WINTER PARK, Fla. – Young Harris College and Rollins College opened the 2014 baseball season with a split a non-conference doubleheader Saturday (Feb. 1) afternoon at Alfond Stadium.
The Tars won the opener 4-3 before the Mountain Lions scored five runs in the eighth inning to win the nightcap 8-3 in extra innings. Young Harris improved to 1-1 while Rollins fell to 1-1. The three-game series wraps up with a single game at 1 p.m. Sunday (Feb. 2).
Rollins had forced extra innings in the second game when Christian Coburn tied the game at 3 on his RBI fielder's choice. The Mountain Lions had taken a 3-2 lead in the top of the inning as Jack Morrow and Dom Wyshinski singled home runs.
Young Harris won the game an inning later as they score five two-out runs. Adam Moore, who went 3-for-5 with two RBI, knocked in the first run on a single off reliever Philip Tahernia (0-1). The Mountain Lions added another on a Tahernia wild pitch before Morrow, who went 4-for-5 with four RBI, connected on three-run homer to left field to give Young Harris an 8-3 lead.
Donald Frew (1-0) got the Tars in order in the bottom of the eighth to seal the win.
Rollins took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning of the opening game as they took advantage of a Young Harris throwing error and scored two unearned runs. The Mountain Lions got the two runs back in their half of the fifth as Moore, who went 2-for-4, stroked an RBI double after Zack Odom reached on an error and Trey Rogers added a sacrifice fly.
Young Harris took its first lead an inning later. Josh Rudnik started the two-out rally in the sixth by getting hit by a pitch. Tom Valichka followed with a triple to left-center field to give the Mountain Lions a 3-2 lead.
The lead wouldn't last long as Rollins scored twice in its half of the sixth. Matt Hendricks, who went 2-for-4, tied the game with his single through the left off reliever James Mills (0-1). After Rollins took advantage of another Young Harris throwing error, Hendricks would later score on an infield single by Hunter Mayfield, who went 2-for-4.
Young Harris had its best chance to score in the ninth inning as pitch hitter Brett Westmoreland and Spencer Thomas led off by being hit by pitchers by reliever Eric Morse, but Morse nailed his first save by getting the next three batters out.
