NEWBERRY, S.C. – The Newberry College (12-1) baseball team was dominant in all facets of the game as they picked up a doubleheader sweep of Lincoln University (Pa.) on Tuesday, February 22 at the Smith Road Complex.
The Wolves were able to scatter 24 hits between the two contests, scoring a total of 28 runs as they took the first game by a 16-1 margin before wrapping up the night with a 12-1 decision. Newberry also continued its running game prowess as they were able to tally 15 stolen bags on the evening.
Redshirt-junior Braylin Marine (Freeport, N.Y.) went a perfect four-for-four at the plate in the nightcap while recording four RBIs, adding to his lone RBI in the opening game. Senior Zane Tarrance (Odessa, Fla.) knocked in four runs in the first game and added another in the second while senior Ian Clements (Upper Marlboro, Md.) turned in five RBIs in the opener. Freshman Hunter French (Minneola, Fla.) knocked in a pair of runs in the late game as well.
On the bump, freshmen Chevy Wrenn (Moncks Corner, S.C.) and Parker Fenton (Minneola, Fla.) each picked up wins on the afternoon, each striking out a pair in their four innings of work. Redshirt-sophomore Wesley Livingston (Pomaria, S.C.) earned his first save of the season by going three innings in the opener, fanning four batters.
After three straight ground outs opened the day for the Lions in top half of the first inning, the Wolves jumped on the early opportunity to take the lead and posted a pair of runs in the bottom half. A lead-off walk and a perfectly placed bunt, along with a pair of stolen bags, left the Wolves with two in scoring position. A sacrifice fly by sophomore Henry Gibson (Walterboro, S.C.) was able to plate the first run for the Wolves in the inning while a defensive miscue by the Lions on the same play would bring around the second run, giving Newberry the early 2-0 lead.
After going scoreless in the second, the Wolves went right back to work in the third as they were able to put up four runs on the scoreboard. A wild pitch after some crafty base running by Marine would plate the first of the runs in the inning before Clements would knock a bases-loaded triple that cleared the bags for the Wolves and extended their lead to 6-0.
Lincoln was able to scratch across a run in the top of the fourth, but the Scarlet and Gray responded in kind in the bottom half to retake the six-run advantage. The floodgates truly opened in the fifth as Newberry was able to trot across seven runs in the frame to take the 14-1 edge. The seven-run inning was highlighted by a bases-clearing triple by Tarrance and a two-RBI double by Clements. Newberry added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth as freshman Blayze Haddock (Toccoa, Ga.) got in on the scoring, driving in a pair of runs to wrap up the final 16-1 margin.
The Wolves carried that momentum right into the second game of the day as they were able to scratch across a pair of runs in the opening frame of the nightcap. Tarrance would get on base through a single and Marine would take the second pitch of his at-bat for a ride into the right center field gap for an RBI-triple that plated the first run of the inning. Marine trotted the final 90 feet in the next at bat as French record his first RBI of the day to give the Wolves the 2-0 lead.
Four runs would be added to the tally in the bottom of the second. The first of those runs was walked in by the Lions hurler before double by Marine would drive in a pair and leave two in scoring position. However, only one of them would cross the plate in the frame with French recording his second RBI of the contest on a sacrifice fly to right field, giving Newberry the 6-0 advantage.
The third inning wouldn't bear fruit for either side, but the Wolves got right back to it in the bottom of the fourth, plating two more runs, both on hard ground outs with runners at third. Another pair of runs found their way onto the scoreboard in the fifth with freshman Ben Freeman (Easley, S.C.) recording an RBI off a sacrifice fly to bring the score to 10-0.
Lincoln scored their lone run in the contest in the top of the sixth, but Newberry again put two runs on the board in the bottom half of the frame and that's where the scoring would end with the Wolves securing the 12-1 victory.
Newberry returns to action tomorrow, February 23 as they hit the road to Tigerville, S.C. for a single game against the Crusaders of North Greenville University. First pitch is slated for 3:30 p.m.
