BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The University of the South baseball team saw No. 3 Birmingham-Southern College even the game at seven runs apiece after seven innings, but a three-spot in the eighth and a six-run outburst in the ninth to send the top-seed to the Loser's Bracket in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Baseball Tournament, Thursday night from Striplin Field.
Birmingham-Southern is ranked third nationally in the latest D3baseball.com poll.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final Score: (8) Sewanee (5-34) 16, (1) No. 3 Birmingham-Southern (32-8) 7
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HOW IT HAPPENED
-Things did not start great for the Tigers, as the Panthers scored four times in the bottom of the first to take a 4-0 lead.
-In the third, Sewanee saw
TJ Meyn lead off with a free pass and a
Sully McCreery base knock to put ducks on the pond.
Mac Gortney got Sewanee on the board with an RBI double, and two batters later,
Wesley House brought McCreery and Gortney home thanks to a two-bagger of his own.
-In the fourth, BSC gave Sewanee a gift that started a rally. After
Carter Huffman led off the inning with a base hit, but a fielding error saw Huffman circle the bases to even the game at four runs apiece.
-Following back-to-back walks by
Luke Short and Meyn, McCreery laced a double of his own to score Short and give the Purple Tigers the 5-4 lead.
-After BSC went to the bullpen,
Mike Lewishall greeted the new pitcher in Connor Adams with a two-run single to push the lead to 7-4.
-The home team would claw back with a two-run homerun in the fifth and an RBI single in the seventh to tie the game at seven runs apiece with two innings left.
-In the eighth, the bats came to life for the Purple and White, and that would give Sewanee the lead for good. Three straight Tigers reached base to start the inning. Following another Panther pitching change, McCreery, with the bases juiced, was plunked with a pitch and scored Huffman.
-Lewishall would follow with a base hit to score Short. Gortney grounded into a fielder's choice, and thanks to BSC's third error of the game that saw McCreery score from second base.
-After
Hampton Long retired the side in the bottom of the eighth to earn the shut-down inning, the Sewanee bats were still sizzling in the ninth. Five straight batters reached to open the ninth, as six runs crossed the plate.
-Later in the frame, House essentially put the game out of reach with a bases-clearing double to give Sewanee the 16-7 lead.
SEWANEE KEY STATISTICS
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Wesley House records a career-best five RBI in the win, including the three-run double in the ninth.
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Sully McCreery and
Mike Lewishall each tallied three hits and four RBI. McCreery also scored four times.
-
Carter Huffman and and
Luke Short scored three times and laced three base knocks each.
-
Logan Martin (1-5) fanned nine batters in seven innings, but
Hampton Long slammed the door with two shutout innings, allowing one hit and two strikeouts to clinch the save.
BIRMINGHAM-SOUTHERN KEY STATISTICS
-Cole Steadman and Brian Williams each went yard for Birmingham-Southern.
UP NEXT
Now in the winner's bracket, Sewanee will have a quick turnaround, as they will take on Hendrix, who defeated Oglethorpe, 11-3, in the early game on Thursday. The two teams will tango Friday morning at 11:30 a.m. from Striplin Field.
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