EMORY, Va. – The No. 13 nationally-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne University Baseball Team (21-4, 9-3 SAC) took the rubber match of a three-game South Atlantic Conference series over Emory & Henry University (7-19, 3-12 SAC) Saturday afternoon. The two teams combined for 42 runs and 38 hits as the Bears outlasted the Wasps for a 26-16 victory.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – No. 13 Lenoir-Rhyne 26, Emory & Henry 16
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – Porterfield-DeVault Field
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (7-19, 3-12 SAC); Lenoir-Rhyne (21-4, 9-3 SAC)
How It Happened
The Bears were first on the board in the top of the first inning as they tallied three runs on three hits. The Wasps struck back in the bottom of the first, scoring three runs on three hits and a pair of LR errors to tie things up at 3-3. After a scoreless second, LR took the lead once more with four more runs on three more base knocks to make it 7-3. Emory & Henry responded with a three-run home run off the bat of fifth-year designated hitter Caeden Howell (Roaring River, N.C.) to draw back within one at 7-6.
Lenoir-Rhyne added to their lead with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth, but again the home team had an answer. Fifth-year second baseman Jared Foley (Sparta, N.C.) drove in one with an RBI single, senior third baseman Steven Smith (Salisbury, N.C.) plated a pair with a two-RBI double and Howell launched his second three-run bomb of the day. Fifth-year catcher Camden Bailey (Sterling, Ill.) added an RBI single and the Wasps held a 13-9 advantage through four innings of play.
LR got back in the scoring column in the top of the fifth inning as they touched home four times, utilizing three long balls to tie the game once more at 13-13. The tie was short-lived however as the Wasps scored twice in the home half of the inning on one hit, a wild pitch and an error to take a 15-13 lead into the sixth. The two teams exchanged one run each in the sixth as the Wasps held on to a 16-14 margin heading down the stretch. The Bears erupted for seven runs in the seventh, three in the eighth and two more in the ninth to take the win by a 26-16 final.
Preston Drebes earned the win on the mound for Lenoir-Rhyne as he allowed one run on three hits in one inning of work. Junior righty Brady Halstead (Indian Trail, N.C.) suffered the loss as he surrendered six runs on five hits while recording three outs. Howell's monster day led the Wasps as he tied his own record for the most RBIs in a single game in the E&H Division II era with seven. Smith had three runs driven in while four more Wasps finished with one RBI each.
Up Next
Emory & Henry steps out of conference play on Tuesday, March 18 when the Wasps host the Crusaders of Belmont Abbey College. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. from Porterfield-DeVault Field.
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