GAFFNEY, S.C. – Senior Brian Forbes (Rocky Point, N.Y.) bashed three homeruns and combined for nine RBIs and junior Benjamin Huber (Pendleton, S.C.) went 6-for-6 in the nightcap, leading the Limestone University baseball team to its first South Atlantic Conference series win on Sunday. The Saints faltered late in game one, 14-7, but rallied late in the second game to take the series, 14-11.
 
GAME 1 INFORMATION
Score: UVA Wise 14, Limestone 7
Records: UVA Wise (2-15, 1-14), Limestone (9-11, 7-8)
Location: Saints Field
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
 

• Forbes went 2-for-3 with a homerun and three RBIs for Limestone in game one
• Huber finished with a base knock and two RBIs in the first game
• Senior Vance Deese (Norwood, N.C.) added two hits and an RBI
• Senior Matt Hilderbrandt (Bowmanville, Ontario) homered for a third straight game
• Senior Josh Evans (Indian Land, S.C.) chipped in a pair of singles and a stolen base
• Freshman Dylan Shugan (Alpharetta, Ga.) tallied a two-hit game
• Junior starter Cory Busse (Wonder Lake, Ill.) gave up six runs on nine hits and three walks
• Busse struck out four over 3.2 innings of work in a no-decision
• Junior Gehrig Spradlin (Roanoke, Va.) took the loss despite not allowing an earned run
• Spradlin allowed two unearned runs on a hit and a walk over 2.1 innings out of the bullpen
• The Cavaliers outhit the Saints, 16-11, in the first game while Limestone had three errors

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Evans got the day started for the Saints with an infield single, and then after a wild pitch and a steal of third gave the Blue and Gold a 1-0 lead on an RBI groundout by Huber. With two outs, Shugan kept the inning going with a hit before making it 2-0 a few pitches later on an RBI single up the middle by Forbes.
 
UVA Wise loaded the bases in the top of the second after Limestone misplayed a pair of bunts before cutting the lead in half, 2-1, on a one-out sac fly. The Cavaliers then put together a furious two-out rally, highlighted by a two-run triple, as the visitors sent 11 men to the plate in the frame to pull in front, 5-2.
 
Trailing 6-2 in the fifth, sophomore Conner Sibbald (Charleston, S.C.) was plunked before Evans singled to put a pair of runners on for the Saints. Deese then went to the opposite field for an RBI single before Huber closed the gap to 6-4 for the Blue and Gold after pulling an RBI base knock through the left side.
 
It looked like a double play ball would end the rally, but Forbes hammered a first-pitch fastball over the wall in center for a two-run shot before Hilderbrandt went back-to-back with a massive blast – his third of the weekend – over the centerfield wall to put Limestone in front, 7-6. That lead would not hold up though as the Cavaliers touched up the bullpen for eight runs over the last two innings to steal the 14-7 decision.
 
GAME 2 INFORMATION
Score: Limestone 14, UVA Wise 11
Records: Limestone (10-11, 8-8), UVA Wise (2-16, 1-15)
Location: Saints Field
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
 

• Forbes finished 4-of-5 with two homeruns and six RBIs in game two for Limestone
• Huber went a perfect 6-of-6 at the dish while driving in three runs
• Deese added two base knocks, including the game-winning hit, and two RBIs
• Evans chipped in a two-hit game while Sibbald tallied two hits and an RBI
• Hilderbrandt finished with two base hits and walk
• Senior Devon Cantey (Half Moon Bay, Calif.) added two hits and two RBIs at the plate
• Cantey also tossed a scoreless inning with a strikeout on the mound for his second save
• Freshman Cale Wagoner (San Antonio, Texas) picked up the win out of the pen
• Wagoner allowed a run on three hits over 1.2 innings of work for his first career win
• Sophomore starter Tyler Smith (Pelham, Ala.) allowed five runs on four hits and seven walks
• Limestone and UVA Wise combined for 36 hits and 25 runs in a wild series finale
• The Saints registered 21 hits while the Cavaliers posted 14 base knocks

 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
The Cavaliers jump out in front, 1-0, following three straight walks to start the first inning, but the Saints countered with two runs in the home half. With a runner on third and one out in the bottom of the first, Huber tied the game with an RBI single before Canty gave Limestone a 2-1 lead with a sacrifice fly.
 
UVA Wise again loaded the bases in the top of the third, setting the stage for a four-run inning that would give the visitors a 5-2 cushion. However, Limestone responded in the bottom half of the frame as a leadoff single by Huber was followed by a two-run moonshot to center by Forbes – his second of the day.
 
Forbes then went yard again in the home half of the fifth – another two-run blast after Huber led the inning off with a hit – to give Limestone a 6-5 edge. With two outs, sophomore Grant Belanger (Greer, S.C.) singled before senior Justin Greider (Ridgeway, S.C.) – making his first start at short – worked a walk.
 
Sibbald would stake the Blue and Gold to a 7-5 lead a few pitches later, but the Cavaliers stormed back in the sixth with four straight two-out hits to power yet another four-run inning, making it 9-7 at the midway point. The Saints got one of those runs back in the home half of the sixth on an RBI single from Cantey.
 
Trailing 10-8 going into the bottom of the seventh, Huber slapped an RBI single into left – his fifth hit of the game – before Forbes tied the game at 10-all with a long single to rightfield, just missing his third homer of the game. UVA Wise answered with a single tally in the eighth though to retake the lead, 11-10.
 
The back-and-forth continued in the bottom of the eighth as three straight one-out walks by Greider, Sibbald, and Evans loaded the bags for the heart of the lineup. Deese followed with the game-winning hit, a two-run single, before Huber slapped his sixth hit of the game – an RBI single – through the right side. Forbes then applied the final touches on the rally with a long sac fly to give the Saints a 14-11 cushion.
 
Cantey then moved from third base to the mound in the ninth and got two quick outs before working around an error to preserve the come-from-behind victory and the program's first SAC series win.
 
UP NEXT
 
The Saints look to keep it rolling when they hit the road to face another former conference foe in a four-game SAC series at Coker University on Friday, March 26, and Saturday, March 27.