Eagles' bats carry them to sweep of Brevard
April 4, 2009
JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. -- The Carson-Newman baseball team pounded out 29 hits on its way to sweeping Brevard College in South Atlantic Conference action on Saturday afternoon at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex. The Eagles won the first game 9-8 before completing the sweep with a 12-9 victory in game two.
"I think our approaches at the plate have been better, and it becomes contagious," Eagles coach Tom Griffin said. "We are starting to have some guys swing it better and it's helping the other guys."
With the wins, the Eagles improve to 20-16 overall and 5-10 in the SAC. Brevard falls to 8-24 on the season and 2-15 in conference play.
In the first game, C-N collected 11 hits and held off a late Brevard rally to claim a 9-8 victory.
Evan Patterson (Knoxville, Tenn.) went 2-for-2, including a three-run home run, drove in four runs and scored three times to lead the Eagles at the plate. Derek Long (Jefferson City, Tenn.) and Mills Rogers (Simpsonville, S.C.) also produced two-hits each.
The Tornados finished with nine hits, including two each from Spencer Linn (Fletcher, N.C.), Jackie Corn (Hendersonville, N.C.) and M.A. Dozier (Cumming, Ga.). Dozier also produced three RBIs.
C-N reliever D.J. Ferguson (Jupiter, Fla.) (1-0) pitched three perfect innings with one strikeout to earn the win, while junior Chase Boruff (Knoxville, Tenn.) picked up his first save of the season by getting all three batters he faced in the ninth inning out.
Brevard starting hurler Ryan Toney (Johnson City, Tenn.) (1-6) was tagged with the loss. The senior right-hander surrendered seven runs on six hits and walked four batters in 2 2/3 innings of work.
The Eagles struck first with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first inning. Aaron Vargas (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) and Long each delivered a run-scoring single to give C-N an early 2-0 lead.
C-N's lead didn't last long, however, as the Tornados erupted for four runs in the top of the second. Corn singled to lead off the inning and later scored on a double by Matthew Pruitt (Hendersonville, N.C.). Dozier delivered a three-run shot to left field to give Brevard a 4-2 advantage.
C-N answered with three runs in the home half of the second to claim a 5-4 lead. Mason Guymon (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) produced a RBI double, and Patterson drove in a run with a single to tie the game at 4-4. Patterson later scored on a Wesley Dozier (Cornelius, N.C.) groundout to give C-N the lead.
The Eagles added on to their lead in the bottom of the third, as Patterson launched a towering three-run home run over the left-field fence to give C-N an 8-4 lead.
Brevard pulled to within 8-6 in the top of the eighth on a run-scoring single by Corn and a RBI groundout by Jason Merrill.
Tyler Kitts (Knoxville, Tenn.) scored on an error in the bottom of the eighth to give C-N a 9-6 lead, but Brevard rallied for a pair of runs in the top of the ninth to cut the Eagles' lead to 9-8. However, Boruff entered the contest and was able to get the next three batters out to seal the win.
"The kid is confident," Griffin said of Boruff. "He attacks people. He's been a big lift for our bullpen. We are certainly excited about his future."
In the second game, the Eagles scored five runs and rattled off seven hits in the first inning alone and never looked back on their way to a 12-9 victory.
C-N finished the contest with a season-high 18 hits, which was the fifth time in six games it has reached double digits in hits and the 11th time in 15 games.
Patterson, Wesley Dozier and Rogers contributed three hits each to lead the Eagles, while Long and Tyler Wynn (LaGrange, Ga.) each had two hits in the win.
The Tornados tallied nine hits for the game, as Pruitt and Kellen Moman (Greenville, S.C.) led the way with two hits each.
C-N starter Justin Higdon (Ooltewah, Tenn.) (3-5) picked up the win after giving up four runs on six hits in 4 2/3 innings on the mound. He finished with two walks and two strikeouts.
Brevard starting pitcher Shane Galloway (Rosman, N.C.) (2-5) was hit with the loss. Galloway worked 2 1/3 innings and allowed eight runs on 10 hits.
C-N's lead ballooned to as much as 10-0 after four innings of play, but Brevard scored nine runs over the next three innings to make things interesting. However, the Eagles once again held on for the win, as C-N reliever Jake McDonald (Shelbyville, Ky.) entered the game in the ninth and was able to record the final two outs without allowing things to get out of hand.
Griffin said he needs the bullpen to perform much better down the stretch.
"We are not doing a good job with the guys out of the pen," he said. "We are not efficient at all, as far as getting ahead in the count, and we are not able to put people away when we do get pitcher's counts. That's been really disappointing. It's just a confidence factor."
The Eagles and Tornados will meet again on Sunday for the final game of the series. The contest is set to begin at 1 p.m. at Smokies Park in Kodak, Tenn. Smokies Park is the home of the Tennessee Smokies, which is the double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.
