LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN, Ga. – The Brevard College baseball team (16-10, 5-4 USA South) won a pair of one-run USA South Conference games to Covenant College (10-15, 2-7 USAS) on Saturday afternoon in Lookout Mountain, Georgia.
Brevard scored six runs in the top of the fourth inning and held on to the lead late for a 6-5 victory in game one before coming from behind, scoring three runs in the top of the ninth inning and holding on to an 8-7 win in the rubber match, as BC took two-out-of-three on the weekend.
GAME ONE – BREVARD 6, COVENANT 5
Blake Burchett and Frankie Vasquez turned in multi-hit performances in game one, both going 2-for-4 at the plate, while Cale Oehler hit a double. Zach Allison, Logan Clark, Christian Ezzell, and Jason Jucker all drove in runs for Brevard, while the Tornados stole five bases as a team.
Nathan Sanders (4-0) pitched six innings to earn his fourth win of the season, allowing three earned runs on nine hits and striking out six batters. Cesar Rodriguez provided an inning and two-thirds of relief work with four hits and a run, while Bryce Bowers (Sv, 3) shut the door on the Scots with an inning and a third of shutout ball.
The Scots threatened to get on the board first, loading the bases with one out in the bottom of the first inning. Sanders came through for the Tornados with a strikeout and groundout to end the frame.
Covenant took advantage of a Tornado error in the bottom of the second, taking a 1-0 lead after an RBI single. Brevard looked to answer back in the top of the third, loading the bases up with two outs, but a fly out ended the frame.
BC's big offensive inning came in the top of the fourth, when the Tornados scored six runs on five hits and a pair of errors. Oehler hit a one-out double before Ryan Leiman drew a walk on a wild pitch, setting up runners on the corners. Ezzell hit a single through the left side of the infield to tie the contest, 1-1, before a double-steal brought Leiman home. Allison reached on a fielding error as Ezzell scored Brevard's third run of the inning before Allison and Jack Atkinson came across on another Scot error, making it a 5-1 contest. Clark hit an RBI fielder's choice to push Brevard's lead to a five-run margin, 6-1, as the Tornados sent a total of 11 batters to the dish.
Covenant was able to get one back in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single before scoring two in the bottom of the sixth on a two-run homer, cutting the deficit to a 6-4 margin as Sanders gave way to the Tornado bullpen.
Rodriguez worked a scoreless seventh before Covenant used three singles to score its fifth run of the contest in the bottom of the eight. With runners on first and second and two outs, Bowers came in and retired the last batter to send game one to the ninth inning.
Covenant's Kenny Mills led off the bottom of the ninth with an infield single, but Bowers forced a 4-3 double play to end the contest and get the save, as the Tornados won game one 6-5.
GAME TWO – BREVARD 8, COVENANT 7
In the rubber match of the series, Brevard battled back from a late two-run deficit, scoring three runs in the top of the ninth before closing the contest out to win its second USA South series of the year.
Brevard scored eight runs on 11 hits in the matchup, with Clark going 3-for-4 with three runs and an RBI, while also logging a double. Burchett went 2-for-4 with two runs, while Allison, Ezzell, Leiman, and Vasquez all drove in runs. Burchett, who leads the entire NCAA DIII landscape with 29 stolen bases through 26 games played, swiped three bags in game two.
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Cameron Cook earned the start for the Tornados, going five innings allowing five hits and three runs. Noah Webb worked two frames of relief before Bowers (4-1) came in to throw two innings of three-hit, one-run ball and eventually earning his fourth win of 2022.
Covenant was led offensively by Mills, who had a three-hit performance including a pair of home runs.
Brevard got things going early offensively, as Burchett singled, stole second, advanced to third on a throwing error, and scored on a wild pitch to put the Nados up early, 1-0.
Brevard was able to load the bases with one out before Allison hit a sacrifice fly that scored Leiman to double BC's lead. After a pair of leadoff walks in the top of the third, Vasquez hit an RBI single that was followed by Clark coming in to score on a double play, pushing Brevard's lead up to a 4-0 margin.
Covenant got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with a two-RBI single, trimming the deficit in half, 4-2. Cook and the Tornado defense escaped further damage, stranding the bases loaded.
Leiman laid down a sacrifice bunt in the top of the fifth inning that ended up scoring Clark, as Brevard pushed its lead back up to a 5-2 advantage. Covenant's Joseph Ridenour hit a two-out RBI triple in the bottom of the fifth to get the Scots back within two runs, 5-3.
The Scots threatened in the bottom-half of the sixth with two runners on, but Webb forced a fly out to end the frame and strand the baserunners. Covenant scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to take its first lead of the game, 6-5, after a leadoff home run, an RBI double, and a sacrifice fly.
Mills hit his second home run in as many innings in the bottom of the eighth to give the Scots some insurance as the contest shifted to its pivotal ninth inning.
Burchett got aboard after being hit with a pitch and stole second base before a Jucker fly out moved him over to third. Clark split a gap with an RBI double to left-center field before a throwing error on a ball put in play by Vasquez allowed Clark to score, tying the contest up at 7-7.
With the bases loaded and one out, Ezzell drew a walk to score the eventual game-winning run, giving the Tornados the lead back 8-7. BC was unable to score further insurance runs after Covenant escaped the inning with a strikeout and a fly out.
Covenant got two runners aboard with one out, but a lineout and pop up gave the Tornados the dramatic 8-7 victory, as Brevard clinched the series win.
The Tornados are scheduled to return home on Tuesday, April 5 to face Bob Jones University in non-conference action at Gil Coan Field at 4 p.m. BC returns to conference play with a three-game series against No. 1/4 LaGrange College, as the nationally-ranked Panthers and Tornados begin their three-game conference series with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 9 at 1 and 4 p.m.
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-BC-