GREENWOOD – The Lander baseball team took care of business against the Augusta Jaguars on Saturday, as the Bearcats swept the season series that featured yet another Bradley Davis walk-off single.
Lander took the first game of the day with a 7-4 victory while winning game two of the doubleheader 4-3.
The Bearcats improve to 18-16 overall and 8-7 in the PBC while Augusta drops to 10-21 overall and 3-12 in the PBC.
Five Bearcats were tied for the lead in hits with two. Landon Dupert, Ethan Wilder, Tyler Prell, Bennet Nooe and Gary Garrett all had a multi-hit game. Garrett and Mason Streater both had two RBI each.
Neither side was able to score a single run for the first four innings.
Augusta finally broke through with a run in the top of the fifth with an RBI single to right-center field to go up 1-0. Lander would respond with five runs in the bottom of the inning. The Bearcats got things tied at 1-1 after Caleb Singleton doubled to left-center and Dupert singled to right field to score Singleton from second. A Streater double down the left-field line would score Connor Droze and Dupert to move Lander in front 3-1. Wilder would double to right-center field to score Streater and make it a 4-1 contest. Garrett would fly out to left field to bring Wilder home later in the inning to cap off the five-run inning for Lander.
Augusta would plate another run in the sixth, this time with a home run to move Augusta within three of Lander. The Jaguars kept the offense going with two runs in the seventh to make it a one-run game while Lander would counter with a home run from Garrett to give Lander a 6-4 edge. A Nooe RBI single through the left side brought home Lander's final run to make it a 7-4 ball game.
Nick Foray got the start in game one and earned the win. Foray moves to 2-1 after going five innings where he allowed just two runs, all earned on five hits while striking out five. Garrett Major and Evan Mauldin both pitched in relief while Braeden Burton pitched the nineth to earn his first save of the season with a scoreless inning.
Lander saw three players recording multiple hits in the second game of the doubleheader. Singleton, Dupert and Davis all recorded two hits while Dupert, Davis and Nooe recorded an RBI each.
The Jaguars did all their damage in the top of the third. Augusta was able to plate two runs early in the inning with a home run while a double down the left-field line scored the third.
Playing only seven innings to conclude the series, Lander bounced back with a home run from Dupert to right field to cut into the Jaguar lead in the bottom of the third.
Neither side had much luck scoring in the fourth and fifth innings before Nooe changed that for Lander with a bomb to left field to bring the Bearcats within one run of Augusta.
After holding Augusta scoreless in the top of the seventh, the Bearcats started the bottom of the inning with a single up the middle from Singleton. After back-to-back outs were recorded, Singleton made a break to third and came home to score on a throwing error by the Jaguars shortstop that allowed Streater to occupy first and continue the inning.
With the game tied 3-3 and runners on first and second, Logan Melton was brought in to pinch-run for Streater at second. Davis came up to the plate and sent a single to center field to put Melton in motion. Rounding third, the Jaguar center fielder fired home in hopes of throwing out Melton, but the throw wasn't on target and the Bearcats celebrated at first once again with Davis.
Kurt Rogers got the start in the final game of the series and went four innings. Rogers allowed three runs on six hits while striking out two. Michael Nastro pitched 1.2 innings of scoreless relief with a strikeout while Zach Pellegrino finished the game with 1.1 innings of scoreless baseball to earn his second win of the season.
The Bearcats travel to Belmont, N.C., to battle Belmont Abbey next on April 5 for a non-conference contest.
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