, scoring 12 runs in the final four frames of a series-opening win at Mars Hill to move to 6-1 in South Atlantic Conference play.

TEAM STATISTICS

- Catawba out-hit Mars Hill 20-19

- The Lions recorded nine of 17 extra-base hits in the game; Mars Hill had five of eight homers

- Catawba committed two of three errors

- MHU left seven runners on base; the Catawba Indians stranded 12

- Catawba stole three of four bases in the game

- The Catawba Indian pitchers allowed 11 earned runs on 19 hits and four walks, striking out 12; Mars Hill's staff allowed 14 earned runs on 20 hits and six walks, striking out two

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS

- Dylan Driver was 5-for-5 with two homers, four RBI and four runs scored

- Cole Hales went 4-for-5 with a homer, four RBI and three runs scored

- Sam Hunter recorded three doubles with two RBI and a run scored

- James Dunlap added four hits and two runs scored

- Seth Sharpe extended his streak without allowing an earned run to start his career with 2.2 innings with only an unearned run allowed on four hits, striking out five

- Brandon Rodgers got the late-inning victory on the mound; Hayden Simmerson picked up the six-out save

HOW IT HAPPENED

FIRST INNING

- Nathan Chrismon walked and Driver singled to lead off the first

- Hunter's double put the first run on the board for Catawba

- Hales' sac fly made it a 2-0 Catawba lead

- A two-out single allowed Mars Hill to take the lead on an RBI double and a two-run homer in the bottom half

SECOND INNING

- Driver roped a two-out RBI single to left field to tie the game at 3

- The Lions answered with another two-run homer in the bottom half to lead 5-3 after two

THIRD INNING

- MHU's third homer in as many innings gave them a 7-3 lead

FOURTH INNING

- A throwing error on a pickoff attempt allowed a MHU runner to get to third before scoring on a passed ball, leading 8-3

SIXTH INNING

- The rally started for Catawba when Chrismon walked with two away before Driver homoered to left-center to cut into the deficit

- Hunter's double and Dunlap's infield single brought up Hales who scored two more with a double to right field

- Sean Shelly brought him home with an RBI single to left, tying the game at 8

SEVENTH INNING

- Matthew Connolly doubled to lead off the seventh, moved over on a sac bunt and scored on Chrismon's RBI sac fly to take the lead, 9-8

- A two-out Driver single and Hunter's third double of the game increased the lead to 10-8

- Mars Hill aded back-to-back homers after the stretch to tie the game once again at 10

EIGHTH INNING

- Hales lifted a leadoff homer to regain the lead 11-10

- Connolly reached on a two-base error and scored on Ty Hubbard's RBI base hit, going ahead 12-10

NINTH INNING

- Driver added to the lead with a leadoff homer in the ninth

- Three singles loaded the bases with one out, allowing Dunlap to score on a wild pitch and Parker Styborski's RBI fielder's choice to add insurance, ahead 15-10 with three outs left

- MHU got the first two men aboard and scored on an RBI groundout to make it 15-11 with two outs to go

- A single and a wild pitch scored another run before another RBI single brought the tying run to the plate

- Simmerson forced the flyout to earn the win and move to 6-1 in conference play

UP NEXT

- Catawba and Mars Hill wrap up the series on Saturday, with first pitch of game one set for 11 a.m.