DANVILLE, Va. – The Averett University baseball team dropped a 5-1 contest to Bridgewater College on Wednesday afternoon at Owen-Fulton Field.
 
Trailing by five entering its half of the ninth, Averett (1-1) appeared to be on the verge of a comeback. Sophomore Hunter Ashworth started things off with a one-out walk and senior Mike Moore followed with a single to left-center. After a pitching change by Bridgewater (1-0), senior Drew Evans stepped up and knocked an RBI double to center that scored Ashworth. However, Steven Woemer was able to get the final two outs to seal the victory for Bridgewater.
 
The Eagles got on the board first, using an RBI double by Cavin Clyde to take a 1-0 advantage in its half of the fourth inning. The Eagles looked poised to add more in the frame thanks to a walk that put runners on first and second base, but senior starter Kyle Walsh got Hunter Hensley to groundout to second to end the threat.
 
The Eagles tacked on another run in the top of the sixth thanks to a solo home run from Brendan Powell that gave Bridgewater a two-run advantage. Several batters later, Bridgewater padded their lead on an RBI single by Hunter Hensley that made the score 3-0. The Eagles had a chance to break the game wide open with runners on second and third, but Brandon Goff came on and got Dylan Horne to fly out to center to end the threat.
 
Bridgewater used a pair of runs in the top of the ninth to give them a 5-0 lead thanks to an RBI double from Ryan Leake and an RBI single from Kenner Berry.
 
Offensively, Evans paced the Cougars going 2-for-4, while Ashworth, Moore and sophomore Dallas Smithers all chipped in with a hit apiece.
 
Averett returns to action on Feb. 19 when it hosts Castleton University at 2 p.m. in the first of a three-game series at Owen-Fulton Field.