BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University baseball team earned a tight nonconference victory over Tusculum College on Tuesday afternoon. The Tornado scored four runs in the eighth inning to break a tie and ultimately take the game 9-5, giving King the season series against the Pioneers.

THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: King 9, Tusculum 5
LOCATION: King Baseball Field; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 22-12; Tusculum 18-19
TIME OF GAME: 3:10

King Starting Lineup

1. Tony Valdes – CF
2. J.P. Castaneda – 2B
3. Tyler Bailey – SS
4. Kevin Barbato – LF
5. Austin Meyer – RF
6. Ashton King – DH
7. Hunter Barbour – 1B
8. Cam Haymans – DH
9. Coby Sale – 3B
Starting Pitcher: RHP Mark Michael

Tusculum Starting Lineup

1. Daulton Martin – 2B
2. Jarel McDade – LF
3. Colby Skeen – DH
4. Zach Finchum – 1B
5. Edison Cabrera – SS
6. Jake Wapinsky – RF
7. Trey Hinton – 3B
8. Sam Urban – CF
9. Aaron Pratt – C
Starting Pitcher: RHP Zach Sanders

KING HIGHLIGHTS

• Castaneda and Barbour paced the Tornado offense with four hits apiece. Castaneda drove in a pair and scored once while Barbour ripped two doubles and drove in one.
• Valdes scored three runs, going 2-for-4 from the leadoff spot.
• King drove in a pair, scored twice and earned the win on the mound.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Haymans gave King the 1-0 lead in the second inning with a sacrifice fly that scored King.
• Tusculum evened the score with a run in the third, but King came back with a run in the fourth inning on a Barbour double that scored King, giving the Tornado a 2-1 lead.
• The Pioneers grabbed a 5-2 lead with a four-run fifth inning. The frame was highlighted by a pair of run-scoring doubles and an RBI single.
• Meyer pulled King back within 5-3 with an RBI groundout in the fifth inning before the Tornado evened the tally in the sixth inning.
• Sale got the Tornado rally going in the eighth inning with a leadoff double and scored on a Valdes single, putting the Tornado on top.
• King stretched the Tornado lead to 9-5 with a two-out two-run single.
• Octavio Mirabal then entered on the mound for the Tornado in the ninth inning and retired the Pioneers in order, giving King the 9-5 victory.

FOR THE FOES

• Martin led the Pioneers with three hits, scoring one runs.
• McDade drove in two on two hits.
• Hinton recorded three hits and Cabrera added two hits, driving in one and scoring once.

OF RECORD

Winning Pitcher: Ashton King (1-2) 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO
Losing Pitcher: Colin Johnston (2-1) 1.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO

UP NEXT

• King takes to the road this weekend for a Conference Carolinas series at Erskine College. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. and Saturday's doubleheader is scheduled to start at 12:00 p.m.
• Tusculum travels to Lenoir-Rhyne for a conference series on Friday and Saturday.