WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. --- The Tusculum University baseball team plated four runs in the fifth inning and six more in the sixth, while starter Harbor Jefferson pitched 5.2 strong innings as the Pioneers defeated host Palm Beach Atlantic University 10-2 Saturday afternoon.

Tusculum (2-0) opens the season with back-to-back wins for the first time 2012 and the first time scoring over 10 runs in its first two games since 2007. In both seasons, the Pioneers won the South Atlantic Conference regular-season title.

On Saturday, the Pioneers utilized nine hits and took advantage of five PBA errors. Jefferson (1-0) scattered four hits, allowed an unearned run with five strikeouts against zero walks. Gage Newsom allowed an unearned run in his 1.1 innings of work, while Tyler Smith tossed two shutout innings in his TU debut.

Jefferson and Palm Beach Atlantic starter Drew Holweger were posting goose eggs through the first four innings. Jefferson retired the first 10 batters of the game to get his 2022 season started, while Holweger scattered a pair of singles through the opening four frames.

In the top of the fifth, TU's Wes Reynolds led off with a single and later score on Blaze McCauley's fielder's choice. Later in the inning, Jaden Steagall scored on Kyle Williams' squeeze bunt. TU added two more unearned runs in the frame to take a 4-0 lead.

The Sailfish (2-1) scored a run off of Jefferson on Nate Housen's RBI single to center to trim the deficit to 4-1.

The Pioneers tacked on six runs in the next inning including a Reynolds RBI double and a Steagall sacrifice fly. Zane Keener added a RBI double later in the inning, while Christian Orgeta singled home Keener for the inning's sixth run.

Luis Ezra, Zach Wilson, Reynolds and Ortega all finished the game with two hits apiece. PBA totaled seven singles including a pair by Housen as the Sailfish suffer their first loss in three outings this spring.

Tusculum will continue its Florida road swing on Sunday morning with an 11 a.m. match-up with Lynn University (2-0).