Harrogate, TN – One day after falling in a hard-fought contest against ninth-ranked Lenoir-Rhyne, 8-6, in the first game of the three-game weekend series, the Lincoln Memorial baseball team was back in action on Saturday at home seeking to claim the final two games of the series in a double-header.
From the jump, it was evident that the bats would be popping for both sides. Lenoir-Rhyne tallied a pair of hits to drive in a run to take a quick 1-0 lead, but Lincoln Memorial limited the damage to a single run, seeing the game move into the bottom of the first. Leading off for the Railsplitters,
Chris Hall singled to give Lincoln Memorial its first base runner. Following a steal from Hall,
Alex Kowalski tripled to center field, easily driving in Hall to knot the game at 1-1. On the following at-bat,
Sam Mast doubled to drive in Kowalski, giving the Railsplitters a 2-1 lead at the end of the first inning. The Lincoln Memorial defense stood tall in the second inning, holding the Bears off the scoreboard to take a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the second. After assuming the offense, the Railsplitters found their first base runner of the second inning quickly when
Kevin Fernandez was walked. He subsequently stole second and third base, making it easy for
Caleb Jordan to drive him home with a ground-out to second base, extending the Lincoln Memorial lead to 3-1 after two innings. The Railsplitters' defense once again withstood the test in the top of the third, again holding the Bears scoreless. Lincoln Memorial was unable to add to its lead in the third, leaving the score 3-1 in favor of the Railsplitters heading into the fourth inning.
The Railsplitters' defensive success spilled into the fourth inning. Attempting to cut into the Lincoln Memorial lead, Lenoir-Rhyne was seeking any offensive production. However, it was quickly nullified by a double play to end the top half of the inning, leaving the Railsplitters in control 3-1 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning. Leading 3-1, Lincoln Memorial added to its run total in the bottom of the fourth inning when Mast scored on a wild pitch, giving the Railsplitters a 4-1 lead heading into the fifth inning. Lenoir-Rhyne added a run in the top of the fifth inning to cut the deficit to 4-2, which would hold going into the sixth inning after Lincoln Memorial failed to extend its lead in the bottom of the fifth. Neither team added to its run total in the sixth inning, leaving the Railsplitters in control 4-2 heading into the seventh inning.
The top of the seventh inning was kind to the Bears. With three hits, Lenoir-Rhyne added three runs to take a 5-4 advantage; its first lead of the day. Trailing 5-4 in the bottom of the seventh inning, singles from Fernandez and Jordan allowed Hall to drive in Fernandez to knot the game at 5-5 heading into the eighth inning. Lincoln Memorial's defense held Lenoir-Rhyne scoreless in the top of the eighth, seeing the Railsplitters have an opportunity to regain the advantage ahead of the final frame. However, Lincoln Memorial was unable to regain control, leaving the game knotted at 5-5 heading into the ninth inning. The Railsplitters' defense continued to dictate the Bears' offense, once again holding them scoreless in the top of the ninth. With the game tied 5-5 heading into the bottom of the ninth, Lincoln Memorial had the opportunity to claim a walk-off victory against a top-10 team and knot the series at one game apiece. That's exactly what the Railsplitters did. Fernandez ripped a solo shot home run to claim victory in walk-off fashion, knotting the series at 1-1 with one game remaining.
With the series on the line, both teams put forth their best efforts in game three in an attempt to claim the series. After retiring Lenoir-Rhyne quickly in the top of the first, Hall got things started with a lead-off triple. Simmons drove in Hall with a single to right field to give Lincoln Memorial its first lead of the final game, 1-0. Harvey then reached on a fielder's choice, later to be driven in by Kowalski with a single to left field. Later in the inning,
Joey LaMattina singled to center field to drive in Kowalski and give the Railsplitters a 3-0 lead after one inning. Lenoir-Rhyne fought back in the top of the second inning, tallying one hit and two runs, cutting the score to 3-2 in favor of Lincoln Memorial heading into the bottom of the second inning. The bottom of the second was kind to the Railsplitters. An error by the Bears saw the Railsplitters with a quick base runner early in the second inning. Following a single from Hall, back-to-back singles from Simmons and Harvey drove in Wong-Shasteen and Hall to extend the Lincoln Memorial lead to 5-2. Later in the inning, Jordan singled to center field to drive in Simmons, further extending the Railsplitters' lead to 6-2 heading into the third inning. Lincoln Memorial had accrued 10 hits by the second inning, driving in six runs to meet their total from each of the previous two games. Neither team added to its run total in the third inning, leaving Lincoln Memorial in control 6-2 heading into the top of the fourth inning.
The Railsplitters' defense sat the Bears down in order to start the fourth inning to remain in control 6-2. Harvey got things started in the bottom of the fourth inning with a single, followed by Kowalski being hit by pitch. With two runners on base, Jordan reached on a fielder's choice, seeing Harvey take home plate to extend the lead to 7-2. Later in the inning with Jordan and Kowalski on base, LaMattina ripped a three-run shot over the left field wall, seeing Lincoln Memorial take a substantial 10-2 lead into the top of the fifth inning. The game continued to favor the Railsplitters in the top of the fifth, once again holding the Bears off the scoreboard to remain firmly in control, 10-2, heading into the bottom of the fifth. With Hall on base in the bottom of the inning for Lincoln Memorial, Kowalski singled to center, driving in Hall, giving the Railsplitters an 11-2 lead after five. Lenoir-Rhyne was finally able to chip into the Lincoln Memorial lead with a two-run home run in the top of the sixth, drawing the score to 11-4 heading into the bottom of the sixth. However, in the bottom of the sixth inning, Lincoln Memorial got the two runs back, regaining a nine-run lead at 13-4 heading into the final frame. Down to their final three outs, the Bears needed a monumental comeback effort. Lenoir-Rhyne managed a few runs, but fell far short of the comeback effort needed to take the game and series, seeing Lincoln Memorial claim a 13-7 victory and the series victory, improving to 19-14 on the season with a 9-9 mark in conference play.
