University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
24-24, 0
Radford
9-43, 0
Bulldogs Rally to Complete Sweep of Radford, 14-9
05.14.2023 | Baseball
All nine members of Asheville's starting lineup reached base at least once on Sunday. Ty Kaufman went 3-for-4 with three RBI to lead the charge. Cameron Johnson (2-for-3, three runs scored, three RBI), Michael Groves (2-for-4, two runs scored), and Fermin Osio (2-for-3, two runs scored) also had multi-hit outings for Asheville.
It was all Radford early on in Sunday's series finale. The Highlanders pushed across five runs in the third and added four more in the fourth inning to jump out to a 9-0 lead.
Facing a sizable deficit, the Bulldogs began to chip away in the fifth. Kohl Abrams got the comeback started with an RBI single to bring around Osio to score to make it 9-1 after five innings.
However, the difference in the game occurred in the sixth. Asheville sent 14 batters to the plate in the sixth, scored 10 runs on five hits, and went through three Radford relievers in that inning alone to not only erase the Radford lead but also build one of its own, 11-9. The 10 runs scored by the Bulldogs are the most by the team in any inning this season and the most in a single inning for the team since April 23, 2022 vs. Radford when they also scored 10 runs.
Riding the wave of momentum it gained in the sixth, Asheville added three more insurance runs in the eighth. The five-run cushion was enough for the Bulldogs to hold on for the 14-9 win. The victory not only clinches the second straight series sweep of Radford for the Bulldogs but also brings their overall record back to the .500 mark (24-24) with four games remaining in the regular season.
A key in Asheville's comeback bid was also the work out of the bullpen by Justin Needles. Needles was outstanding, tossing five shutout innings, while scattering two hits and three walks. Needles, who ended up getting his first collegiate win for his efforts, also struck out a career-high eight batters in his outing on Sunday.
The Bulldogs will finish off their home schedule on Tuesday when they host Queens University of Charlotte at Greenwood Field. First pitch for that tilt is set for 5 p.m. at Greenwood Field.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Needles, Justin (1-0)
L: VONGOEDERT, Luke (1-4)
Batting:
2B: STALKER, Austin 1
HR: BARRS, Tanner 1 ; MALLIA, Zack 1
RBI: ROJAS, Julian 1 ; BARRS, Tanner 3 ; BRAZELL, Bannon 1 ; MALLIA, Zack 4
SF: ROJAS, Julian 1
Base Running:
RUNS: PITTMAN, Cameron 1 ; STALKER, Austin 2 ; BARRS, Tanner 2 ; BRAZELL, Bannon 1 ; MALLIA, Zack 1 ; TIBBS, Sully 1 ; BURTON, Ty 1
HBP: STALKER, Austin 1 ; BRAZELL, Bannon 1
Batting:
2B: Lanowitz, Corbin 1 ; Groves, Michael 1 ; Johnson, Cameron 1 ; Osio, Fermin 1
RBI: Abrams, Kohl 2 ; Bacot, Dylan 1 ; Johnson, Cameron 3 ; Kaufman, Ty 3 ; Castonguay, Tony 1 ; Bristow , Drew 1 ; Osio, Fermin 1
SH: Kaufman, Ty 1
SF: Bacot, Dylan 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Abrams, Kohl 1 ; Lanowitz, Corbin 1 ; Bacot, Dylan 2 ; Groves, Michael 2 ; Johnson, Cameron 3 ; Kaufman, Ty 1 ; Castonguay, Tony 1 ; Bristow , Drew 1 ; Osio, Fermin 2
SB: Johnson, Cameron 1 ; Kaufman, Ty 1
HBP: Bacot, Dylan 1 ; Castonguay, Tony 1 ; Osio, Fermin 1
