MELBOURNE, Fla. -- The Railsplitters' bats remained cold on Saturday, as the Florida Tech Panthers (6-1) swept a doubleheader at Andy Seminick-Les Hall Field to take all three games in the series. Lincoln Memorial (1-6) is off to its worst start since 2013, when the team was also swept at USC Aiken and Florida Tech with a win at Claflin sandwiched in between.


The Railsplitters conclude their season-opening road swing Wednesday, February 15 with a trip to Cleveland, Tenn. for one game at the Lee Flames at 3 p.m.

Game One: Florida Tech 6, Lincoln Memorial 4

Florida Tech's Reid Neil and Grant McKown each went 3-for-4 and combined for five RBI to lead the Panthers past the Railsplitters. Neil, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI Friday night, drove in three more runs and also scored twice.


The Railsplitters scored two runs in the first inning off Panther starting pitcher Tyler Deel. Despite outscoring opponents 11-0 in the first inning thus far, Lincoln Memorial fell to 1-3 in the four games it has scored in the first. Nate Stinson (Jonesboro, Ga.) reached base to lead off a game for the fifth time in six contests with a single up the middle. Tyler Adams (Woodstock, Ga.) then walked, and both freshmen advanced on a passed ball. Logan Augustine (Urbandale, Iowa) drove in Stinson with a sac fly to left, and Mason Ewers (Kingsport, Tenn.) followed with a double to left center to bring around Adams.


Those would be the only two hits Deel would allow in his five innings of work as he improved to 2-0 on the young season. He hit two batters and walked one more but did not allow anyone to advance past first base. He also struck out one Railsplitter in every inning to finish with five for the afternoon.


Brandon Jean (Franklin, Tenn.) earned the start for Lincoln Memorial and held the Panthers hitless through the first two innings. However, he allowed back-to-back singles with one out in the bottom of the third. Neal's two-out single drove in both runs to tie the score at two.


Neal struck again in the bottom of the fifth with a single down the right field line to score John Sternagel, who doubled. He also advanced to third on the play and scored in two batters later on an RBI groundout. Jean finished his day after the fifth inning, allowing four runs on eight hits with four strikeouts.


The Railsplitters cut the deficit down to one in the top of the sixth. Rhett Willis, who replaced Deel, issued a one-out walk to Ewers. Russell Clark (Wexford, Pa.) then singled for the team's first hit since the first inning. A throwing error on the play allowed Ewers to score an unearned run. The Railsplitters continued to threaten with runners on first and third, but Willis escaped the jam with a strikeout.


McKown's two-run single off Dominic Morabito (Vienna, Va.) in the bottom of the seventh pushed Florida Tech's lead to 6-3. Both runs were charged to Jake Watkins (Powder Springs, Ga.), who allowed a walk and single to start the inning before being replaced.


Augustine led off the top of the eighth with his first home run of the season, a solo shot to right.


Drew Beyer retired the final two Railsplitters in the ninth for his first save of the season.

Game Two: Florida Tech 9, Lincoln Memorial 3

The Railsplitters allowed a team to score in the first inning for the first time all season as the Panthers took a 2-0 lead. Starter Matt Mullenbach (Urbandale, Iowa) allowed the first four batters to reach on a lead-off double and three consecutive walks, the last of which plated the first run. After a strikeout, a sac fly to center brought home the second run.


Ewers doubled to lead off the top of the second inning and came around to score on a Timmy Wages (Molin, Ill.) single off Florida Tech starting pitcher Andy Marzheuser.
Mullenbach continued to struggle in the second, as he allowed three more runs—one earned—before being replaced by Chase Randolph (Harriman, Tenn.). Sternagel grounded out to drive in Erik Molina, who led off the inning with a double. Neal followed with a triple as part of a 2-for-4 effort and scored on a Wages error. James Gronberg singled following another walk to knock Mullenbach out of the game.


Florida Tech's 5-1 lead stood until the top of the fifth when an Augustine groundout scored Stinson.


Marzheuser allowed the two runs in five innings of work on six hits and one walk en route to picking up his first win of the season. He also struck out two in the outing.


Florida Tech answered back in the bottom half of the inning with an unearned run off Randolph. Sternagel grounded a ball to shortstop AJ Weed (Hendersonville, Tenn.), who threw the ball away to allow another run to score. This was Randolph's only blemish in 3.1 innings of relief in which he struck out five.


The Panthers added three more in the bottom of the sixth to blow the game wide open at 9-2. Dan Szpik doubled home McKown for the first run and eventually scored on a passed ball. Gronberg later walked and scored the final run on a wild pitch.


With the game out of reach, Craig Bynum (Madison Heights, Mich.) pinch hit for Ewers in the top of the ninth and laced a single through the left side to drive in the Railsplitters' final run.