Forest City, N.C.----Mars Hill College senior pitcher
Justin Hall (Martinsville, Va.) fired a complete game shutout to lift the second-seeded Lions to a 4-0 victory over top-seeded Wingate University in the second round of the Food Lion South Atlantic Conference baseball tournament on Friday afternoon at McNair Field.
With the win, Mars Hill (28-16 overall) advances to play the loser of number three Catawba and number five Tusculum on Saturday at 3:45 p.m. with a Lincoln Memorial win over Carson-Newman. If the Railsplitters lose, the Lions will face Carson-Newman on Saturday at 3:45 p.m. Wingate (28-19 overall) is eliminated with the loss.
A second team All-SAC selection, Hall (6-2 overall) allowed four hits and fanned six in nine innings of work. On offense, the Lions collected six hits on the day.
Rusty Smith (Leesburg, Va.) went two-for-four, including a double, and drove in two runs to lead the way, while
Kris Torrance (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.) contributed a solo home run.
Bulldog starting hurler
Chris Nelson (Greenville, N.C.) was tagged with the loss, despite the fact he carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning. Nelson (4-1 overall) surrendered three hits and two runs in seven innings of work Saturday. He also had four walks and six strikeouts. Wingate tallied four hits, including a double from
Casey Allison (Horse Shoe, N.C.).
Mars Hill broke a scoreless tie in the sixth.
Michael Bueker (Cooper City, Fla.) produced an infield single to get things started and later scored on a Smith double down the right field line to give the Lions a 1-0 lead.
Torrance delivered a solo blast to right field in the seventh to give Mars Hill a 2-0 advantage. The Lions added a pair of insurance runs in the eight, as Smith came through with a run-scoring single. Smith later scored on a wild pitch to give Mars Hill a 4-0 cushion. Hall then retired the side in the ninth to seal the win.