BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University baseball team completed the sweep of Chowan University following a pair of victories on Friday. The Tornado shutout the Hawks in game one, winning 10-0 before taking game two by a final score line of 4-2.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: King 10, Chowan 0; King 4, Chowan 2
LOCATION: King Baseball Field; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 8-7, 7-5 Conference Carolinas; Chowan 0-16, 0-16 Conference Carolinas
SERIES HIGHLIGHTS
- Austin Meyer paced the Tornado with five hits on the day. His 5-for-7 performance included four runs batted in as well as two runs that he scored himself.
- Junior Renwick posted a pair of hits on the day, driving in one run. He also scored three runs on the day.
- Connor Andrews drove in two runs on the day, posting one hit.
- The pitching duo of Drew Moore and Trevor Beards combined for 20 punchouts. Moore tallied 10 in game one and Beards followed suit in game two.
GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS
- King struck first in the bottom of the opening inning as Truman Roper reached home on a wild pitch.
- Andrews then came home for the second run of the day following a single from Davis Hall.
- Moore captured three swinging strikeouts in the top of the third to get out of a jam, leaving Hawks on the corners.
- King extended their lead in the bottom of the third. This time it was Meyer that took advantage of another wild pitch to stroll home.
- Moore picked up another trio of strikeouts in the top of the fourth to strand Chowan baserunners at first and second.
- The Tornado added three runs in the bottom of the fourth, starting with a Renwick single drove in Deric Graham to push the lead to 5-0 in the bottom of the fourth.
- Renwick then scored the second run of the inning following a single through the right side from Meyer.
- Three more runs came home in the fifth as Hall came home on a passed ball.
- David Carnicella hit a sacrifice fly to left field to drive in Jarrett Backus.
- Meyer picked up another single and drove in Renwick to push the Tornado lead to double digits.
- The two teams failed to register a hit during the final two innings, sealing the game one victory for King at 10-0.
- Moore earned the complete game victory, posting 10 punchouts.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Drew Moore (2-0) 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 SO
Losing Pitcher: Caleb Peterson (0-3) 4.0 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO
GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS
- After a scoreless first inning, Beards struck out the side in ten pitches to begin the second.
- The Tornado got on the board in the bottom half as Hall stole second to bring home Rob Sari on the throw.
- Another 1-2-3 inning from Beards led to a second run for King in the bottom of the third inning. Meyer hit a single up the middle to bring home Renwick.
- Beards picked up his third consecutive 1-2-3 inning, giving King a 2-0 advantage heading into the bottom of the fourth.
- Chowan halved the deficit in the top of the fifth as Chowan's Ethan Whelan grounded out to second base which brought home Trenton Lee.
- King responded right back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth inning.
- Meyer drove in another run, this time driving in Wes Bonney after a single through the right side.
- The second run of the inning came as Meyer scooted home following a double from Andrews.
- Tyler Jones cut the lead to two runs following a solo home run to leadoff the top of the sixth.
- That was it for the Hawks on the scoreboard, however, as Beards retired seven of the next ten Chowan batters.
- Nic Blankenship came in to pick up the save. The closer put away three consecutive batters following an inning-opening walk to seal the sweep for the Tornado.
OF RECORD
Winning Pitcher: Trevor Beards (2-1) 8.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 SO
Losing Pitcher: Ryan Gallaccio (0-4) 7.0 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 SO
Save: Nic Blankenship (3) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 SO
FOR THE FOES
- Tyler Jones led the Hawks with a 5-for-7 performance over both games. Jones drove in one run and scored a run on the day.
- Jeffrey Hiner posted a pair of hits in game two.
UP NEXT
- King travels to Barton next Saturday for a doubleheader to open a four-game series against the Bulldogs. First pitch for game one is scheduled for 12:30 p.m.
- Chowan returns home next Saturday to begin a four-game series against the University of Mount Olive.
