Baseball Splits with Newberry
The Lions’ baseball team split a double-header with South Atlantic Conference rival Newberry.
MARS HILL, N.C. – The Lions' baseball team split a double-header with South Atlantic Conference rival Newberry, Saturday afternoon at Henderson Field. Mars Hill took their season record to 5-11-1 overall and 2-3 in the league. The Wolves are now 7-9 on the season and are also 2-3 in the SAC.
Game 1: NC 11, MHU 6 (11 innings)
Matt Honeycutt went 3-for-5 with two homeruns to lead Mars Hill at the plate. Daniel Vitello followed going 3-for-4. Shomarii Thomas recorded two hits including a solo homerun. Fausto Turro suffered the loss (0-2) pitching in relief for the Lions.
Colin Allman accounted for all of Newberry's runs. He went 4-for-6 with three homeruns, a triple, four runs scored and seven RBI. Peyton Spangler came off the bench to tally three hits and the same number of RBI. Jacob Jeffcoat obtained the win (2-0) throwing two innings in relief.
Allman tripled in the first inning and later scored on a fielder's choice to put the first run on the board. Allman hit a two-run homerun in the third inning to extend the Wolves lead to 3-0. Travis Owens scored on a wild pitch in the bottom half of the inning to trim the deficit to 3-1.
Honeycutt led the bottom of the sixth inning off with a homerun to left-center field to bring the Lions within a single run (3-2). The Lions took the lead (4-3) in the bottom of the eighth frame on two hits highlighted by a RBI triple from Cody Cline.
Spangler singled up the middle to drive in two runs and give the Wolves a 5-4 lead in the top of the ninth inning. Honeycutt then belted his second homerun of the game with a shot to center field to tie the contest at 5-all and send the game into extra innings. The teams traded homeruns in the tenth inning to send the game to the eleventh inning where the Wolves put the game away scoring five runs on three hits highlighted by a grand slam homerun by Allman.
Game 2: MHU 3, NC 2
Jared Mathewson threw a complete game scattering five hits and allowing just two runs to pick up his first win (1-0) of the season. He struck out nine batters and walked only two. Daniel Vitello went 1-for-2 at the plate with a double, a stolen base and a run scored to lead the Lions offensively. Christian Stampler followed with a two run homerun in the win.
Allman and Danton Hyman recorded two hits apiece to pace the Wolves at the plate. Hyman added a double. Ryan Harbin took the loss (2-1) throwing six innings allowing three runs on five hits while striking out eight batters.
Vitello doubled to lead off the bottom half of the first inning before Stampler homered to put the Lions up 2-0. Newberry scored single runs in the fourth and fifth innings to knot the contest at 2-all. Tyler White hit a solo homerun in the fourth inning and then Hyman hit an RBI double in the fifth inning.
Thomas hit a single up the middle in the Lions' sixth at-bat to send Josh Hall to the plate to score what would later prove to be the game winning run.
The teams will conclude the three-game SAC series tomorrow with a single game beginning at 1 p.m.
