WILSON, N.C. – The King University baseball team bounced back behind a solid outing from
Drew Moore to win Sunday's game one over Barton College 4-2. The Tornado were poised to take the sweep, but Barton scored three runs in the ninth inning of game two, stunning the Tornado 6-5.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: King 4, Barton 2; Barton 6, King 5
LOCATION: Nixon Field; Wilson, N.C.
RECORDS: King 9-10, 8-8 Conference Carolinas; Barton 9-10, 8-6 Conference Carolinas
SERIES HIGHLIGHTS
- Moore used 109 pitches for his second complete game victory for the Tornado.
- Austin Meyer paced the Tornado offense, going 4-for-7 with one double and two runs scored.
- Ethan Hawkins and Bennett McCann drove in two runs each.
GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS
- King got off to a hot start in the first inning as Truman Roper started the contest with a walk.
- He later scored on a McCann double. Later in the inning, Davis Hall laced a double that scored McCann and Meyer to give King a 3-0 lead.
- Deric Graham started the second inning with a double and later scored on a McCann sacrifice fly to stretch the King lead to 4-0.
- Moore started on the mound for the Tornado and only allowed three baserunners, including one hit through the first five innings.
- An infield single and hit by pitch started the Barton half of the sixth inning.
- A Tornado defensive miscue allowed one run to score before a base hit plated another as the Bulldogs cut the King lead to 4-2.
- However, Moore got a strikeout to get out of the inning and leave a pair of runners on base.
- Barton looked to start a rally with a one-out single, but Moore induced a groundball, and the Tornado defense turned the double play to end the inning and give King the 4-2 victory.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Drew Moore (3-0) 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 SO
Losing Pitcher: Matt Petko (1-3) 2.0 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 1 SO
GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS
- King starting pitcher Trevor Beards worked out of a jam in the first inning as Barton got a leadoff single, but he was caught stealing.
- The Bulldogs then put two runners on with two outs, but Beards go a flyout to end the frame.
- Rob Sari got the first hit of the game for the Tornado in the second inning, a double, but he was stranded there.
- Barton got their leadoff hitter on again in the third inning, but it looked like Beards would get out of the inning as he got two straight outs.
- However, a two-out single from Brayden Olson scored Peyton Creech to give Barton a 1-0 lead.
- King threatened with a pair of runners in the fourth inning, but couldn't get the timely hit.
- A Meyer double sparked the Tornado offense in the sixth inning, and Backus drove him in with a two-out single to even the score at 1-1.
- Barton took a 3-1 lead with two runs in the seventh, one on an Olson sacrifice fly and another on a single.
- King responded in the top of the eighth as McCann worked a leadoff walk.
- He later scored on a Sari sacrifice fly before a Backus single that scored Zachary Thomas evened the score at 3-3.
- Hawkins then gave King a 5-3 lead with an infield single that scored Backus and Harrison Barger.
- Three straight Barton one-out singles in the ninth scored one before a hit by pitch loaded the bases.
- The Bulldogs then dropped down a squeeze bunt to even the score at 5-5 and leave runners on second and third with two outs.
- An infield single scored the game-winning run as Barton took the game 6-5.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Brett Widerman (1-1) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO
Losing Pitcher: Nic Blankenship (1-2) 2.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO
FOR THE FOES
- Colby Warren led Barton with four hits and two runs batted in while Dylan Scaranda added three hits.
- Olson and Zach Taylor drove in two each.
UP NEXT
- King travels to Belmont Abbey College on Friday for another Conference Carolinas doubleheader starting at 2:00 p.m.
- Barton is scheduled to host UNC Pembroke on Tuesday afternoon.
