AMERICUS, Ga. – Chris Thomas pitched Lander to a blowout victory in Game 1 and teammate Ian Harvey helped the Bearcats complete the Peach Belt Conference double-header sweep at Georgia Southwestern Saturday afternoon. Lander won the opener 10-1 and outlasted the Hurricanes 4-2 in the second game.
The Bearcats improved to 16-6 overall and 6-2 in the Peach Belt.
Georgia Southwestern fell to 3-18, 2-8.
The teams will finish their three-game series at 1 o'clock Sunday at Hurricanes Stadium.
Tied 2-2 going into the top of the eighth inning of Game 2, Harvey started a rally for the third time. He singled, stole second, and scored the go-ahead run when Juan Montana reached on a two-out error by the first baseman. Montana stole second and scored on Colby Painter's single, giving Lander a 4-2 advantage. It was Painter's fifth hit of the day.
Bearcats relievers Michael White and Ross Davis closed out the victory. White, who relieved Bearcats starter Todd Hughson, was credited with the win and is 2-0 on the season. Davis collected his third save of the season despite giving up a leadoff double to Randell Sheffield in the bottom of the ninth. Davis struck out the next two batters and got the final out on a grounder to short.
Hughson allowed three runs on five hits while walking three and striking out three in 6.2 innings. White pitched a hitless 1.1 innings, striking out one.
Hurricanes reliever Tyler Daniel took the loss. Matt Weaver was the starting pitcher, allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits in six innings.
The Bearcats twice took leads in Game 2, but Georgia Southwestern came back to tie in the bottom of the inning both times.
In the fourth, Lander took a 1-0 lead when Harvey doubled down the left-field line and scored when Chris Hyatt reached on an error. But the Hurricanes' Michel Coffey hit a game-tying homer to lead off the bottom of the fourth. Georgia Southwestern loaded the bases after the homer but failed to score.
In the sixth, Harvey and Hyatt struck again to give the Bearcats a 2-1 lead. Harvey tripled to left-center and scored on Hyatt's single to center. But the Hurricanes tied it when Beau Parker walked and scored on a two-out double by Kyle Nobles.
Harvey was Lander's leading hitter in Game 2, going 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Painter went 2-for-4 with an RBI, and wound up 5-for-9 in the double-header.
Lander blew Game 1 open with five runs in the top of the first inning and four more in the fourth.
Erik Lunde and AJ Nunziato singled, and Patrick Grady reached on an error to load the bases. Kevin Starr singled home the game's first two runs, Jordan Owens laid down a bunt single, Harvey reached on an error to score a run, and Montana hit a two-run single to make it 5-0.
The Bearcats increased their lead to 9-0 in the fourth. Nunziato led off with a triple and scored on Grady's single. Starr also singled, Harvey belted a two-run double, and Montana added an RBI single.
Lander added a run in the ninth when Montana doubled and scored on Painter's single.
Georgia Southwestern's only run of the game came in the fifth when Sheffield singled, stole second, and scored on John Duran's single.
Thomas, the reigning Peach Belt Conference Pitcher of the Week, tossed eight solid innings for the Bearcats. Thomas (4-0) allowed just one run on five hits in eight innings. He struck out seven and walked two. Jeremy Jansen retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth, all on grounders to shortstop Nunziato.
Trent Franzago (0-5) took the loss for the Hurricanes.
Leading hitters for Lander in Game 1 were Starr, 3-for-4 with two RBI; Montana, 3-for-5 with three RBI; Painter, 3-for-5 with one RBI; Lunde, 3-for-6; and Nunziato, 2-for-6 with two runs.
