ANDERSON, S.C. – Going yard three times in the series finale, the Lincoln Memorial University baseball team earned a 9-7 victory to close out a four-game South Atlantic Conference set at Anderson University Sunday. The Railsplitters (3-3, 2-2 SAC) quickly bounced back from a 2-1 loss in game one of the afternoon doubleheader behind the bats of graduate third baseman Tyler Adams, redshirt junior left fielder Andrew Keene and graduate centerfielder Brent Richey, who accounted for all eight of LMU's RBI in the final game of the weekend.
 
After a doubleheader split on Saturday at Anderson Memorial Field, the Railsplitters ended the series with the host Trojans (3-2, 2-2 SAC) deadlocked at two games apiece.
 
Both of LMU's Sunday starters were effective on the mound as graduate right-hander Kevin Norton and redshirt junior right-hander Beau Nichols gave up just one earned run each in nine and 2/3 combined innings of work.
 
Game 2 | LMU 9, Anderson 7
Four-run, four-hit fourth and sixth innings proved to be the difference with the Railsplitter offense erupting following 10 quiet innings going back to the start of the day's first game. Adams, Keene and Richey each tattooed a homer and redshirt freshman second baseman Cameron Bowen went 3-for-4 at the plate to propel LMU past an Anderson squad who scored three runs across the final three innings.
 
The Trojans got on the board first, getting an RBI double to left field from catcher Tyler Berry in the bottom of the opening inning and maintaining a 1-0 lead through the first three innings. Despite the Railsplitters leading off the fourth with a strikeout, redshirt junior first baseman Brandon Parrott was hit by a pitch before LMU went back-to-back over the wall. Adams stepped to the plate and rocked his first dinger of the season, a shot over left field for two runs, and then Keene connected on a solo bomb over left center, his third home run of the weekend. The Railsplitters tacked on another run in the inning to go up 4-1 when freshman designated hitter Ryan Kurth scored on a passed ball.
 
The hosts responded in the bottom of the fourth, benefitting from an LMU error in the field and scoring a pair of runs on a two RBI single to center field by first baseman Brayden Owens. Anderson knotted things up at four-all later in the inning after scoring on a balk.
 
The tied score would be short lived, however, as the Railsplitters went in front 5-4 in the top of the fifth with a Keene RBI groundout that allowed Richey to reach home plate.
 
A leadoff double to left field by Bowen began the sixth and graduate shortstop Zuriel Collins was walked. Richey then clobbered his third homer of 2021, driving in three runs to make it an 8-4 game. After a flyout and an Adams single, Keene doubled to center field for an RBI with Adams' run increasing  LMU's lead to 9-4.
 
Two runs in the bottom of the seventh, provided by an RBI single from centerfielder Chandler Castleberry and a Berry sacrifice fly to right field, got the Trojans within three at 9-6. After a scoreless eighth, Anderson got a pair of hits and a run in the bottom of the ninth with a Castleberry double and an RBI single from shortstop Justin Fox. A fielder's choice out at second base by Bowen from Collins ended the game.
 
Keene (2-for-4) and Richey both racked up three RBI with Richey scoring two runs and being walked twice. Adams also went 2-for-4 at the plate, scoring twice and recording two RBI with a walk. With his fourth-inning home run, Adams now has 29 career homers and is only five away from tying the all-time program record.
 
Nichols went four innings on the rubber, striking out six before redshirt junior righty Ryan Franklin (1-0) took over. Not allowing a hit and notching a strikeout in two innings of relief work, Franklin earned the win. Redshirt sophomore Eli Wright earned his first career save, tossing the final inning and striking out one.
 
Owens finished 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored for the Trojans, while Castleberry was 2-for-4 as well and Berry posted two RBI.
 
Anderson left-hander Ethan Stalnecker went three and 1/3 innings, giving up four earned runs with a strikeout. Right-hander Drew Hallgren (0-1) took the loss after entering in the fifth and walking two.
 
Game 1 | Anderson 2, LMU 1
Limited to four hits, the Railsplitters were held scoreless for the opening four innings before the Trojans got RBI singles in the fourth and fifth frames.
 
Norton nearly threw a complete game, going five and 2/3 innings and striking out two before freshman righty Brennan Murphy faced one batter in the sixth.
 
A pair of singles in the bottom of the fourth, including an RBI base knock by third baseman Trevor Weisner, put the home team up 1-0. However, Parrott tied things up in the top of the fifth with an RBI single to center field as Richey scored after reaching on an Anderson error.
 
Back-to-back Trojan singles from Castleberry and Berry in the bottom of the fifth broke the 1-1 tie. A Keene leadoff single to center field in the top of the sixth gave LMU life but a stolen base by graduate catcher Dalton Dedas after a fielder's choice and a Richey hit by pitch in the top of the seventh was the only remaining offense for the Railsplitters.
 
Parrott went 2-for-4 in the affair, while Anderson's Weisner was 2-for-3 and Berry 1-for-2 with a walk.
 
Left-hander Joseph Cottone, Jr. (1-0) claimed the win after going five complete and striking out nine with just three hits allowed. Right-handed reliever Christian Carpenter picked up the save with three strikeouts and only one hit in two innings.
 
Up Next…
LMU steps out of SAC play Tuesday for a midweek matchup with Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. First pitch from Larry Carpenter Stadium at Olympic Field is slated for 3 p.m. The Railsplitters will then return to league action next weekend when LMU hosts Mars Hill for a four-game set Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 27-28.
 
How to Follow
Stay tuned to LMURailsplitters.com, as well as LMU's social media platforms - @LMURailsplitter on Twitter, @LMURailsplitters on Facebook and @lmurailsplitters on Instagram, for complete coverage of Railsplitter baseball throughout the 2021 season, including any schedule changes.