Baseball Splits with Anderson on Senior Day
The Lions split a double-header with Anderson in South Atlantic Conference baseball action Saturday afternoon at Henderson Field.
MARS HILL, N.C. – The Lions split a double-header with Anderson in South Atlantic Conference baseball action Saturday afternoon at Henderson Field. Prior to the game Mars Hill recognized their 11 senior players: Alec Bivins, Zac Brown, Lance Edwards, Josh Hall, Alan Kolb, Kaleb McCurry, Travis Owens, Christian Stampler, Shomarii Thomas, Fausto Turro and Chandler Young.
Mars Hill took their season record to 20-23-1 overall and 10-14 in the league. The Trojans are now 18-24 on the year and also 10-14 in the SAC.
Game 1: Anderson 18, Mars Hill 7
Matt Honeycutt went 3-for-3 with a homerun and two RBI. Daniel Vitello followed going 3-for-4 with a homerun, a double and two RBI. Jared Mathewson took the loss (2-2) on the mound for the Lions.
Dillon Carpenter was 4-for-5 at the plate with two homeruns, a double and seven RBI to lead the Trojans to victory. Tyler Miller went 3-for-5 with a homerun and two RBI. Will Gee picked up the win (3-6) on the mound for Anderson.
Honeycutt gave the Lions a 2-0 lead in their first at-bat hitting a two-run homerun to centerfield. Anderson scored a single run in the second inning and two runs in the third inning to take a 3-2 advantage they would not relinquish. Carpenter hit a three-run homerun in the fourth frame to extend the Trojans lead to 6-2. Mars Hill scored three runs of their own in the fifth inning on four hits highlighted by a two-run homerun by Brett Brubaker to trim the deficit to 6-5.
Anderson answered scoring two runs on the same number of hits in their sixth at-bat to lead 8-5. Carpenter doubled down the left field line to drive in both runs for the Trojans. Vitello hit a solo homerun in the bottom half of the inning to make the score 8-6.
Anderson put the game away in the seventh inning scoring eight runs on five hits. Castleberry hit a two-RBI single in the at-bat. Mars Hill scored a single run in the eighth inning when Vitello singled to plate Lance Edwards but that was as close as the Lions would get. The Trojans scored a pair of insurance runs in the ninth inning to make the final tally 18-7 in favor of the visitors.
Game 2: Mars Hill 5, Anderson 4
Brubaker went 3-for-4 with a double and a RBI to lead the Lions at the plate in game two. Gray McCurry was 1-for-2 with a homerun and two RBI. Honeycutt added a couple of hits and a double. Zac Brown threw a complete game scattering eight hits and striking out seven batters to obtain his fourth win on the year.
Chandler Castleberry led the Trojans offensively going 2-for-4 with a homerun and two RBI. Miller added two hits and a RBI. Andrew Dill took the loss (2-4) for Anderson on the mound.
McCurry hit a two-run homerun to left field to out the Lions on the board in the second inning. Mars Hill extended their lead to 4-0 after their third at-bat on three hits and one Anderson miscue. Stampler had a RBI single in the inning,
Anderson cut the lead to 4-2 in the top of the fourth inning on three hits before Brubaker doubled to left field to send Cody Cline to the plate and give the Lions a 5-2 advantage. Anderson scored two runs in the fifth frame on three hits highlighted by a solo homerun from Castleberry to end the scoring in the contest. Zac Brown held the Trojans at bay the rest of the game to secure the win in game two.
Mars Hill will host Bluefield State on Tuesday, April 17. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.