GC Baseball Sweeps Double Dip Against Pacers To Open Play

CARY, NC – The Greensboro College baseball team got their 2015 regular season and conference season underway on Saturday afternoon as they took on the Pacers of William Peace in a double header. The Pride bats were alive in both games as the Pride pummeled the Pacers in game one ,15-1, before taking the back end of the double dip ,6-3, in fourteen innings.

J.P. Lisk got the hitting spree started in game one with a leadoff single to right field before stealing second base to find himself in scoring position. Once Lisk got into scoring position, Pride newcomer Zach Neumeister plated Lisk from third base before coming around to score himself on a Andrew Toney single to put Greensboro up 2-0 after this first inning of play.

In the second inning, Lisk recorded his first of two RBIs in the game when he went the other way to right field plaiting Brian Robbett to extend the Greensboro lead to 3-0 heading into the bottom of the second inning.

William Peace was able close the Greensboro advantage to 4-1 in the bottom half of the inning following an RBI single of their own.

Later in the game with the Pride leading, 5-1, Greensboro was able to break the game wide open with nine runs in the visiting portion of the sixth inning of play.

Gwynn Thompson got the scoring started in the six inning with a solid single to left field scoring Tyler Henderson from third base. Robett, who followed Thompson in the lineup, doubled to the left center gap scoring three runs to give Greensboro a 8-1 lead.

As the inning progressed, Jordan Powell, Andrew Tony, and Henderson accounted for the final four RBIs of the game giving Greensboro the 15-1 lead.

Kristopher Peeden took to the hill for the Pride in game one, tossing six innings of run one ball to pick up the win. Hunter Wolfington tossed the final inning of play for Greensboro.

Eight of the game’s nine starters for Greensboro accounted for eighteen hits with Lisk and Toney recording four hits each.

“We came of the gate hitting the ball well today,” Pride Head Coach Jonathan Nichols said following game one. “We were able to do the little things right the entire game with getting guys on base and produced quality at bats to get them in.”

Nichols continued on to say, “Kristopher (Peeden) did a great job for us in his first start of the season with keeping his pitch count low while going deep into the game. This was a total team effort”

The second game of the day proved to be much more intense.

William Peace got the scoring started in the bottom half of the second inning of play with one run, before Greensboro College came back to tie at 1-1 in the top half of the fourth inning of play.

Brian Robbett got the fourth inning started with a bloop single. The next batter, Kristopher Taveras, placed down a textbook sacrifice bunt that moved Robbett into scoring position before coming around to score following an Andrew Ray infield single.

After Greensboro tied the game at 1-1, they were able to push in front of the Pacers 2-1 in the top of the fifth inning but William Peace answered right back in the home half of the inning to tie the game at 2-2.

In the top half eight inning, Greensboro found themselves trailing 3-2 after the Pacers took the lead with a single run in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Robbett found the outfield grass to start the eight inning of play before being replaced by pinch runner Daniel Tilley. After Tilley placed himself on first base, Taveras placed down his second sacrifice of the game advancing Tilley to second base.

Following the Taveras sacrifice, the Pride turned to Kyle Willard off the bench for a pinch hit trip to the plate. Willard did not let his team down, while trailing in the count ,1-2, he placed a single off the right field chalk scoring Tilley to tie the game at 3-3.

The score would remain the same until the fourteenth inning of play.

Greensboro College got a lead off double by J.P Lisk before Jordan Powell gave the Pride a 4-3 lead with a long single to right center. As the inning progressed, Andrew Toney recorded a sacrifice fly to extend the advantage to 5-3 before Taveras recorded the game’s final RBI with a double to score Gwynn Thompson.

Greensboro College relief pitch Austin Hardin (1-0) was able to shut down the Pacers in the bottom half of the fourteenth inning to preserve the 6-3 victory aided by outstanding defense.

Freshman left handed pitcher Adam Murray made the start in game two tossing five innings of two run ball, one of which was earned, did not factor into the decision

For the second game in a row, J.P. Lisk pounded out four of Greensboro’s sixteen hits. Andrew Ray also recorded three hits.

“It was a tell of two games, we were not able to get the guys that were in scoring position in game two,” Nichols stated. “(Adam)Murray did an excellent job for us to start game before handing it over to the bull pin that also did an amazing job keeping the batters off balance.”

“Overall I was really pleased by the way our guys played today,” Nichols continued to say. “We stayed focused and got the job done and we have to build on that going into the series finale tomorrow afternoon.”

With the pair of victories, the Pride baseball team opens the season and conference play with a 2-0 mark. The same two teams will take to the field at the USA Baseball Training Facility tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 PM.