Baseball Splits Doubleheader with North Florida
3/5/2012 2:31:00 AM | Baseball
STATESBORO, Ga. - The Georgia Southern Baseball team split a doubleheader with North Florida on Sunday and earned their first win in six tries in game two. Eric Phillips (Carrollton, Ga.) picked up five hits on the day, while Stryker Brown (Dalton, Ga.) drove in four runs on four hits.
Game One
The Georgia Southern Baseball team dropped the third game in the series and the first at home with a 7-5 loss to North Florida. The Eagles were unable to make a 5-4 fifth inning lead hold up and dropped the first game.
Both teams went to the bullpen early and both pens factored into the decision. Evan Stermer (2-0) picked up the win with a scoreless inning and a third, and Tyler Moore (S, 2) threw the final 2.1 innings for the save. Will Middour (Atlanta, Ga.) (0-1) allowed two runs on five hits in 2.2 innings and was tagged with the loss.
Georgia Southern hit in all but three innings and tallied just eight hits for the game. Phillips led the charge with three hits including a double in the fifth inning. Brown added two hits at the top of the lineup, but the bottom five spots in the order went a combined 1-for-12.
North Florida scored four runs over three innings before Georgia Southern cracked the scoreboard with five runs in the fifth inning. The Eagles batted around in the frame scoring all the five runs on three hits. Brown followed a hit batter and a walk with a triple out of reach of the diving Tyler Marincov, plating the first two runs of the inning. Michael Burruss (Marietta, Ga.) drove in the third run of the inning with a single back up the middle. An error by the third baseman with the bases loaded scored the final two runs.
UNF followed with single runs from the sixth inning on before a scoreless ninth frame to take a two-run lead. Marincov plated a lead-off double for a run in the sixth inning but slid off the bag for the second out of the inning. A lead-off single and an errant throw from third base put Ryan Roberson on second base before Alex Bacon plated the go ahead run in the seventh inning.
Game Two
The Georgia Southern Baseball team snapped a five-game losing streak with a 9-5 victory in game two of the doubleheader. The Eagles out-hit North Florida and scored multiple runs in three innings.
North Florida jumped ahead with a first inning run, but Georgia Southern struck for five unanswered runs over the third and fourth innings to take a 5-1 lead. Kyle Rowe (Valdosta, Ga.) retired seven-straight batters after working out of a jam with runners on the corners in the second inning before allowing three runs in the fifth inning. Heath Durand (Martinez, Ga.) (1-0) picked up the win in relief after a scoreless inning of work, and Taylor Burke (Statesboro, Ga.) (S, 1) closed the door with his first career save.
North Florida tied the ball game at 5-5 in the sixth inning after a lead-off walk came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Corey Bass. Georgia Southern retook the lead with a single run in the bottom of the frame. Scooter Williams (Detroit, Mich.) walked with the bases loaded to plate Morgan with one out, but Evan Stermer left them full with a strikeout of Burruss. Evan Incinelli (0-1) was tagged the loss after allowing the one run in an inning and a third.
Casey Kicklighter (Jesup, Ga.) homered with one out in the fourth inning over the wall in right field to put the Eagles up 4-1. Tyler Avera (Baxley, Ga.) picked up a two-out RBI and scored Ben Morgan (Evans, Ga.), who was hit by a pitch from third base.
The Eagles opened up a four-run advantage with three runs in the seventh inning. Three-straight hits opened the frame and scored the first run on T.D. Davis' (Evans, Ga.) double to right field. A squeeze bunt by Morgan drove in the second run from third base before Avera picked up another two-out RBI with a double.
Georgia Southern hits the road for five-straight games beginning with a mid-week contest at Charleston Southern on Tuesday.
All games can be heard on Boomer 103.7 FM and inside the stadium on 88.1 FM. Audio for all games is also available on the web and subscription video is available for all home games at GeorgiaSouthernEagles.com/Eaglevision.
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