DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University baseball started its 2026 season in triumphant fashion with an Opening Day sweep of Hood College.
Averett (2-0) kicked off the new year as well as the Cougars could hope for, with a walkoff win over Hood (0-2) in Game 1 and a wire-to-wire victory in Game 2.
The Blazers' pitching staff hurled a gem for the majority of the first game. Hood kept Averett off the scoreboard, and out of the hit column entirely, until the eighth inning of Game 1. Senior
Luke Keister broke the ice for the Cougars as he stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the eighth. Averett's shortstop turned on a pitch and lifted a single into left field to get the offense rolling. Junior
Maddox Jordan followed suit with a single of his own and junior
Drew Skinner delivered the blow that drew Averett level with hood; a two-out two-run double to deep left field to drive both Keister and Jordan across the plate. The Cougars and the Blazers headed into the ninth inning all square at 2-2.
Sophomore
Cade Sabin took the mound in the top of the ninth, and a leadoff single alongside a stolen base from Hood forced the second-year righty to work his way out of a jam in order to keep the score level. Sabin induced a pair of ground balls, culminated by a brilliant double play orchestrated by Keister, setting the scene for heroics in the bottom of the ninth.
Sophomore
Daniel Powell Jr. led off the inning and worked his way on base with a walk to force a choice from head coach
Billy McLaughlin in his first game in charge of the Cougars. McLaughlin decided to pull some strings, putting freshman
Vaughan Mayo in to pinch run, and tapping sophomore
Nathan Michalowicz as the pinch hitter. Putting two speedy players on the field lined the Cougars up perfectly for a sacrifice bunt to be laid down, but Averett had other plans. Michalowicz had the green light to swing away and delivered in a big way, smoking a double down the left field line. Mayo got a great read from first base, breaking into a mad dash for home as soon as the ball left the bat. As Mayo beat the throw home, the Cougars surged out of the dugout towards the outfield behind second base, where Michalowicz was quickly swarmed by his teammates as celebrations erupted.
Averett dealt with no walkoff hangover whatsoever, as the Cougars bats stayed hot in the seven-inning second game. Keister singled from his spot at the top of the order, senior
Austin Ford walked, Skinner walked, and junior
Tyler Lowe singled into center field to score Averett's first runs of Game 2. Senior
Mitchel Gaskins added a single as well and Averett finished the first inning with a 3-1 advantage.
The bats stayed hot in the second as Ford and Jordan each batted in a run to swell the lead out to 5-1. Ford added another double in his fourth inning plate appearance, senior
Connor Kubis singled in the fifth to drive in a run, and Lowe capped off the Cougars' scoring efforts with a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning. The offense that woke up slowly in Game 1 piled up eight runs of support for the pitching staff to work with in Game 2.
Sophomore
Corbin Mickle turned in a quality start, going five innings while allowing just one run and adding three strikeouts en route to earning the win. Sophomore
Ean Amerson hurled a scoreless inning of work, and freshman
Jason Perkins and junior
Jack Turner combined to close out the game as Turner earned the save.
Looking back at the Game 1 stats, junior
Joshua Gunn turned in a solid outing in his first appearance on the mound for Averett. Gunn pitched four innings of one run ball, adding five strikeouts to his tally along the way. Junior
Will Green II, senior
Michael Pellegrino, freshman
Justin Godsey, sophomore
Preston Corbitt, and Sabin combined to hold Hood to just one run over the final five innings of play.
Lowe led the Cougars with three runs batted in across the two-game slate, while Ford and Skinner each contributed two RBIs. Maddox and Keister filled up the stat sheet with three hits each, and the walkoff-hero Michalowicz accounted for the Cougars lone stolen base of the day.
Inclement weather has scrapped the previously scheduled Sunday matinee between Averett and Hood, so the Cougars attention turns to Carolina University. Averett is set to square off with the Bruins on Tuesday, Feb. 17, at 3 p.m. for the season's first road swing.
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