University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Longwood
Bulldogs Split Friday Conference Doubleheader
04.25.2015 | Baseball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville baseball team split its Friday doubleheader against conference foe Longwood, wining game one 11-6 before falling 13-11 in the nightcap.
The Bulldogs (18-25, 4-13 Big South Conference) finished the night with 22 combined hits, led by senior Tommy Houmard, who finished 7-for-9 overall with three RBI, three runs scored and two walks. Houmard's bases-clearing triple in game one extended the Asheville lead for good.
Game one starter Joe Zayatz earned the win for Asheville, tossing six innings with five strikeouts while allowing three Longwood (18-23, 6-11 BSC) runs.
The Bulldogs jumped on the board with a three-run fourth inning, highlighted by a Lucas Owens RBI single and a two-run double by Erik Connolly. They added four more runs over the next three frames before the four-run eighth inning, capped by Houmard's triple down the right field line.
In game two, Joe Tietjen joined Houmard in the offensive attack, finishing with four hits from his leadoff position in the batting order.
Longwood erased an eight run deficit over the final five frames, sparked by a six-run fifth inning that featured back-to-back triples and back-to-back doubles.
Nick Boyles (0-1), the fourth of five Bulldog relievers, was saddled with the loss, walking the eventual go-ahead run, who later scored on an RBI single to give Longwood the lead.
Asheville cut the lead to one in the bottom of the eighth on Connolly's two-out, RBI single, but the visitors added one final insurance run in the ninth to wrap things up.
The two teams are tentatively scheduled to play the final game of the series on Saturday at 3 p.m., but predicted weather could push the finale to Sunday afternoon. A final decision on the game will come Saturday morning.
