ANDERSON, S.C. - Unable to bounce back following a four-run inning by North Greenville in the top of the first, Anderson University baseball suffered its first setback to the Crusaders this season, falling 7-3, in the final game of a season-long nonconference series Wednesday evening at Anderson Memorial Stadium.
The setback drops the Trojans to 18-25 on the season, despite claiming the series over NGU, 2-1, for the year. The Crusaders, who claimed their first win over AU in the last three meetings dating back to last season, improve to 24-22 for the season.
The Trojans out-hit their in-state rival, 10-8, for the evening, as the heart of the Anderson lineup, consisting of junior first baseman Steven Cooper and junior catcher LJ Newman, totaled two hits apiece and combined for four singles. Junior second baseman Kyle Bailey and junior outfielder Garrett Bernardo posted the Black and Gold's lone extra-base hits of the evening, as Bailey recorded a fifth-inning double for his ninth two-bagger of the season.
Joining Bailey was Bernardo, who sent a 1-1 pitch over the left-field wall for the Glenmont, N.Y. native's first homer of the season to put AU on the scoreboard for the first time. Two innings later, redshirt sophomore outfielder Stephen McKnight brought home Newman on a sacrifice fly to push the North Greenville lead to 6-2 after four innings.
Anderson's runs for the evening were capped off in the seventh when a single by Newman plated Nick Bernardo to chip away at the NGU lead. Despite the run, the Trojans could not find the scoreboard for the rest of night, suffering the four-run setback.
AU's pitching staff for the game of starter John McMicking and relievers Austin Smith and Andrew Dill combined for 12 strikeouts for the evening, as McMicking recorded five punch-outs in the first five innings. Following the freshman, Smith continued the trend with a pair of strikeouts while allowing just one hit through 2.2 innings. Dill ended the contest with four strikeouts in the final 1.1 innings.
Three Crusaders recorded multi-hit games, as third baseman Foley George closed the evening with a 2-for-5 performance with two RBI and a run scored. Outfielder David Lipscomb finished 2-for-2 with a pair of runs scored and a RBI, while Andrew Locklear went 2-for-4 with a RBI. Shortstop Allen Staton knocked his eighth home run of the season in the third inning to give the visitors a convincing 5-1 advantage, as he closed the game 1-for-3 with three runs scored.
The Trojans look to bounce back on Wednesday when they head to nationally-ranked North Georgia for a doubleheader. First pitch of the first game is scheduled for 4 p.m.
