FLORENCE
-- Trailing by a run in the bottom of the
ninth inning, the University of North
Alabama baseball team loaded the bases with
no outs but weren't able to get the tying
run across the plate in a 10-9 loss to West
Georgia in the Gulf South Conference opener
for both schools.
Playing their
first game at the newly named Mike D. Lane
Field, the Lions trailed 6-0 after the first
inning but chipped away at the Wolves lead
and finally pulled within a run in the
bottom of the eighth.
In the ninth,
Qualon Millender got a leadoff single and
Matt Horton beat out a sacrifice bunt for
another single. The two base runners moved
up on a wild pitch and Jeffery Ritter was
intentionally walked to load the bases with
no outs. Cole Mitchell, who was 3-for-3 with
a walk, then ripped a ball to third but the
Wolves managed to get a force out at home
and turned a double-play at first. Daniel
Johnson re-loaded the bases with a two-out
walk but the game ended when pinch hitter
Caleb Kidd struckout on a foul-tip that West
Georgia catcher Dan Williams managed to hang
on to.
Cody Gossett
(4-1) got the win for West Georgia, allowing
five runs on four hits over six innings. He
walked five and struckout two. Toby Jordan
got his first save of the year, allowing
four runs on nine hits over the final three
innings.
UNA's Branden
Tepe (3-2) took the loss, allowing eight
runs on 11 hits over 4 2/3 innings. Matt
Vandenheuvel pitched the final 4 1/3
innings and allowed two runs on six hits.
The loss drops
UNA to 14-7 overall and 0-1 in the GC. West
Georgia is 20-4 and 1-0. The two teams will
play a double-header Sunday beginning at 1
p.m. at Lane Field.
West Georgia
scored six runs and batted around in the top
of the first inning off Tepe, with Chris
King's two-run homer capping the scoring.
North Alabama
got on the board in the bottom of the second
on an RBI single from Kyle Jones and the
Lions added three more runs in the third on
an RBI single from Mitchell, an RBI
ground-out by Johnson and an RBI single by
Nick Newberry.
Davan Abney hit
a solo homer for West Georgia in the fourth
to make it 7-4 and UNA answered with a run
in the bottom of the inning when Matt Horton
scored on a two-out error by the Wolves.
West Georgia
got solo homers from A.J. Renfrow in the
sixth and Dan Williams in the seventh to
extend its lead to 10-5.
A solo homer by
Josh Graham in the seventh made it 10-6 and
an RBI single by Millender made it 10-7.
The Wolves got
Ritter to hit into a ground-out with the
bases loaded to close the inning.
UNA bats came
alive again in the eighth as Johnson reached
on a fielder's choice, Graham singled and
Newberry walked to load the bases with one
out. After Jones popped out to the pitcher,
Ross Parker slapped a two-run single to cut
the lead to 10-9. Parker was picked off
first to end the inning.
The Lions
challenged again in the ninth but came up
short.
The win was
just the fifth ever for West Georgia in
Florence in 29 games against UNA.
Printable Game
Statistics - Game 21 - West Georgia
