GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum College's McKenly Berry pitched a seven-inning complete game gem as the Pioneers split a South Atlantic Conference baseball doubleheader with visiting Coker College Sunday afternoon at Pioneer Park.
Berry recorded seven strikeouts in Tusculum's 5-1 victory in the opener. Coker's Ben Brown answered with a complete game win of his own as the Cobras prevailed in the second game, 4-3.
The Pioneers (22-12, 11-9 SAC) win the weekend series 2-1 and have won six of their last eight contests. Tusculum travels to Young Harris College on Tuesday for a 5 p.m. non-conference tilt.
Game 1: Tusculum 5, Coker 1 (Box Score)
Berry scattered seven hits and did not walk a batter as he posted consecutive victories in his first two collegiate starts in TC's 5-1 win over Coker.
Coker got the first two batters aboard with consecutive singles, but Berry worked his way out of the jam getting T.J. Giczkowski to ground into a double play and followed by a line-out off the bat of Ernie Kirkwood to end the inning.
In the third inning, Jeremiah Tullidge reached on a two-out single and Trey Drewery followed with his third home run of the season to give the Pioneers a 2-0 lead. TC added a run in each of the next three innings.
Chris Waylock hit a double off the left field wall to score John Topoleski from third base in the fourth. Coker plated a run in the top of the fifth inning, but TC got run back in the bottom of the frame thanks to a two-out single from Scott Gibson for a 4-1 lead. Tusculum made it a four-run lead in the sixth thanks to a RBI groundout from Tullidge.
Berry retired the last five batters of the contest, including three strikeouts in his 83-pitch performance to improve to 2-0 on the season.
Coker starter Alex Hernandez suffered the loss as he went the distance to fall to 1-5.
Game 2: Coker 4, Tusculum 3 (Box Score)
The Cobras plated two runs each in the first two innings and held off a Tusculum rally in winning the second game, 4-3.
Ben Brown recorded his third complete game of the season while allowing eight hits, three runs, one earned, with a walk to improve his record to 4-2.
Tusculum starter John-Austin Shepard (3-4) suffered the loss while recording his first complete game of his collegiate career.
Coker scored twice in the first inning as Giczkowski had an infield RBI single and he would score on Kirkwood's seventh double of the year.
In the second inning, Will Winslow drew a one-out walk, stole second and scored on Shea Bell's base hit to center. On the play, the ball got away from the TC outfielder to allow Bell to advance to third base and he would later score on Sammy Song's RBI groundout and a 4-0 lead.
TC got a run back in the bottom of the second inning when Gibson and Topoleski led off with consecutive singles. Waylock moved them over with his SAC-leading 10th sacrifice bunt of the season. Nick Rodriguez plated Gibson from third base with a sacrifice fly and to trim the deficit to 4-1.
The Pioneers made it a one-run contest scoring a pair of unearned runs in the fifth inning thanks to a pair of hits and two Coker errors. Drewery drove in the first run of the inning with a single. Heath Comerford added the other with sacrifice fly to make it a 4-3 Coker advantage.
After a rough two innings, Shepard bounced back by pitching five shutout innings while retiring the final six batters he would face, including the side in order in the top of the seventh.
Trailing 4-3 heading to the bottom of the frame, Bowerman recorded his second hit of the contest to open TC's final at-bat. Tullidge bunted him over into scoring position with Drewery and Comerford coming to the plate. Brown got Drewery to ground out and Comerford to hit a come-backer to the mound to end the game.
The Pioneers out-hit the Cobras 8-6 in the second game, led by Bowerman's 2-for-3 performance.
Shepard allowed six hits, four runs, three earned, seven strikeouts and one walk in his 105-pitch effort.
- TC -
