CARROLLTON, Ga. - It was timely at bats and excellent bullpen pitching that led UWG Baseball to their third consecutive victory against the Emmanuel Lions on Tuesday afternoon at Cole Field.
"It was a good day," said head coach
Jeff Smith. "We gave them a bunch of free passes and allowed them to stay in the game, but our guys played well and got settled in and played some good baseball."
After sitting down the first two batters of the inning, starter
Jack Rasmussen allowed three straight singles to the heart of the order giving Emmanuel (1-4, 0-0 CC) an early 1-0 advantage before the Wolves had a chance to hit.
When they did get the chance to hit, the Wolves (3-1, 0-0 GSC) made the most of it, scoring two in the opening frame.
Cade Hohl got the party started by blasting the first pitch of the game, also his first pitch as a part of the Wolves, right over the center field wall for a solo home run. Following that,
Henry Daniels,
Jared Emory, and
Jackson Webb all singled, with Webb's bringing home Daniels, giving the Wolves a 2-1 lead after one inning.
The bats went cold for both sides until the bottom of the fourth when
Logan Fink found the grass beyond the left field fence for a two run home run, extending the Wolves lead to 4-1.
Emmanuel immediately responded in the top of the fifth after a single and a walk had runners at first and second with no outs. A sac bunt and fielding error later produced the Lions second run of the game. A sac fly later in the inning pushed their third run across, cutting the Wolves lead to 4-3 headed to the bottom of the fifth. In the bottom half, the Wolves got runners on first and third with no outs and failed to cash in a run, keeping the score 4-3 going to the sixth.
Emmanuel threatened in the seventh with runners in scoring position and only one out, but senior
Peyton Berry came in for relief and stuffed the Lions rally and left the bases loaded, sending the game to the eighth still 4-3.
With neither side getting anything in the eighth, Berry took the mound in the ninth needing three outs for the win. After giving up a leadoff single, Berry retired the next three batters, securing the third straight win for the Wolves.
"Peyton went through the middle of the order and kept everything in check for us, and he's a guy that we can look to, whether its three or nine outs," said Smith.
The Wolves were led by
Henry Daniels and
Jared Emory, both producing two hits, while
Cade Hohl and
Logan Fink added one home run apiece. Five pitchers were used in the win, with
Ronny Piepmeier earning his first win of the season.
The Wolves are back in action this weekend when they welcome in the Carson-Newman Eagles for three games.
"Carson-Newman is a well coached team and it's going to be a good battle," said Smith. "The weather could also be a factor because it's supposed to be a bit chilly, but our guys are excited and it's our last non conference series prior to GSC play, so this is where we're trying to get everything lined up for conference play," finished Smith.
A double header is scheduled for Saturday, February 11 starting at 1 p.m. with a single game scheduled for Sunday, also beginning at 1 p.m.
