Bristol, TN – The Warriors split the first two games of the series against the King Tornado. King took the first game 7-3, before the Warriors came back to claim the second game in a 10-4 final.
The Warriors picked up eight hits in game one. Josh Long led the team as he went 3-for-4 at the plate. Cam Mitchem picked up the only two RBIs of the game for the Warriors off a two-run home run. Southern Wesleyan walked three times and Long stole a base. Marty Grisso was hit by a pitch twice in the game. Gage Shaver started the game on the mound and pitched 6.1 innings while striking out five batters. Garrett Swink came in to pitch in relief and struck out two batters.
Southern Wesleyan totaled 14 hits in the second game of the series. Cam Mitchem led the team by going 3-for-5 at the plate. Nolan Evatt and Niko Laing each doubled. Mitchem, Marty Grisso and Josh Long each had two RBIs. The Warriors walked three times. Lukas Arvantides started on the mound and pitched one inning. Bryce Metts pitched the remaining six innings and struck out four batters.
Game Vitals
Game One Final: King 7, Southern Wesleyan 3
Game Two Final: Southern Wesleyan 10, King 4
Records: Southern Wesleyan (9-33 / CC 8-15) King (11-29 / CC 6-17)
How It Happened
Game One
The Warriors struck first in the top of the third inning. Nolan Evatt led off the inning by hitting a single through the right side. Evatt advanced to third base as Josh Long knocked a single into right center field. Long then stole second base. A wild pitched allowed Evatt to come in to score and put Long on third. Marty Grisso put the ball in play, but Long was tagged out at home. Cam Mitchem drilled the ball over the left center field fence for a two-run home run to extend the Warriors lead to 3-0.
King countered in the fourth inning as a single by Amunategui allowed Stout to come in to score to put the Tornado on the board.
The Tornado went on the attack again in the sixth inning. A single by Borchardt brought one run in, and then Amunategui hit a two-run home to allow the Tornado to take a 4-3 run lead over Southern Wesleyan.
King extended on their lead in the seventh inning as Roper hit a double to right field to bring Ruiz in to score. Starrs then came up to bat and sent the ball over the left field wall for a two-run home run. The Tornado went on to claim the first game of the day in a 7-3 final.
Game Two
The Warriors were able to strike first in game two of the day. Nolan Evatt reached first on a walk and then advanced to second as Josh Long hit a single into center field. Marty Grisso laid down a sacrifice bunt to allow both runners to get into scoring position. With one out and two on base, Cam Mitchem sent the ball into left field for a single that allowed both Evatt and Long to come in to score.
King tied the game up in the bottom of the inning as a sacrifice fly by Medford and a single off the bat of Amunategui allowed two runs to come in to score.
Southern Wesleyan regained the lead in the bottom of the second. A fielding error by King's shortstop allowed Luke Taylor to reach first base. Gavin Mitchell laid down a sacrifice bunt to allow Taylor to advance to second base. Vincent Angle came up to the plate and sent the ball into left field for a single to bring Taylor in to score. A double off the bat of Nolan Evatt allowed Angle to advance to third. With two runners in scoring position, an error by the shortstop allowed Josh Long to reach first and brought Angle in to score. Marty Grisso hit a sacrifice fly out to center field to bring Evatt in to score.
King came back to within one run of Southern Wesleyan in the bottom of the inning as sacrifice plays by Corley and Roper brought two runs in to score.
The Warriors maintained the intensity in the third inning. Niko Laing led off by hitting a double to right field. Laing advanced to third on a single by Luke Taylor. Gavin Mitchell hit into a fielder's choice that took Taylor off the bases, but allowed Laing to come in to score. Vinicent Angle walked to allowed Mitchell to advance to second base. With two on and two out, Josh Long hit a single to center field to allow Mitchell to come in to score.
Southern Wesleyan extended on their lead in the seventh inning. Gavin Mitchell led off the inning by hitting the ball to right center field for a single. Mitchell advanced to second as Vincent Angle hit a single to left field. Nolan Evatt hit into a fielder's choice, but both Mitchell and Angle were able to beat out the throws to keep the bases loaded. A wild pitch allowed Mitchell to come in to score. Josh Long hit the ball to deep right field for a sacrifice fly that allowed Angle to come across home plate to extend the Warriors lead to 9-4. Marty Grisso ground out to the pitcher to bring Evatt in to score the tenth run of the game for Southern Wesleyan. The Warriors went on to win the game in a 10-4 final score.
What's Next
Southern Wesleyan will wrap up the series against the King Tornado on April 14 at 3pm. They will then travel over to Anderson, SC to take on the Anderson Trojans on April 15. The Warriors will then host the Emmanuel Lions on April 18-19. Prior to the game on April 19, the Warriors will celebrate their annual Military Appreciation Game.
