YOUNG HARRIS, Ga. | Young Harris continued its dominant start to conference play with a three-game Conference Carolinas sweep of Shorter, outscoring the Hawks 48-11 across the weekend to move to 14-3 overall and a flawless 9-0 in conference action.
The Mountain Lions took Friday's opener 8-4, exploded for a 25-2 7 inning victory in Saturday's first game, and capped the series with a 15-5 win in the finale.
Game One: Young Harris 8, Shorter 4
Young Harris used timely power and shutdown relief pitching to secure the opener. After Shorter tied the game at 4-4 in the fifth, the Mountain Lions responded with a two-run homer from Kade Smallwood in the seventh and a two-run blast from Keypher Contreras in the eighth to create separation.
Brock Parker earned the win in relief, tossing 2.1 scoreless innings with three strikeouts to improve to 3-0. Trey Griffin closed it out with 1.2 scoreless frames for his third save of the season.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
• Keypher Contreras went 2-for-4 with two home runs and three runs batted in.
• Kade Smallwood launched a two-run homer and finished with two runs driven in.
• Jackson Morgan doubled and added an RBI, while Carlos Martans also doubled and drove in a run.
• Cole Molina struck out seven over 5.0 innings, allowing four runs (two earned).
• Young Harris outhit Shorter 9-6 and stranded just five runners.
Game Two: Young Harris 25, Shorter 2
The Mountain Lions delivered another explosive offensive performance, scoring 25 runs on 18 hits and plating runs in five different innings, including a nine-run second.
Barrett Eldridge picked up the win to move to 2-0, striking out four over 2.2 innings of work. The bullpen combination of Sam Neal, Tommy Dowd, and Kaleb Perry limited Shorter to just one earned run.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
• Drew Bray finished 2-for-4 with a home run, and four runs batted in.
• Jackson Morgan went 3-for-4 with a double, three runs batted in, and four runs scored.
• Keypher Contreras was 3-for-4 with a triple and three runs batted in.
• Kade Smallwood added two hits and three runs batted in.
• Carlos Martans recorded two doubles and scored four runs.
• Young Harris drew 10 walks and struck out just once in 36 at-bats.
Game Three: Young Harris 15, Shorter 5
In the finale, the Mountain Lions built an early 3-0 lead and broke the game open with a seven-run seventh inning. Drew Bray homered in the first, and Jeo Hernandez delivered the decisive blow in the seventh with a towering grand slam.
Drew Sofield earned the win to improve to 4-0, allowing two runs (one earned) over 4.0 innings with four strikeouts.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:
• Drew Bray went 2-for-5 with a home run and three runs batted in.
• Jeo Hernandez finished 2-for-5 with a grand slam and four runs batted in.
• Carlos Martans was 2-for-3 with two runs batted in.
• Jack Enrico collected three hits and drove in a run.
• Keypher Contreras added a home run and finished with two hits and an RBI.
• Young Harris pounded out 19 hits and recorded six extra-base hits.
Across the three games, Young Harris scored 48 runs while allowing just 11, continuing to assert itself as one of the top offensive teams in DII.
UP NEXT:
The Mountain Lions take on North Georgia in installment three of the Battle of Blood Mountain series in 2026 on Wednesday (Mar. 4) at 3 PM in Young Harris.
