HARROGATE, Tenn. – The Lincoln Memorial University baseball team (14-6) swept Tuesday's doubleheader against Kentucky State (6-7) at Lamar Hennon Field by scores of 10-1 and 11-1.
Timmy Wages and
Logan Augustine each hit a pair of home runs—Wages had one in each game while Augustine homered twice in the nightcap. Augustine tallied five RBI between the two games.
The Railsplitters continue their 10-game homestand and resume South Atlantic Conference play with a three-game series against Tusculum that begins Friday at 4 p.m.
Game One: Lincoln Memorial 10, Kentucky State 1
Hits were even at nine apiece, though the Railsplitters benefitted from eight walks.
Joe Stucky finished 2-for-4 with a pair of runs scored and RBI and launched his first home run of the year.
Nate Stinson doubled twice and drove in a pair of runs.
Tyler Adams reached base in all four plate appearances and scored twice. Augustine drove in three, and Wages added a solo home run.
Jack Gomersall earned his first LMU win with one earned run allowed in 5.1 innings. The senior transfer from VMI allowed eight hits, didn't walk anyone and struck out four.
Chase Randolph pitched the final 1.2 innings and struck out three. The senior righty entered with LMU up 5-1 but inherited runners on first and second with one out. He struck out the next two batters looking and continued with a scoreless seventh to pick up his first save of the year.
Elijah Collins and Brandon Story each went 2-for-4 for Kentucky State.
LMU kicked off the scoring with three runs in the first. Augustine plated the first run with a sac fly, and the second crossed on a catcher throwing error. Wages capped the inning with a no-doubter to left.
The Thorobreds pushed across their only run of the game on a Russell Sims sacrifice fly in the top of the second.
LMU expanded its lead to 5-1 with two more runs in the third. Stucky led off with a solo shot to left for his first home run of the year. Stinson later doubled in a run.
Stucky singled in another run in LMU's five-run sixth that broke the game wide open. Augustine followed with a two-run single. Another run crossed on a wild pitch. Stinson walked with the bases loaded to bring in the team's tenth and final run.
The Railsplitters were 3-for-7 with runners in scoring position while Kentucky State was just 1-for-10.
Game Two: Lincoln Memorial 11, Kentucky State 1
Augustine starred for the Railsplitters in the nightcap by going 3-for-3 with a pair of solo home runs. Wages added a two-run shot and scored twice.
Will Reddick finished 2-for-2 with an RBI and run scored.
Collins led off the game with a solo homer off LMU started
Ben Wiley for the Thorobreds' only run. Darian Dull's double to lead off the second inning was the team's only other hit. Kentucky State finished hitless (0-for-6) with runners on base.
Wiley settled in after allowing the leadoff double and retired 15 straight to finish his day. The junior righty allowed just the lone run and two hits in six innings to also pick up his first win as a Railsplitter. He struck out six and didn't walk anyone.
Kevin Norton pitched a scoreless seventh inning to finish the game.
Augustine's first solo blast tied the game in the bottom of the first. The Railsplitters took the lead for good on
Henry Moore's sacrifice fly in the second inning.
A four-run fourth featured RBI singles by Reddick,
Seth Hunt and Stucky. The final run scored when Stucky was caught stealing on a delayed steal but stayed in the rundown long enough to allow Hunt to score.
Augustine homered again to lead off the fifth, and Wages added his two-run shot two batters later.
LMU's final two runs crossed on an Adams single and
Connor Byram fielder's choice.
