Central, SC – Southern Wesleyan took down the Barton Bulldogs on Saturday to win the series in an 11-2 final score.

The Warriors posted 11 hits on the afternoon.  Senior shortstop John Garrett led the team with three hits.  He was followed by Quinton Bent and Julio Justo each with two hits.  Bent doubled during the game, and Justo hit his second home run of the series.  Southern Wesleyan recorded five walks with catcher Trey Matthews leading the team with two.  Justo led the team with three RBIs and four Warriors recorded two runs each.

Southern Wesleyan recorded eight strikeouts during the 11-2 victory.  TJ McEvilly pitched eight innings and struck out five during the game while only allowing six hits.  In the ninth inning, Aaron Bennett came in to close out the game for the Warriors.  Bennett faced three batters and struck out each one to give McEvilly his fourth win the season.

Game Vitals

Final: Southern Wesleyan 11, Barton 2

Records: Southern Wesleyan (14-22 / CC 3-15) Barton (10-27 / CC 2-13)

How It Happened

Southern Wesleyan put runs up first in the final game of the series on Saturday afternoon.  In the bottom of the third, John Garrett reached first on a bunt single.  With two outs, Quinton Bent reached first on an error by the right field to advance Garrett to third base.  Julio Justo hit a home run over the left field wall to bring both Bent and Garrett in and give the Warriors a 3-0 lead over the Bulldogs.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Warriors extended their lead.  Jesse Getford led of the inning with a walk and then advanced to second when Ike Thalassinos walked.  With two on, John Garrett singled to right field to bring Getford in and put the Warriors on top 4-0.

The Warriors struck again in the bottom of the fifth inning.  Julio Justo singled to center field and then advanced to second on a passed ball.  Trey Matthews walked and then a second passed ball put both runners in scoring position.  A third passed ball brought Justo in to score to put another run on the board.

Barton countered in the top of the seventh to put two runs on, but the Warriors struck back in the bottom of the inning.  Izzy Martinez took first after being hit by a pitch.  Then a single to center field by Quinton Bent advanced Martinez to second.  Back-to-back passed balls allowed Bent to reach third and brought Martinez in to score.  Trey Matthews walked to put runners at the corners.  With two on, Noah Fritz singled to right center to bring Bent in and move Matthews to third.  An error by the shortstop allow Steven Perez to reach first and brought Matthews home.  When the Bulldogs tried to prevent Perez's steal, a bad throw sent the ball into the outfield to bring Fritz in and put Perez at third base.  The Warriors concluded the inning with a 9-2 lead over the Bulldogs.

In the bottom of the eighth, the Warriors continued to push ahead.  John Garrett and Izzy Martinez had back-to-back singles to put two on with no outs.  Quinton Bent doubled to right field to bring Garrett in.  On a ground out by Conner Ewing, Martinez came in to score to put Southern Wesleyan up 11-2.

Aaron Bennett came in to relieve TJ McEvilly in the top of the ninth inning.  Bennett faced three batters and struck out each of them to give McEvilly his fourth win of the season.

What's Next

Southern Wesleyan will next host Truett McConnell on April 3 at 6 p.m.  They will then host the Anderson Trojans on April 4 at 6 p.m.