BRISTOL, Tenn. --- The King University baseball team scored the first five runs of the game and led wire-to-wire as the Tornado defeated visiting Tusculum College 9-4 Wednesday afternoon at the King Baseball Field.
Tusculum (25-15) will host South Atlantic Conference front-runner Wingate University this weekend for a three-game series, beginning with Friday night's 6 p.m. opener.
King (25-15) jumped out to a 5-0 leave through six, before the Pioneers (25-15) added a pair of runs in the seventh and another in the eighth to cut the deficit to 5-3. But King erupted with a four-run eighth, highlighted by back-to-back triples from Tom Hooker and Tyler Gaby to damper a late TC rally.
The Tornado finished the game with 10 hits as King pitchers held TC hitless through the first four frames by the KU duo of Reiss Stanley and Corey Rhodes.
Garrett Cook's two-run single sparked a three-run first inning as it would be the first of three hits by the King center fielder.
The Tornado added another run in the second inning on Gaby's RBI double. KU made it 5-0 in the sixth Hunter Smith reached on a TC error and later scored on Josa Sola's sixth double of the year.
Tusculum plated a pair of runs in the seventh inning on Joe Polichetti's two-run, pinch-hit single with the bases loaded.
TC had the bases full again in the eighth as Foster drove in a run when he was hit by a pitch, but relief pitcher Alex Martin got out of the jam with a fly out to end the inning.
But in the eighth, King sent nine batters to the plate, scoring four runs on four hits, including two triples and a double.
Andrew Bowerman homered down the left field line for his first collegiate round-tripper. But that would be as close as the Pioneers would get.
Tusculum starter Cody Poarch suffered the loss for the Pioneers to fall to 2-1 on the season. TC reliever T.J. Miller continued his stellar play as he pitched 3.2 scoreless innings as he has not allowed a run in his last three appearances, spanning 12.1 innings.
Offensively, Stallings led the Pioneers with his two hits, while Heath Comerford extended his personal hitting streak to nine straight games with his 1-for-4 effort.
- TC -
