Thursday, March 10, 2005

#7 SAINTS BLAST BUFF'S 10-4

Dahlonega, Ga. – Using a three run first inning and a six run seventh inning, seventh ranked North Georgia College & State University won their sixth game in a row with a 10-4 victory over Milligan College Thursday afternoon at the NGCSU Baseball Complex.

The Saints (22-9) got going in the first inning after the lead off hitter, junior second baseman Brian Lauderdale (Roswell, Ga.), walked and later scored on a wild pitch. Senior shortstop Kevin Bulger (Snellville, Ga.) later scored on a ground out and sophomore first baseman Creston Warner (Jacksonville, Fla.) knocked in the final run of the inning to put North Georgia up 3-0.

The Buff's (10-10) put their first run on the board in the second inning after loading the bases off of three straight walks with two outs. A fourth straight walk gave sophomore third baseman Alex Della Mora (Pickering, Ontario) a free pass home, but a final fly-out ended the inning with the bases loaded an the Saints still up 3-1.

With a run in the third inning, North Georgia had a 4-1 lead until MC pounded out three runs in the fifth inning to tie the score. Walk's once again crippled the Saints as Della Mora received a free pass with the bases loaded to score senior second baseman Will Little (Surgoinsville, Tenn.). An error allowed two more runs to score and the Buff's had tied the game 4-4 before a pop-up ended the inning.

In the bottom of the seventh inning, the Saints ran past MC as they put six runs on the board. A one out double to left field by senior right fielder Richie Daigle (Alpharetta, Ga.) sent three runners home to make the score 7-4. A single by junior left fielder Ryan Gurley (Jefferson, Ga.) scored another run, and Gurley scored two hits later off of a single from junior catcher Brad Poitevint (Dothan, Ala.). Lauderdale brought in the final run off of a sacrifice fly to give North Georgia six runs off of five hits in the inning and seal the victory.

Freshman reliever James Wilson (Suwanee, Ga.) picked up his first win of the season after going one inning of relief and not allowing a hit. Junior pitcher Justin Hite (Alcoa, Tenn.) took the loss after pitching three and a third innings and allowing four earned runs off of three hits.

The Saints will take the field again tomorrow as they travel to the East Cobb Baseball Complex to take on Reinhardt College in a three game series. The game begins at 2:00 p.m. with the Saturday double header starting at noon.

Box Score

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