Saturday, March 3, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Travis Jarome, Sports Information Director

NORTH GEORGIA UPSETS 24th-RANKED USC UPSTATE
Saints plate four in the bottom of the seventh in finale to capture sweep

DAHLONEGA, Ga. – North Georgia College & State University rallied for four runs in the bottom of the seventh inning of the second game on Saturday to complete the day one sweep of 24th-ranked USC Upstate in Peach Belt Conference action here Saturday afternoon.

Trailing 3-0 heading into the bottom of the last inning, the Saints began their rally when senior first baseman Creston Warner was hit in the arm by a 3-2 fastball by Spartans pitcher Teddy Fallon (0-1). He advanced to second when the next batter, Anders Oster, drew a walk to put runners at first and second. Freshman catcher Daniel Petitti kept the rally going, connecting for a single up the middle to load the bases with no outs in the last inning.

Freshman Craig Brisson stepped to the plate and promptly delivered an infield single to short to score Warner and keep the bases loaded with no outs, and the lead cut to 3-1. Another freshman, Andre Airich hit the ball to short for a routine double play until USC Upstate second baseman Kory Morian couldn't handle the throw, leading to a run scoring and the bases staying loaded for the heart of the Saints order.

Following a pop-up, freshman Kevin Morrison drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the score at 3-3 and set the stage for the improbable comback for the Saints. Freshman designated hitter Brad Hall found a crease against a drawn-in infield, hitting the ball between third and short and plating Brisson for the winning run.

The Saints had to battle back from the first inning in the finale on Saturday, as USC Upstate scored twice in the first on two walks, a single up the middle and a wild pitch. They also scored a single run in the top of the second on a walk, a groundout and a single by Eric Guillan.

Garrett Lussi (1-0) picked up the victory by working three innings of shutout relief. He allowed only one hit, one walk and struck out two batters. Fallon suffered the loss for Upstate, lasting just 1/3 of an inning, allowing four runs off of three hits, and walking two.

Petitti went 2-for-3 in the second game with a run scored, while five other Saints each picked up a hit.

In the first game of the day, North Georgia jumped on USC Upstate early and held on a for a 4-3 victory to capture their first Peach Belt victory of the season.

After plating a run in the first to go up 1-0, the Saints added two more runs in the third for the 3-0 lead. Brisson started the inning with a single, and was sacrificed to second by Airich (his second of the game). After Tate was hit by a pitch, both he and Brisson recorded stolen bases to put runners on second and third. After a walk to Justin Rickett, Morrison picked up two RBIs with a single up the middle.

North Georgia would an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth, a run that proved to be the winning run. After Morrison reached on a one-out double, Anders Oster drove him home with an RBI single.

USC Upstate would rally for three runs in the top of the ninth inning, beginning with a walk to Bret Story to start the inning. He advanced to second on a balk by reliever Jeff Cochran. After Kyle Simpson was hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second, North Georgia turned to Daniel Sarisky to try and close the game. The freshman got the first batter he faced, pinch-hitter Jimmy Tanner to groundout to push the runners to second and third with one out. Guillen singled to centerfield to plate Story to cut the deficit to 4-1. Following a walk to pinch-hitter Casey Rivers to load the bases, freshman Mike Peters became the third North Georgia pitcher of the inning. He allowed a sacrifice fly to Bradley Blanks to trim the lead to 4-2, before Guillen was driven home on an RBI single by Andrew Maddox. Peters collected his second save of the season when he got Bret Hansen to pop up to second for the final out.

Chris Curtis (3-2) picked up the victory by scattering three hits over seven innings. He struck out three and walked two in picking up the victory.

Scott Eckard (3-2) was tagged with the loss, going seven innings and allowing three runs off of six hits.

Guillen led the Spartans at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI.

Brisson was 2-for-4 in the first game, with two runs scored. Morrison also collected two hits in the first game.

North Georgia (7-9, 2-3 PBC) and USC Upstate (11-8, 2-5 PBC) play the third and final game of the series on Sunday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. at the NGCSU Baseball Complex.

-NGCSU-

Related Item: Box Score (Game One)
Related Item: Box Score (Game Two)

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