YOUNG HARRIS, Ga. | Jarrett Ford drove in five runs as Young Harris College rallied from a five-run deficit for a 10-9 victory over its Blood Mountain rival University of North Georgia Saturday (May 6) evening at Zell B. Miller Field in an elimination game in the Peach Belt Conference Baseball Tournament presented by College Ave Student Loans.
The No. 2 seeded Mountain Lions (36-15) were forced to the elimination game after dropping a 3-2 decision to No. 3 seed University of South Carolina-Aiken earlier in the day.
The Mountain Lions will face USC Aiken in the bracket final at 1 p.m. Sunday (May 7). The Mountain Lions will need to defeat the Pacers twice to advance to next weekend's PBC Tournament Championship Series, while USC Aiken needs to win once to advance.
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:
USC AIKEN
- The game was a pitcher's duel that saw both starters go the distance. USC Aiken's Joel Haney (4-4) threw 140 pitches while scattering six hits and striking out six. YHC's hurler Dylan Beck (4-4) tossed 105 pitches and allowed just four hits while striking out four. Neither pitcher surrendered an extra-base hit.
- YHC had six hits in the game with Jeremy Begora and Drew Bray had two each.
- The Mountain Lions took a 1-0 lead in the first without the benefit of a hit. Ethan Underwood drew a leadoff walk, stole second base and moved to third on an error before scoring on a wild pitch.
- USC Aiken tied the game at 1 in the third before YHC reclaimed a 2-1 lead in the fifth. James Basham reached on an error, stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch before coming on on Underwood's sacrifice fly to center.
- The Pacers got a run back in the sixth and took the lead in the seventh at 3-2 without the benefit of a hit. USCA used a hit batter, two wild pitched and a sacrifice fly to score the deciding run.
NORTH GEORGIA
- North Georgia scored five times in the first inning, but the Mountain Lions took a 7-5 lead in after three innings as YHC plated four runs in the second and added three more in the third.
- Ford drove in two runs in the second on a single to right-center field, while Steven Spell knocked in another run on a ground out.
- Spell cleared the bases an inning later on a double to left field.
- UNG tied the game at 7 on a Josh Sosa two-run homer to left field in the fourth.
- YHC scored a run in the sixth and two more in the seventh to take a 10-7 lead. Marco Colina had an RBI single in the sixth, while Underwood doubled two runs home an inning later.
- UNG got single runs in the eighth and ninth innings, but Ryan Cross, who pitched the final 2.2 innings, earned his first save as got the final out on a ground out with the tying run in scoring position.
- Cole Edwards (3-2) earned the win for the Mountain Lions with six strikeouts in 6.1 innings.
- The Mountain Lions tallied 12 hits in the game with Ford collecting four and Bray posted three more.
