GREENWOOD – Chess Malone tossed eight shutout innings as the No. 5 ranked Lander Bearcats bounced back from a Game 1 loss, earning a Peach Belt Conference double-header split Saturday afternoon against North Georgia College & State University at Dolny Stadium. The Saints won the opener 7-2 and Lander cruised in the second game, 11-0.

Lander is 13-3 overall and 7-1 in the Peach Belt. North Georgia is 4-10, 1-1.

The winner of the PBC series will be decided Sunday when the teams play a single game at 1 o'clock at Dolny Stadium.

Malone allowed only four hits in eight shutout innings, improving to 4-0 on the season. He walked one and struck out five. John Eric Haynes pitched a scoreless ninth.

After being held scoreless since the second inning of Game 1, the Bearcats put together a four-run rally in the second inning of the nightcap. Weston Lawing and Colby Painter ignited the rally with singles and each moved up on a wild pitch. Jeff May drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly to center. Chris Hyatt was hit by a pitch, and he and Painter moved up on a passed ball. North Georgia center fielder Jake McCurry made a great catch at the warning track of Ian Harvey's fly ball, but Hyatt scored as Harvey was credited with a sacrifice fly. Graham Ramos singled Painter home, and scored from second on a throwing error as Erik Lunde reached on an infield single.

Lander added a run in the third when Patrick Grady singled, moved to second on Connor Lewis's single, stopped at third on Lawing's bunt single, and scored on Painter's sacrifice fly to center. But the Saints prevented further damage by turning a double play.

The Bearcats increased their lead to 6-0 in the fourth when Ramos homered over the left-field fence. It was his second home run of the season.

Lander extended its lead to 9-0 in the fifth. Grady walked, Lewis singled, Lawing slapped an RBI single to left, Painter hit the fourth Bearcat sacrifice fly of the game (this one to right field), and May knocked a run-scoring single to center.

Grady and Painter added RBI singles in the sixth, making it 11-0.

Five Lander players had multiple hits in Game 2 including Lewis, 3-for-5; Lawing, 3-for-3; Ramos, 2-for-3 with a homer, two RBI and three runs scored; Grady, 2-for-2 with three runs; and Painter, 2-for-2 with three RBI. May was 1-for-3 with two RBI.

North Georgia pulled away for a victory in Game 1. After the Saints scored a run in the top of the second on a two-out error, Lander took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the second of Game 1. Lewis started the rally with a single, Lawing reached on a fielder's choice, Painter singled, and Hyatt followed with a two-run double into the left-field corner.

The Saints regained the lead, 3-2, in the top of the third. McCurry walked, Derek Hooper singled, Jesse Strickland bunted the runners over, and Tremayne Toorie singled both runners home.

North Georgia extended its lead to 5-2 in the fourth when Travis Naraine drew a two-out walk, Devin Gearhart singled, and Brad Barto hit a two-run double into left center.

Lander reliever Tyler Broome replaced starting pitcher Dylan Wolchick on the mound and allowed one run in the sixth when McCurry walked, raced to third on Strickland's single, and scored on Toorie's RBI ground out to short.

The Saints got the game's final run in the seventh off Bearcats reliever Ryan Jones when Gearhart singled, moved to second on a wild pitch, and scored on Brett Wright's single.

Taylor Keinat (1-2) pitched brilliantly for North Georgia to earn his first win of the season, allowing two runs on seven hits in seven innings of work. He struck out seven and walked two.

Wolchick (3-1) took his first loss of the season for Lander, allowing five runs, four earned, on eight hits in five innings. He walked four and struck out two. Broome allowed one run in his inning of work, while Jones gave up one run on three hits in three innings.

Leading hitters for the Saints in Game 1 were Hooper, Naraine and Gearhart with two hits apiece while Toorie had three RBI. Naraine, Gearhart and McCurry each scored twice.

Tisdale and Painter were Lander's leading hitters in the opener with two hits apiece while Hyatt drove in both Bearcat runs.