Railsplitters Chop Down Mighty Oaks In First Two Games Of Three Game Series

Photo by Terry Maples

HARROGATE, TN - The Lincoln Memorial University baseball team made quick work of the Mighty Oaks of Oakland City University on Saturday afternoon, winning both games of a double-header 14-1 and 8-0 at home on the Lamar Hennon Field.

The Railsplitters pounded out 27 hits on the afternoon and pushed their weekly mark to a perfect 5-0 as they prepare to close out the week on Sunday afternoon in the third and final game of the three-game series against Oakland City.

In the first game of the day, LMU's Sean Woolard pitched the first six innings of the seven inning game to capture the win, moving his personal record to 3-4.  Woolard gave up seven hits and only one run which wasn't earned, while walking only one batter and striking out four.  Teammate Brad Pressley put the final cut on the Mighty Oaks, allowing one hit in the seventh inning and recording one strikeout to seal the Railsplitter win.

Offensive highlights were provided by the Railsplitter seniors.  Senior catcher Jason Pabon went out of the yard with a three-run bomb in the bottom of the fourth inning, his second of the year.  Pabon finished the afternoon with four of LMU's RBI, while fellow senior Bryon Izzo followed in the fifth inning with a two run shot of his own to push his mark to six jacks on the year.

In the second game of the afternoon, Railsplitter newcomer Josh Strawn pushed his individual record to 5-1 with a seven inning complete game shutout of Oakland City.  Strawn faced 25 batters, scattering two hits over the seven innings while allowing no damage, with two walks and eight strikeouts.

Offensively, senior Tommy Casto had the hottest bat for the Railsplitters by going three-for-four on the game.  Pabon and John Couch each had doubles and were responsible for a combined three RBI, while Shane Kaufman, Ralph Rosas and Nick Langley belted in the other Railsplitter runs.

At 20-12 overall, the Railsplitters will try to make a clean sweep of the week's competition on Sunday when they try again to cut down the Mighty Oaks in the final game of the series.  Sunday's game is set to get underway at 1:00 p.m. on the Lamar Hennon Field. 

Game One:  Lincoln Memorial 14, Oakland City 1
Mar 21, 2009 at Harrogate, TN
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Oakland City........ 000 010 0 -  1  8  3      (6-11)
Lincoln Memorial.... 100 670 X - 14 15  2      (19-12)
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Pitchers: Oakland City - Gordon VanBibber; Chris Guess(4); Clay Thornberry(5) and John Feltner. Lincoln Memorial - Sean Woolard; Brad Pressley(7) and Jason Pabon; J.R. Roden.
Win-Sean Woolard(3-4)  Loss-Gordon VanBibber(2-3)  T-2:15  A-0
HR LMU - Jason Pabon (2); Bryon Izzo (6).
Weather: Sunny
Complete Box Score

Game Two:  Lincoln Memorial 8, Oakland City 0
Mar 21, 2009 at Harrogate, TN
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Oakland City........ 000 000 0 -  0  2  0      (20-12)
Lincoln Memorial.... 103 130 X -  8 12  1      (6-12)
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Pitchers: Oakland City - Cody Johnson; Maykel Makarem(5) and John Feltner. Lincoln Memorial - Josh Strawn and Bryon Izzo.
Win-Josh Strawn(5-1)  Loss-Cody Johnson(0-3)  T-2:05  A-70
Weather: Partly Cloudy
Complete Box Score

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