SATURDAY, APRIL 6, 2002
WINGATE
AND PRESBYTERIAN SPLIT SAC BASEBALL TWINBILL
Wingate, N.C.--The Wingate University and Presbyterian College baseball teams split a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader this afternoon at Ron Christopher Stadium and Player Athletic Field on the Wingate campus. Wingate is 20-17-1 overall (7-7 SAC), while Presbyterian is 18-22 overall (7-7 SAC).
Wingate
won game one 5-2, thanks to 12 strikeouts by junior pitcher Marc
Church (Granite Falls, N.C.). Presbyterian rallied for a
4-1 win in the nightcap, thanks to a complete game pitching
effort by senior pitcher Mark
Dudley.
Game #1 – Wingate 5, Presbyterian 2
Wingate right-hander Marc Church went 8 2/3 innings, striking out 12 and walking one as the Bulldogs prevailed 5-2. Church (3-2 overall) scattered nine hits. Bulldog senior relief ace Louie Mitcham (Charlotte, N.C.) worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the ninth inning to record his team-best sixth save.
Presbyterian took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when junior second baseman Tombo Hite tripled and scored on a RBI double by sophomore outfielder Kevin White.
Wingate answered with four runs in the bottom of the second inning to take a 4-1 lead. Bulldog junior catcher John Spencer (Charlotte, N.C.) doubled and sophomore shortstop David Yount (Forest City, N.C.) walked to put runners on first and second.
Spencer was caught stealing third and Yount moved to second on the play. Junior first baseman Brian Fulp (Winston-Salem, N.C.) stroked an RBI single to score Yount. Sophomore outfielder Andrew Connor (Randleman, N.C.) followed with a single.
Senior second baseman Stuart James (Wingate, N.C.) hit an RBI double to score Fulp and move Connor to third. James and Connor scored on a two-RBI single by senior third baseman Toby Bicknell (Charlotte, N.C.).
Bicknell was three-for-five with two RBI for the Bulldogs. Connor and senior outfielder Chris Torres (Charlotte, N.C.) both had two hits in four at-bats for Wingate. For the Blue Hose, Hite was three-for-four with a triple and a double.
Presbyterian junior pitcher Richard Barkley took the loss for the visitors. Barkley allowed five earned runs on 10 hits. He struck out six and walked four.
Game #2 – Presbyterian 4, Wingate 1
Presbyterian senior right-hander Mark Dudley took the Blue Hose and led them to victory in the nightcap. Dudley allowed one run on seven hits. He struck out three and walked none, improving his team-best pitching record to 6-2 overall.
Wingate took a 1-0 lead on Dudley and his Blue Hose mates in the bottom of the second inning. Senior outfielder Andrew Romberger (Norristown, Pa.) doubled and scored one out later on an RBI double by Yount. A sophomore from Forest City, N.C., Yount leads the ‘Dogs in doubles with 13 two-baggers.
Presbyterian scored a run with two outs in the top of the third frame. Senior outfielder Chris Turco singled, moved to second on a single by Hite and scored on an RBI single by White.
The Blue Hose scored the game-winning run in the fourth inning. Junior shortstop Davis Rice walked and scored on an RBI double by sophomore designated hitter Heath McCutcheon.
Rice was two-for-two with one RBI for the Blue Hose. Turco was two-for-three with three runs scored. Romberger led Wingate at the plate with a two-for-three performance. No other Bulldog could manage more than one hit in the nightcap.
Fulp took the loss on the mound for the Bulldogs. The junior right-hander pitched four innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits. Fulp struck out six and walked two.