CARROLLTON, Ga. - The University of West Georgia baseball team secured their first sweep of the season, defeating the Union Bulldogs 9-4 at Cole Field on Sunday afternoon.
The Wolves (13-3, 7-2 GSC) looked poised and ready to take an early lead in game three, even loading the bases with two outs, but could not get a run across thanks to a diving play by Union first baseman Grant Ross, which kept the Wolves off the scoreboard in the first.
Both sides were blanked until the Wolves broke through in the bottom of the third inning. UWG once again loaded the bases in the inning, and this time
Logan Fink delivered a sac fly into right field to score the game's first run.
Union (7-11, 3-6 GSC) immediately threatened right back in the top of the fourth inning, getting their first two hitters on thanks to back-to-back walks. Witcher got a big double play, which he assisted in turning, and struck out the next batter looking to strand the tying run at third. The Wolves also got two runners on in their half of the fourth, but could not get them around to score, and we went to the fifth with the score 1-0.
After Witcher stranded the tying run in the top half,
Anthony Calabro gave the Wolves pitching staff some breathing room, launching a baseball out of Cole Field, making the score 3-0 going into the sixth.
Carson Crossley relieved Witcher in the sixth, but quickly walked the first two batters he faced, prompting head coach
Jeff Smith to make another move to the bullpen, this time to
Andrew Smith. Smith struck out the first batter he faced, and then he and
Charlie Tull completed a strike-'em-out, throw-'em-out to end the inning and escape with the shutout still intact.
In the bottom half of the sixth,
Edgar Cruz blasted his first home run of the season to give the Wolves a 4-0 lead. UWG was not done in the inning, as
Sam Ladner drew a walk,
Henry Daniels singled, and Calabro was hit by a pitch to load the bases with just one out. The next batter, Fink, was also hit by a pitch to drive in the fifth run for the Wolves. Prince missed a grand slam by a few feet in the next at bat, but drove in the sixth run for UWG with a sac fly. Three is all the Wolves got, going into the seventh with a 6-0 lead.
In the eighth, the Bulldogs worked the bases loaded, using two free passes from
Jackson Hodnick and a single, all with no outs in the inning. A groundout in the next at bat scored the first run of the game for Union, and they ended up with two more in the inning thanks to a two out single from Snelson. After the single, Smith made another move to the bullpen, this time calling on
Ronny Piepmeier to get one out and limit the damage. Piepmeier induced a flyout in just two pitches, holding the lead at 6-3 in favor of the Wolves.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Wolves responded by scoring three of their own.
Henry Daniels started the inning with a walk, followed by Calabro being hit by a pitch. Fink delivered once again with an RBI single, scoring Daniels from second. Two batters later,
Jared Emory blooped a single over the second baseman, driving in two more runs. Two more walks in the inning loaded the bases once again, all with one out in the inning. The Wolves got nothing more in the inning, sending us to the ninth with a 9-3 lead.
The Bulldogs did not go down quietly in the ninth, loading the bases with one out in the inning, forcing Smith to move to his bullpen one more time, this time for Dominic Murgo. Murgo got a fly out facing his fourth batter, as the Bulldogs got their fourth run of the game, and that is all they got as Murgo got a groundout to end the ballgame, securing the three game sweep for the Wolves.
UWG is back in action on Tuesday as they play host to the Tuskegee Golden Tigers in midweek action. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. from Cole Field.
