Mars Hill, N.C. – King University baseball went toe-to-toe with Mars Hill in a high-scoring nonconference matchup on Wednesday afternoon, but the Tornado came up just short in an 11-inning thriller, falling 13–12 at Henderson Field. King (10–15) produced 12 runs on 12 hits, including home runs from Justin Smith and Adrian Vidal, but the Lions (9–15-1) pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the 11th to end the back-and-forth contest.
The Tornado scored in seven different innings and held leads of 2–0, 4–3, 6–5, 7–6, and 11–10, but Mars Hill capitalized on late miscues and timely hitting to edge out the one-run victory.
Early Offense Sets the Tone
King struck first in the second inning, using a sacrifice fly from Josh Nuno and a bunt RBI from Jose Ruiz to take a 2–0 lead. Mars Hill answered with a three-run double from Yeriel Pastrana, giving the Lions a 3–2 advantage after two.
The Tornado responded immediately in the third. Justin Smith launched a solo home run to right field, and Misael Garcia drew a bases-loaded walk to push King back in front 4–3. Mars Hill countered with four runs in the bottom half, including a two-run homer from Zachary Cimino, to take a 7–4 lead.
King Continues to Battle
King kept the pressure on in the fourth as Tommy Regan ripped a two-run double to left, cutting the deficit to 7–6. Mars Hill added two more in the bottom half, but the Tornado answered again in the fifth when Adrian Vidal homered to right-center to make it 9–7.
The Tornado put together their biggest inning in the sixth. Regan singled home a run, and Vidal delivered the biggest swing of the day — a three-run triple to center — giving King an 11–10 lead.
Mars Hill tied the game in the bottom of the sixth on a pair of wild pitches, and the teams traded scoreless frames until extras.
Extra Innings Decide It
King briefly tied the game again in the eighth on an RBI single from Garcia, but neither team scored in the ninth or tenth. In the bottom of the 11th, Mars Hill's Chapel Matson singled down the right-field line to bring home the winning run.
Offensive Leaders – King University
- Adrian Vidal: 2-for-5, HR, 3B, 4 RBI, HBP
- Tommy Regan: 2-for-6, 3 RBI, 2B
- Justin Smith: 2-for-4, HR, 3 runs
- Misael Garcia: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 walks
- Mitchell Victor: 2-for-4, 4 runs, 2 walks
King stole four bases and recorded five extra-base hits in the loss.
Up Next
The Tornado return home to Bristol for a Conference Carolinas series against Belmont Abbey on Friday, March 20, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m.
