Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 The Maryville College baseball team rallied for an 11th inning walk-off win to claim a hard fought USA South series from Averett University on Saturday evening on MC's Scotland Yard. Following a 6-4 defeat at the hands of the Cougars, the Scots used a walk-off single by Logan Jenkins to move to 16-4 on the season and 7-2 in USA South play.
The series finale saw each team plate a run in the third inning before the Scots erupted for a trio of runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. MC catcher Evan Ezell laced a double to score Zack Blonder and Brendan Lawler before Greg Vourloumis stole home to make the score 4-1.
Averett put together three consecutive RBIs in the sixth inning to even the score for the next five innings.
In the bottom of the 11th, Maryville's Ezell led off the inning getting hit by a pitch. Mackenzie Jackson pinch ran for the Scots' backstop. Clifton Dempsey placed a perfect bunt down the first base line to give MC runners at first and second. Lead-off hitter Andrew Henry walked to load the bases. The Cougars pulled in all fielders adding a fifth infielder, but Jenkins laced a single to right field to give MC the 5-4 victory.
Maryville's 13-hit attack was paced by Jenkins (3-for-4). Zack Blonder, Evan Ezell, and Clifton Dempsey each added a pair of hits.
Hard throwing Joe Jones earned the mound victory after shutting down the Cougars with 4.1 innings of shutout relief. The junior right-hander moved to 2-0 on the season after facing 14 hitters, striking out four while allowing only a pair of hits. Jones releved the start of Lawson Wishard. Wishard scattered six hits over 5.1 innings striking out four. Jerod Dickey added 1.1 innings of middle relief holding the Cougars scoreless.
During the first challenge of the day, Averett took advantage of four Maryville errors to secure a 6-4 win.
Despite pounding out 13 team hits, the Scots only managed to push four runs across the plate off Averett's starter Kyle Walsh and reliever Dallas Smithers. Walsh moved to 3-1 on the season as Smithers earned his first save of the season with four innings of quality relief.
Averett scored a run in each of their first four innings off MC starter Jeremy Ibarra. MC tallied a run in the second inning off a Brendan Lawler RBI single. They made the score 4-3 in the bottom of the fourth with key RBI singles by Andrew Henry and Logan Jenkins.
The Cougars added a pair of insurance runs in the eighth inning when Noah Greenblatt dropped a two-RBI single just out of the reach of the middle infield to make the score 6-3.
Maryville rallied in the bottom of the eighth with an RBI single by Johnny Carpenter.
Unfortunately, Averett's Smithers struck out a pair of Scots and induced a fly ball to secure the Cougar's hard fought road win.
The Scots' Jeremy Ibarra (3-3) suffered the loss after scattering eight hits over six innings allowing three earned runs. The senior right-hander struck out five. Samuel Joiner and Evan Heffner combined for three innings of three-hit relief.
MC's 13-hit attack was led by Andrew Henry's 4-for-5, two runs scored outing. Johnny Carpenter, Chris Ervin, and Jacob Frost each added a pair of hits in the loss.
The USA South split moves Averett to 9-10 on the season and 2-4 in USA South play. Maryville ends the series 16-4 overall and 7-2 after a trio of USA South series.
Maryville will prepare to host Emory & Henry College in a non-conference match up on Monday with a first pitch slated for 3:00 p.m.
