No. 2 Baseball Takes Game one Against KCU

Athens, Tenn.- After being on the road in Louisiana, the second-ranked baseball team returned to Athens to start a three-game Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) series. The series saw the Bulldogs take on the Kentucky Christian University Knights, beginning with a single game on Friday.

Tennessee Wesleyan took the first lead of the game. In the third inning, Carson Ford, who got on base with a single, scored from first on a Cayle Webster double. A single by Parker Stinnett made the score 2-0 as Webster crossed home plate on the hit. The inning ended with the team leading 2-0. The next two innings were scoreless, leading the way to a run-filled sixth inning.

Two of the runs scored in the sixth inning went toward Kentucky Christian's point total, tying the game 2-2. As quickly as the game became tied, the Bulldogs untied it. Cody McGill earned a walk to become a base runner, moving to second on an Ayden Mansfield fielder's choice. A single by Aiden McClary scored McGill, giving the team the lead back. Andre Tarver loaded the bases with a walk, and a wild pitch moved everyone a base, giving the team a two-run advantage as Mansfield scored. Ford re-loaded the bases with a walk, and a sacrifice fly by Dan Sayre made the score 5-2 as McClary scored on his flyout. Webster became the only person standing on base as Tarver and Ford scored on his single, giving the team five runs in the sixth inning and a 7-2 lead.

TWU added one more run in the seventh inning in the form of Mansfield, who scored on a bases-loaded Sayre walk to make the final score 8-2.

Webster led the offense with three RBIs while Sayre added two RBIs. Stinnett and McClary each had one RBI. Gage Vailes pitched six innings in the win, striking out nine batters. Alex Wize pitched three innings of relief, picking up two strikeouts.

The win moved the team's record to 18-3 overall and 10-0 in the AAC.