Franklin Springs, GA – Southern Wesleyan dropped the final two games of the series against the Emmanuel Lions on Sunday in 9-7 and 5-4 final scores.

The Warriors out hit the Lions 10 to 8 in the game one loss on Sunday afternoon.  Both Gage Shaver and Josh Long had two hits in the game.  Long had a double and Whitley picked up his fourth home run of the season.  Whitley and Long each picked up two RBIs.  Southern Wesleyan walked three times and Shaver stole a base.  Bryce Metts started on the mound and pitched 1.2 innings while striking out two batters.  Kyle Dixon and Jack Dennison came in to pitch in relief.  Dennison struck out three.

Southern Wesleyan totaled 10 hits in game two with Marty Grisso leading the team with four hits.  Cam Mitchem followed with two hits and two of the three RBIs of the game.  Both Cam Mitchem and Josh Long doubled, and Jarrett Whitley hit his second home run of the day.  The Warriors walked three times and Justin Purdom stole a base.  Christopher Hund started on the mound and pitched seven scoreless innings while striking out three batters.

Game Vitals

Game One Final: Emmanuel 9, Southern Wesleyan 7

Game Two Final: Emmanuel 5, Southern Wesleyan 4

Records: Southern Wesleyan (5-22 / CC 3-12) Emmanuel (16-12 / CC 6-6)

How It Happened

Game One

The Lions attacked the plate early as Collins hit a home run over the right field wall to give them an 1-0 run lead.

Southern Wesleyan challenged in the top of the second inning.  Cam Mitchem led off the inning by reaching on a walk.  Gage Shaver singled to right field to advance Mitchem to second base.  However, a line out by Jarrett Whitley took Mitchem off the bases.  Shaver stole second base to get into scoring position.  With two out and Shaver on second, Josh Long hit a double to left field to bring Shaver in to score and tie the game up 1-1.

Emmanuel was not done as they scored five more runs in the bottom of the second inning to take a 6-1 run lead.

In the top of the third inning the Warriors struck again.  Derek Francis led off the inning with a single to left field and then advanced to second when Jason Culley walked.  Clay Porter followed with a single to second base to load up the bases.  A sacrifice fly out by Cam Mitchem brought Francis in to score.  However, a fielding error on the play allowed Culley to come in to score as well to put the Warriors down 6-3.  Gage Shaver hit a single to right field to bring Porter home.  With two outs and Shaver at first, Jarrett Whitley drilled the ball over the right field fence to tie the game back up 6-6.

A home run by Muniz in the bottom of the third inning put the Lions back on top.  Emmanuel pushed on with two more runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to extend their lead to 9-6.

Southern Wesleyan challenged in the top of the seventh inning.  With one out, Marty Grisso hit a single to left field and then advanced to second on a single to shortstop by Cam Mitchem.  Gage Shaver hit a ground out to the pitcher to advance both runners.  The Lions intentionally walked Jarrett Whitley.  With the bases loaded, Josh Long hit a single to center field to bring Grisso in to score.  However, the Warriors fell in game one to the Lions in a 9-7 final score.

Game Two

Jarrett Whitley led off the scoring for the Warriors as, in the top of the second inning with one out, he hit a home run over the left field wall to put Southern Wesleyan on top 1-0.

Southern Wesleyan pushed on in the top of the third inning.  With one out, Jason Culley walked and the advanced to second base as Marty Grisso hit a single to left field.  Cam Mitchem followed by hitting a double to left field to bring both Grisso and Culley in to score.  A ground out by Gage Shaver allowed Mitchem to advance to third.  Jarrett Whitley walked.  With runners on the corners, a wild pitch brought Mitchem across home plate to give the Warriors a 4-0 run lead.

Christopher Hund pitched a strong seven innings as he struck the Lions down and kept them from cutting into the Warriors lead.

However, the Lions attacks on the plate paid off as they scored five runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to win the game in a 5-4 final score.

What's Next

Southern Wesleyan will travel to Anderson, SC on March 19 to take on the Anderson Trojans.  The Warriors will host the King Tornado on March 22-23 for their Homecoming Alumni Series.