HARROGATE, Tenn. --- The Tusculum College baseball team connected on nine home runs on the day as the Pioneers swept a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader over Lincoln Memorial University Saturday afternoon at Hennon Field. Tusculum (19-13, 7-8 SAC) won the opener 16-11 and followed with a 17-10 victory in the night-cap.
With Saturday's wins, the Pioneers complete the three-game series sweep over the Railsplitters (16-16, 8-7 SAC) as Tusculum has won five in a row and 10 of its last 11 contests.
During the three-game series, the Pioneers totaled 56 runs and 63 hits, including 13 doubles and 13 home runs. Tusculum batted .467 as a team, while also posting an .852 team slugging percentage.
Game 1: Tusculum 16, Lincoln Memorial 11 (Box Score)
Tusculum senior Nate Grabowski went a perfect 5-for-5 with three runs scored to lead the Pioneers to a 16-11 win in the first game.
The Pioneers totaled 21 hits in the contest as every Tusculum batter recorded a hit in the victory. Paul Finger went 3-for-6 with a home run, while Eric Barclay, Jared Richmond, Rolondo Bonner, Matt Henriksen and Payden Houser posted two hits apiece.
LMU totaled 14 hits in the loss, including Garrett Copeland's 3-for-5 effort.
Tusculum rallied from an early 4-1 deficit as the Pioneers plated two runs in the third and eight more in the fourth. In the fourth frame, TC sent 13 batters to the plate as the Pioneers tallied seven hits and three home runs, including two-run blasts by Richmond and Sean Cotten.
TC followed with four more runs in the sixth inning as the Pioneers led 15-5. LMU plated six runs in the later innings, including four in the bottom of the ninth, but that's as close at the Railsplitters would get.
Tusculum starter Taylor Rakes (3-1) picked up the victory as he went eight innings, scattered nine hits, seven runs, five earned, walked one and struck out four.
Game 2: Tusculum 17, Lincoln Memorial 10 (Box Score)
In the second game, Barclay went 3-for-6 with three RBI, including a pair of home runs as the Pioneers prevailed 17-10. Tusculum totaled 20 hits as every Pioneer batter recorded a hit for a second time on the day.
Cotten went 3-for-3 in the night-cap, including his second home run of the day and fourth of the series. Houser and Henriksen added three hits apiece, while Grabowski, Finger and Bonner also accounted for multi-hit performances.
Tusculum jumped out to a 5-0 advantage, including a four-run, third inning. In the third, Barclay led off with a solo blast to right field. With two outs, Sean Finucane and Cotten got aboard with a single and a walk, respectively. Finger drew a walk and Houser stepped up with a two-run single.
The Railsplitters answered with six unearned runs in the bottom of the frame, with the big hits coming on a three run-homer by Nick Langley and a two-run single by Ben Adelburg.
Tusculum waited little time to submit a response as the Pioneers plated seven runs in the fourth inning to regain the lead at 12-6. For a second straight inning, Barclay got things started with a solo homer. Richmond followed with his 14th round-tripper of the season. The next two batters would record outs, but the next seven Pioneers would get on base, including Finger and he clubbed a two-run blast over the wall in left centerfield.
TC added another run in the sixth and four more in the seventh, including a two-run blast by Cotten.
Tusculum pitcher Cody Stites picked up the win in relief as he went the final four innings where he allowed five hits, four unearned runs, walked three and posted six strikeouts.
Richmond's two home runs on the day move him to fourth all-time with 25 career homers for his Tusculum career. Richmond also extends his hitting streak to 13 consecutive games. Cotten has also hit safely in his last 11 consecutive games.
The Pioneers are back at home on Tuesday as they host Pfeiffer University for a 7 p.m. contest at Pioneer Park.
- TC -
