BRISTOL, Tenn. – After entering the ninth inning down 15-7, the King University baseball team rallied to score seven runs before falling to the Tusculum University Pioneers 15-14 Tuesday afternoon. The seven-run inning is the most runs scored in a inning this season for the Tornado.
THE BASICS: Tusculum 15, King 14
LOCATION: King Baseball Field; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 18-18; Tusculum 17-26
KING HIGHLIGHTS
- Robbie Scott went 3-for-6 at the plate, with two home runs and four RBI.
- Preston Steele was 2-for-3 at the dish, with two RBI and two runs scored.
- After coming on in the eighth, Garret Huffman went 1-for-2, with his hit being an RBI single in the ninth.
- Chris Pudney entered as a pinch hitter in the ninth and picked up his first hit of the season, an RBI single.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Tusculum got runners to second and third to start the game, but Brendan Mascle picked up a clutch strikeout to strand the runners on base.
- After two quick outs in the bottom of the frame, Scott stepped up to the plate and hit his fifth home run of the season, this one to left field to give King a 1-0 lead.
- The Pioneers would score a pair in the top of the second to take a 2-1 lead.
- In the bottom of the inning, King scored a pair, with Caleb Helms and Steele both hitting RBI doubles to put King in front 3-2.
- Tusculum struck big in the fourth, scoring three runs on four hits to go in front 5-3.
- King tied the game in the bottom of the frame, with Steele picking up another RBI on a sacrifice fly and Backus singling through the right side to drive in Deric Graham.
- The Pioneers would go on to score three runs in the fifth, taking an 8-5 lead.
- After Cody Hutcherson drove in a run on a sacrifice fly, the Pioneers would score five times in the top of the sixth to go up 13-6.
- After a pair of runs in the top of the seventh, King scored one in the eighth on an RBi single from Huffman.
- The bottom of the ninth is where the Tornado came storming back, as they scored seven runs on four hits.
- Wes Bonney stepped up to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded and delivered a single up the middle, driving in two runs and making it a 15-11 game.
- Scott was the next batter, and he delivered his second home run of the game, sending this one over the left-center field fence to make the score 15-14.
- Tusculum was able to get a groundout to second base to end the inning, and escape with a 15-14 win.
FOR THE FOES
- Ryan Dos Santos went 5-for-6, with five RBI on the day.
- Connor Jurek was 4-for-6, while Rudy Fernandez was 3-for-3 with four RBI.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Gage Newsom (3-0) 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO
Losing Pitcher: Brendan Mascle (0-1) 4.2 IP, 11 H, 8 R, 8 Er, 3 BB, 2 SO
UP NEXT
- King will close out their home schedule Wednesday when they host Mars Hill for a nonconference matchup.
- Tusculum will also be in action Wednesday when they face UVA Wise in a conference showdown.
