GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Caleb Webster and Max Schmarder each had three-hit nights, while Philip Miller and Cooper Emery provided solid pitching performances in Tusculum's 8-2 South Atlantic Conference win over Emory & Henry Friday at Pioneer Park.
The Pioneers (11-20, 6-10 SAC) finished the game with 14 hits including six in Tusculum's five-run, sixth inning.
TU's Sawyer Pace, Landon Dockery and Ben Scartz had two hits apiece while Ryan Ortega belted his first home run of his collegiate career.
Tusculum jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Schmarder led off with a single and later scored on Pace's two-out base hit.
Emory & Henry (10-22, 3-13 SAC) threatened in the second, third and fourth innings, but Miller, the reigning SAC Pitcher of the Week, worked his way out of those three jams.
The Wasps finally broke through in the fifth when Jared Foley led off with a base hit. Jaret Hoppes pulled off a hit and run as he singled to right and moved Foley to third. Hoppes would steal second and a wild pitch would move the runners up as Foley scored to tie the game at 1-1. Steven Smith reached on an error would allowed Hoppes to score from third as E&H took a 2-1 lead. After a walk put two runners, Caeden Howell bunted the runners into scoring position. But Miller got a strikeout and a fly out to end the inning and limit the damage.
In the bottom of the fifth, Pace reached base on a one-out error, moved to second on a passed ball and scored on Webster's 12th double of the season to tie the game at 2-2.
In the top of the sixth, Miller walked the lead-off batter as Tusculum went to the bullpen and Emery. Emery would get a pop up and a pair of strikeouts.
Tusculum sent nine batters to the plate in the bottom of the sixth as Schmarder reached on an infield single and scored on Scartz's double to right field as TU regained the lead at 3-2. A passed ball moved Scartz to third, but Austin Collins lined out to first base for the second out of the frame. Ortega stepped up and lifted a deep fly ball to left field that cleared the wall for a two-run homer and extended the lead to 5-2.
The homer chased out E&H starter Jacob Nestor who had pitched well in his 5.2 innings where he walked none and posted six strikeouts. Garrett Williams took over and surrendered a single to Pace, followed by Webster's second double of the game which scored Pace from first base to move the score to 6-2. A single by Dockery put runners on the corners. Both would move up when Williams was called for a balk as TU led 7-2.
Tusculum added a run in the bottom of the eighth on Dockery's RBI triple, his second of the year.
After Emery retired three straight to start the sixth, he had perfect innings in the seventh and eighth frames. He retired pinch-hitter Clay Caldwell to start the ninth for his 10th consecutive out. The Wasps got back-to-back singles, but a foul out and a ground out ended the game and secure the win for Emery (2-1) and the Pioneers.
Emery pitched four shutout innings where he allowed two singles, zero walks and four strikeouts.
Miller went five innings, allowed two runs on four hits, five walks and matched a career-best with his eight strikeouts.
Schmarder's 3-for-4 performance extends his hitting streak to 21 consecutive games, tying him for the eighth longest in program history. He matches the 21-game hitting streaks by Dustin Morrow (2007) and Nate Grabowski (2010). Schmarder has also reached base safely in 26 straight contests which is tied for the ninth-longest run in TU history.
Tusculum and Emory & Henry will wrap up the series on Saturday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader.
