HARROGATE, Tenn. – The Railsplitters (19-16, 10-5 SAC) welcome South Atlantic Conference rival Carson-Newman to Lamar Hennon Field for a weekend tilt against the Eagles (19-17, 7-8 SAC). Lincoln Memorial is in a tie for third in the conference after winning three straight SAC series, including the top two teams in the conference—Catawba and Tusculum. Meanwhile, Carson-Newman is in seventh place but has won nine of its last 10 games overall. This includes a 5-1 mark against SAC opponents.
Schedule/Game Day Links:
Saturday, April 8 (1 p.m.) -
Live Stats
Saturday, April 8 (4 p.m.) -
Live Stats
Sunday, April 9 (1 p.m.) -
Live Stats
Quick Hits:
- Lincoln Memorial snapped Tusculum's 11-game win streak Friday evening with a 10-4 win.
Brandon Jean (Franklin, Tenn.) won his fourth straight start with 6.1 innings of two-run ball. He held Tusculum's red-hot offense scoreless through the first six innings, scattering just three hits, before the Pioneers finally solved him for two runs in the seventh. The Railsplitters provided Jean with plenty of run support as they pounded 15 hits.
Muta Crusoe (Bellwood, Ill.) led the team with three, while
Timmy Wages (Molin, Ill.) and
Tyler Adams (Woodstock, Ga.) drove in three runs apiece. Wages and
Logan Augustine (Urbandale, Iowa) connected for home runs.
- Tusculum used a three-run seventh inning in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader to come from behind to win 4-3. Jeremy Glore led the Pioneers with a 3-for-4 effort, including the tying single in the seventh.
Timmy Wages (Molin, Ill.) hit a two-run double for the Railsplitters, while
Mason Ewers (Kingsport, Tenn.) smacked a solo home run.
- The Railsplitters handed Tim Hardy his first loss of the season in game two as
Dominic Morabito (Vienna, Va.) rebounded from taking the relief loss in game one to strike out a career-best 11 Pioneers in Lincoln Memorial's 4-2 victory. Adams had two of the Railsplitters' four hits and drove in three runs for the second time in the series.
- The Railsplitters' matchup last Wednesday at King was suspended after nine innings due to darkness with the score tied 9-9. The game will resume April 12 when the Tornado make their scheduled trip to Harrogate. Ewers homered and drove in two runs as part of a 2-for-5 afternoon.
Seth Hunt (Knoxville, Tenn.) and
Eric Kalman (Brooklyn, N.Y.) also each collected two hits and RBI.
- Augustine went just 2-for-10 in the Catawba series but scored three runs Friday to move into a tie for second nationally with 48 runs scored. He is also tied for fifth with 30 walks. He is third in the SAC in slugging percentage (.704) and on-base percentage (.494). Augustine's nine home runs and 10 stolen bases also lead the team and are career highs.
- Since beginning the year batting just .118 through his first eight games with a plate appearance, Hunt has hit .412 (35-for-85), including a 6-for-6 performance March 11 at Lenoir-Rhyne to set a new program record for hits in a game. He also owns a .396 mark in SAC play.
- Ewers has crushed nonconference competition to the tune of a .430 average, 29 RBI and six of his seven home runs. He leads the team in hits (48) and RBI (39) but has hit just .246 with a team-high 22 strikeouts in SAC play.
- Wages was hit by a pitch Saturday for the 18
th time this season, which puts him in a three-way tie for first nationally. This has aided his .510 on-base percentage, which is the second-best total in the SAC.
- Lincoln Memorial scored in the first inning once over the weekend, which marks 19 times in 35 games. Despite outscoring opponents 42-21 in the first inning thus far, the Railsplitters fell to 8-11 in games they have scored in the first. The team has a 10-11 record when scoring the game's first run.
Notes on the Eagles:
- Over the past week, Carson-Newman won two of three matchups at home against Lenoir-Rhyne over the weekend and a 1-0 game Tuesday at King. The team's 4-3 loss at Lenoir-Rhyne snapped a seven-game win streak.
- The Eagles are still in search of their first SAC road win. They are 0-6 and have been swept by Newberry and Catawba. In contrast, the team is 7-2 at home in conference play with a sweep against Brevard and series wins over Anderson and Lenoir-Rhyne. On the year, the Eagles are 16-6 at home compared to 3-11 on the road.
- Carson-Newman has won nine of its past 10 games highlighted by wins over Belmont Abbey, Limestone, Shorter and Lenoir-Rhyne. All four teams have winning records, but only
Belmont Abbey currently has a winning record in its respective conference.
- Ryan Addington went 6-for-8 in Saturday's doubleheader with a pair of doubles and stolen bases. He leads the Eagles in hits (57), average (.399), stolen bases (12), runs scored (41) and is tied for the team lead with 21 extra-base hits. Addington ranks in the top three in the SAC in average, hits and runs scored and is fourth in stolen bases.
- Cade Snapp's 41 RBI are the third-best total in the SAC. He is also second on the team with eight home runs. However, only one home run and seven of those RBI have come against SAC opponents. He is hitting .296 on the year but just .246 in SAC play.
- Greg Jones leads the team with nine home runs and has driven in 39 runs. He leads the Eagles with three home runs and 18 RBI in 13 SAC contests.
- Brendan Campbell broke a scoreless tie in the top of the ninth Tuesday at King with a run-scoring single. The score held 1-0 as six Eagle pitchers combined to shut out the Tornado.
- Ryan Eberle struck out 10 batters in 6.1 innings at Lenoir-Rhyne but picked up the loss to fall to 2-5. He allowed 10 hits and five walks in the outing, which led to four earned runs. Eberle has made a SAC-high 10 starts for the Eagles and has struck out 42 batters in 42.2 innings but has also issued a SAC-most 33 walks.
- Will Gardner picked up the win in Saturday's rubber match despite allowing seven earned runs in seven innings. He also allowed 11 hits and walked five. His four wins lead the team, as do his 55.1 innings and 45 strikeouts.
Series History:
- The teams have split the last 52 matchups 26-26 dating back to 1994, although Lincoln Memorial has won four in a row and 10 of the past 13.
- This weekend will be Carson-Newman's first trip to Harrogate since March 29-30, 2013. Lincoln Memorial is 16-9 at home in the series.
- Carson-Newman has not won a series over the Railsplitters since 2011.
- These teams last met in 2015, when the Railsplitters swept the Eagles in Jefferson City.
