BREVARD, N.C. — Averett University baseball got its bats going in a 9-7 win over Brevard College in Game 1 of its non-conference doubleheader on Saturday. The Tornados bounced back for a 10-2 win in Game 2 to earn a split.
In the opener, Averett (2-9) grabbed a 1-0 lead on senior
Nate Tuck's RBI single in the second. Brevard (8-5) answered right back with a pair of solo homers in the bottom half of the inning to go in front 2-1. Yet, Averett tied it in the top of the third on freshman
Preston Robbins' RBI single and then took the lead when senior
Brandon Hatcher scored on a wild pitch later in the inning.
Up 3-2, Averett tacked on two more runs in the fourth as junior
Nolan Maccabe delivered an RBI double down the right field line and Hatcher put an RBI single through the right side to increase the Cougars' lead to 5-2. Brevard, however, tied it in the bottom half of the fourth with an RBI double and a two-run home run.
Averett's bats continued to heat up in the top of the sixth as sophomore
Brandt Brophy and Robbins both hit two-run home runs for their first career blasts as the Cougars surged back ahead 9-5. Those home runs proved to be valuable as Brevard scored a run in the sixth and seventh innings to close the gap before the Cougars held on.
Averett's offense had 10 hits in Game 1, with Hatcher, Robbins, Tuck and Brophy each accounting for two. Senior right-hander
Avery Spicer (2-2) earned the win, while sophomore
Shane Michel pitched the final 1.1 innings to earn his first career save.
In Game 2, Brevard went in front 1-0 on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second inning before Averett tied it 1-1 in the next half inning on Spicer's RBI infield single.
The game changed in the bottom of the fourth as Brevard hit a pair of two-run homers as part of a six-run inning for the Tornados. Averett tried to respond in the fifth, getting an RBI single by freshman
Kevin Zischke. Brevard held Averett off the scoreboard the rest of the way while adding three more runs in the sixth to pull away.
Spicer finished 3-for-4 in Game 2 and Zischke had two hits for the Cougars.
Game 3 of the series is set for Sunday.
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