BUENA VISTA, Va. — Averett University baseball erupted for 14 runs Cougars pulled away for a big victory over Southern Virginia University on Thursday.
Averett (5-7) scored in five different innings and used three separate four-run frames to secure the road win over Southern Virginia (1-9). The Cougars finished with 13 hits while capitalizing on 18 free passes from the Knights pitchers.
Averett struck first with a four-run second inning. Redshirt sophomore
Teddy Hauser delivered a RBI single to open the scoring before Lowe added a RBI single later in the frame. Senior
Austin Ford and freshman
Julian Esparza each drew bases-loaded walks to extend the Cougars' early lead to 4-0.
Southern Virginia answered in the bottom of the third, tying the game at 4-4 before the Cougars quickly regained control in the fourth inning with another four-run outburst. Ford highlighted the inning with a RBI double before freshman
Vaughan Mayo added a RBI single and junior
Jack Turner drove in a run on a fielder's choice as Averett pushed the lead to 8-4.
After Southern Virginia trimmed the deficit to three in the sixth, Averett broke the game open in the seventh inning. RBI hits from junior
Oscar Rodriguez-Marin and Hauser combined with bases-loaded walks from Lowe and junior
Drew Skinner to produce four more runs and stretch the advantage to 12-5.
The Cougars added two more insurance runs in the ninth on a sacrifice fly from Ford and a RBI fielder's choice by freshman
Landon Mitchell.
Sophomore
Cade Sabin (2-1) earned the win in relief for Averett with a scoreless inning. The Cougars' pitching staff combined to allow five runs on seven hits while striking out seven across nine innings.
Junior
Tyler Lowe paced the Averett offense with a 4-for-6 performance that included two doubles, three runs scored and two RBIs. Hauser added three hits and two RBIs, while Ford drove in three runs and scored twice. Rodriguez-Marin chipped in two hits and two RBIs as part of the Cougars' balanced offensive effort.
Averett is back on the diamond to open conference play as the Cougars take on Hampden-Sydney College, with the first of a two-game series set to kick off at noon on Saturday, March 7.
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