No. 22 Baseball Closes Out Win Against Bryan

ATHENS, Tenn.- The baseball team, ranked No. 22 in the NAIA, returned to Athens Insurance Stadium to open an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) series on Thursday. The team hosted one of their rivals, the Bryan College Lions.

The series opened with a single game that saw the Bulldogs take the first lead. Cayle Webster opened the second inning with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Evan Magill. A passed ball moved Webster to third and he scored on a Cody McGill fielder's choice. 

After the top of the fifth inning, TWU trailed 5-1. In the bottom of the fifth, the Bulldogs tied the game. Marco Martinez, Daniel Stewart, and Webster loaded the bases in the opening of the inning. A walk by Magill brought Martinez home and cut the deficit to three runs. Kruise Newman made it two walks in a row, bringing Stewart home from third base to bring the team within two runs. McGill tied the game with his single to right field that brought Webster and courtesy-runner Dante Leach across home plate. The difference in the game occurred in the seventh inning.

Newman opened the inning with a solo home run over left field to break the tie. McGill followed with a solo shot of his own, this one over the right field wall, moving the lead to two runs. Braxton Turner gave the team a three-run lead as he scored on Stewart's single. The team ended the game with an 8-6 win.

McGill finished the game with four RBIs while Newman had two RBIs. Sam Rochard picked up the win on the mound while Blake Peyton completed the save. 

The series between the Bulldogs (19-9, 11-5 AAC) and the Lions will finish on Saturday with a doubleheader. The first game is set to begin at 1:00 p.m.