GREENVILLE, Tenn. -- A four-run sixth inning helped propel the Anderson baseball team to a two-run lead, but the Trojans were unable to hold on, falling, 9-4, in the opening contest of three-game non-conference series against South Atlantic Conference opponent Tusculum Friday afternoon at Pioneer Park. Tusculum (14-12) which brought a four-game win streak into Friday's contest, jumped ahead 2-0 with single runs in the fourth and sixth innings, but the potent Anderson offense, held scoreless through the opening five frames by the Pioneer pitching staff, exploded for four runs in the sixth inning behind a two-run triple to the gap in left-center from Erick Sanderson. Chance Thomas led off the inning with a walk on five pitches and Blake May followed with a single back up the middle to move Thomas into scoring position. Two batters later Ryan Kirkland ripped a full-count single up the middle that plated Thomas and Sanderson tripled to score both May and Kirkland and put the Trojans ahead for the first time of the afternoon. Sanderson then scored from third on Jonathan Romano's sacrifice fly to right, giving AU a 4-2 advantage heading into the bottom of the sixth. The Pioneers countered with two runs in the bottom of the sixth to knot the score, while Anderson (9-20), threatened to put more runs on the scoreboard by loading the bases with one out in the seventh. Thomas Padro singled to right center to lead off and with one out, Thomas singled to left and both runners moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. After working ahead in the count, May was intentionally walked, but the Trojans were unable to capitalize as the Pioneers' defense recorded an inning-ending double play to end the threat. Tusculum regained the lead with five runs in the bottom of the eighth to pull ahead 9-4 and the Trojans threatened in the ninth after Padro led off with a single to center, and May and Saxon drawing back-to-back two-out walks, bringing Kirkland to the plate and the potential tying run, Sanderson, to the on-deck circle. But the Trojans were unable to push a run across. Anderson and Tusculum wrap up the three-game series with a doubleheader slated to begin at 1 p.m. Saturday at Pioneer Park.