CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. – The Campbellsville University baseball team hosted the University of Tennessee Southern to finish the series Saturday afternoon. The Tigers and Firehawks split on day two, giving Campbellsville the series win.
GAME ONE: Campbellsville 4, Tennessee Southern 3
Campbellsville struck first as the Tigers were first to score. Campbellsville allowed a few hits in the first and second inning, but none led to runs. Josiah Clark and Lorenzo Gonzalez walked when the Tigers started the second inning. Kale Seitz stepped to the plate and earned a two-run RBI triple down the right-field line.
Tennessee Southern snatched back the lead in the top of the fifth inning. The Firehawks earned a collection of singles and free bases. Batters followed up with RBIs to bring runs across. Seitz homered and took a solo trot around the bases in the latter half of the inning.
Luis Lopez entered the contest in the top of the sixth inning. Lopez stood bravely in the circle as he kept the Firehawks at bay. Three of the six batters he pitched to returned to the dugout in strikeouts. Campbellsville found relief as Clark crossed the plate. Clark positioned into scoring position once Jacob White stepped to the plate. White's bunt down third converted into a run for the Tigers.
Tennessee Southern could not recuperate, and Campbellsville stole away the win 4-3. Seitz had an impressive game, batting .667 with three RBIs. The Tigers mustered up a .630 strike percentage compared to the Firehawks' .523 percent.
GAME TWO: Campbellsville 8, Tennessee Southern 9
The Firehawks quickly got ahead of the Tigers as they strung together several singles for two runs. In the bottom of the second, Campbellsville chipped away at their discrepancy. Mael Zan doubled down the line to reach second base. Moments later, Noah Amenta flew out to right field and allotted enough time for Zan to score.
Tennessee Southern jumped out on the Tigers in the top of the fourth inning. The Firehawks poised three hits in addition to capitalizing off the Tigers' fielding error to secure four more runs. Campbellsville struggled to hit until the following inning. Clark and Seitz reached the bases after two walks. Not long after, the runners sat in scoring position. Clark crossed the plate on a passed ball, and Seitz came in on a throwing error.
The Firehawks tallied another run after a couple of singles, but the Tigers allowed no more runs. The eighth inning inched around, and Campbellsville found a groove. Logan Verble and Samio Uze stood on the corner bags. Alex Castaneda poised a single down the line that scored Uze. Jacob Balsley collected an RBI walk to leave the Tigers trailing by two runs. Tyler Belcher amassed two RBIs in his vital single to center field. Belcher's hit acquired the tying run for Campbellsville. Ensuing that, McCann singled to the left side to score the leading run.
In their final offensive attempt, the Firehawks composed two runs to steal away the 9-8 win.
Campbellsville travels to Indiana University Southeast Tuesday, April 18th. The Tigers' contest with the Grenadiers begins at 4 p.m. ET.
