GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - The Anderson University baseball team
dropped a 6-3 South Atlantic Conference decision at Tusculum Sunday
afternoon. With the win, Tusculum (19-5, 8-4 SAC) completed a
three-game series sweep past the Trojans (11-15, 5-7 SAC).
Tusculum's Dylan Hochevar went the distance, scattering seven hits,
allowed three runs, one earned, walked one and posted nine
strikeouts, including the last two outs in the ninth.
It was a contest riddled with errors by both teams as only four of
the nine total runs scored on the day were earned.
Tusculum got on the board first when Sean Cotten drove in the first
run of the day with his sacrifice fly out to score Alexi Colon.
Aaron Guinn followed with a one-out single to score Nate Reid.
Anderson plated an unearned run in the second inning when Ryan
Saxon reached on a fielding error, the first of five for TC on the
day. He moved to third on a failed pickoff attempt and later scored
on a Ryan Kirkland's fly out to cut the deficit in half at 2-1.
Tusculum took advantage of an Anderson miscue in the bottom of the
frame, plating a pair of unearned runs. Lukas Graves drew a walk
from Anderson starter Brett Campbell. He would move to second on
Bradley Mattox's bunt single and on to third base after the errant
thrown to first. After Mattox stole second, Colon drove in the
third run with his sacrifice fly to bring home Graves. Mattox would
cross the plate himself on Cotten's two-out single to right field
and a 4-1 Tusculum lead.
The score would remain that way until the fifth inning when
Anderson's Jonathan Romano doubled down the right field line and
later scored on Blake May's RBI-single to right. On the play,
Guinn overran the ball allowing May to move to second. Saxon came
on and laced a base hit up the middle to pull the Trojans within
one at 4-3.
Hochevar and the Pioneers would cling to that one-run lead until
the bottom of the eighth with runners at second and third with two
outs, Anderson reliever Marsh Kowalski threw a wild pitch, allowing
pinch runner Brett DePalma to score from third. On the attempted
throw back to the plate, the ball got away, allowing Arias to also
slide home with another insurance run and a 6-3 lead.
Guinn finished the day for the Pioneers going 2-for-4 with a RBI,
while Anderson's Thomas Padro and Saxon tallied 2-for-4 efforts
themselves in the loss.
Kowalski pitched 3 1/3 effective innings in relief, allowing two
hits, two runs, one earned and struck out one.
Anderson returns to action Wednesday at USC Aiken. First-pitch
versus the Pacers is slated for 6 p.m.
