Belmont, NC – Southern Wesleyan challenged, but dropped the final two games of the series against Belmont Abbey on Saturday in 9-2 and 7-6 final scores.

The Warriors collected eight hits in the first game of the afternoon with Chance Fogel leading the team with two.  Fogel had a double.  Both Parker Pillsbury and Tanner Glass recorded runs during the loss, and Hunter Garlington had the long RBI.  Three Warriors walked in the game.  Aaron Bennett started the third game of the series, collecting six strikeouts. 

Southern Wesleyan had eight hits in the second game of the day.  Both Chance Fogel and Ty King Richards had two hits apiece in the game.  King Richards had a triple, and Dawson Posick hit the first home run of the season for the Warriors.  DJ Ludwick led the team with two of the five RBIs.  Sean Sutay recorded two of the five walks of the afternoon.  Southern Wesleyan had five stolen bases with Sutay leading the team with two while Fogel, Ludwick and King Richards each had one.  Tanner Glass started game two and pitched seven innings while striking out five batters.  Ryan Moore and Sandy Johnson came in to pitch in relief.

 
Game Vitals

Game One: Belmont Abbey 9, Southern Wesleyan 2

Game Two: Belmont Abbey 7, Southern Wesleyan 6

Records: Southern Wesleyan (2-11 / CC 2-10) Belmont Abbey (10-4 / CC 9-3)


 
How It Happened

Game One
Belmont Abbey took the first runs of the afternoon in the bottom of the third inning.  With two out and runners on the corners, Gobbel singled to bring in two runs.  They pushed further ahead as Rhame singled to bring Gobbel in to give the Crusaders a 3-0 lead.  Belmont Abbey continued to extend their lead in the bottom of the fifth inning to lead the Warriors 4-0.

Southern Wesleyan countered in the top of the sixth inning to cut the Crusaders lead in half.  Parker Pillsbury led off with a single through the left side and then advanced to second on a single by Tanner Glass.  A walk to Josh Galloway loaded up the bases.  A wild pitch allowed Pillsbury to come in and score and advanced both Glass and Galloway by ninety feet.  With one out, Hunter Garlington hit into a sacrifice play that allowed Glass to come home.

However, the Crusaders maintained the pressure and brought five runs home in the bottom of the sixth game to win the game 9-2.
 
Game Two
Belmont Abbey put the first run on the board in the bottom of the second inning.  The Warriors countered in the top of the third.  With two out, Ty King Richards tripled to right field.  Chance Fogel followed with a single to left to bring King Richards in and tie the game 1-1.

Southern Wesleyan took the lead in the top of the fifth as Dawson Posick hit a home run over the left field wall to put the Warriors ahead 2-1.

Josh Galloway led off the top of the seventh with a single up the middle and then advanced to second as Sawyer Price reached first on a fielding error by the second baseman.  With two on and two out, Ty King Richards singled to right center to bring Galloway in to score.

In the top of the ninth, Southern Wesleyan continued to distance themselves.  With one out, Dawson Posick walked and then advanced to second on a walk to Sean Sutay.  Juan Garcia came in to pinch run for Posick.  A wild pitched allowed Garcia to advance.  A second wild pitch advanced Sutay to second and allowed Garcia to come in and score.  Ty King Richards walked, and then both King Richards and Sutay stole bases to get into scoring position.  With two out and two on, DJ Ludwick singled to left center to put the Warriors on top 6-1.

However, Belmont Abbey fought back, scoring six runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to claim the walk-off victory.

 
What's Next

Southern Wesleyan will remain on the road on March 12-13 as they travel to Tigerville, SC to take on the Crusaders of North Greenville.  They will wrap up the series against North Greenville on March 16 at 6 p.m.  The Warriors will then return to Dr. C Keith Connor Field on March 19-21 as they welcome the Emmanuel Lions to Central, SC.