GREENWOOD – Lander pitcher Chris Thomas struck out 11 and teammate Weston Lawing had four hits, leading the Bearcats to an 11-1 victory over Augusta State in Game 2 of a Peach Belt Conference doubleheader Saturday at Stephen B. Dolny Stadium. The Jaguars won the opener, 13-3.
Lander is 9-5 overall and 1-1 in the PBC. Augusta is 6-8, 1-4.
The teams will finish the Peach Belt series Sunday at 2 o'clock at Dolny Stadium.
Patrick Grady was the leading hitter for the Bearcats in the two games, going 6-for-10 with a homer and three RBI.
Thomas (2-0) finished brilliantly in Game 2, fanning the final five batters he faced before being replaced with two outs in the seventh by Grady, who came to the mound from the outfield. Thomas allowed one run on six hits while walking two in 6.2 innings. Grady finished up with 2.1 innings of scoreless relief.
The Jaguars took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning of Game 2 when Kevin Dodson doubled and scored on Seth Foster's single.
Lander took its first lead of the day with two runs in the bottom of the second. Jeff May hit a leadoff double to right center and scored on Lawing's single to center. Lawing stole second and scored on Aaron Poole's single, giving the Bearcats a 2-1 lead.
Lander added three runs in the fourth. Lawing singled, Poole reached on a fielder's choice and Juan Montana bunted the runners over. One run scored when Colby Painter reached on an error, Erik Lunde drove in a run with a ground out to second, and AJ Nunziato hit an RBI single to left.
The Bearcats blew the game open with six runs in the eighth, started by Lawing's infield single and third stolen base of the game. Tyler Wilson hit an RBI single, Nunziato and Grady belted back-to-back two-run doubles, and Wilson drove in his second run of the inning with an infield hit.
Lawing was the Bearcats' leading hitter in Game 2, finishing 4-for-4 with three runs scored and three stolen bases. Nunziato went 3-for-5 with three RBI, Grady was 3-for-5 with two RBI, and Wilson was 2-for-2 with two RBI.
Foster was Augusta's leading hitter in Game 2, going 3-for-4 with an RBI. Matt Smith went 2-for-4.
Kip Custer (0-1) took the loss for the Jaguars.
In the opener, Augusta scored a run in the second on Justin Thigpen's RBI single, and four in the third on Clay Tucker's RBI single, an error, and Justin Appel's two-run double.
The Jaguars added four in the sixth when Thigpen hit an RBI double and stole home as part of a double steal, Dodson drove in a run with a ground out, and Curtis Parker added an RBI single. Errors also played a key role in the inning as the Bearcats committed two more, giving them five in the first six innings.
Augusta's Smith hit a leadoff double in the seventh, moved to third on a ground out, and scored on another error, making it 10-0.
The Jaguars added three runs in the ninth on Caleb Saggus's two-run double and Dodson's RBI ground out.
Augusta's shutout bid ended with two outs in the bottom of the ninth when Nunziato and Grady hit back-to-back homers. Nunziato's was an inside-the-park shot that bounced off the top of the fence away from the outfielder, and Grady followed with a blast over the right-field fence.
Jordan Owens followed Grady's homer with a double to right, May walked, and Starr singled home the game's final run.
Scott Shipman (1-2) got the win for the Jaguars, pitching six shutout innings with three walks and five strikeouts. Wilson Taylor finished up for his first save.
Todd Hughson (2-1) suffered his first loss of the season for Lander, allowing five runs, but only one earned, on six hits in 3.2 innings. He struck out four and walked three.
Ross Davis relieved Hughson, allowing five runs, just two earned, on six hits in 4.1 innings, striking out four and walking no one. Ches Courtney pitched the ninth for the Bearcats, allowing three runs on two hits, a walk, and a hit batsman.
Saggus, Dodson, Parker, Smith, Appel and Thigpen all had two hits apiece in Game 1 for the Jaguars. Smith scored three runs, while Saggus, Dodson, Appel and Thigpen had two RBI apiece. Saggus had two of Augusta's four stolen bases.
Grady was Lander's leading hitter in Game 1, going 3-for-5 with a home run. Owens and Starr had two hits apiece for the Bearcats.
