Harrogate, Tenn.----The Lincoln Memorial University Railsplitters handed visiting Wingate University its first loss of the season, prevailing 8-6 over the Bulldogs in South Atlantic Conference baseball action Friday evening. LMU improves to 2-4 overall and 1-0 in the SAC, while Wingate falls to 3-1 overall and 0-1 in the conference.
Kelvin Brito had a homer and three RBI to lead the LMU attack, while
Kyle Floyd was two-for-three with a triple, two RBI and a run scored.
Eric Kalman added an RBI and a run scored for the Railsplitters.
Senior infielder
Blake Prince (Winter Park, Fla.) had a homer and two RBI to lead the Wingate attack. Freshman
Bradley Brown (Rockingham, N.C.) was two-for-three with a double, two RBI and a run scored, while senior outfielder
Thomas Spitz (West Chester, Pa.) went three-for-five with a homer and two runs scored. Senior catcher
Josh Clark (Clemmons, N.C.) also homered for the Bulldogs, while sophomore
Colby Barnette (Monroe, N.C.) was two-for-five with a double and a run scored.
Wingate jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, connecting on back-to-back homers for the fourth time in as many games this season. Spitz started it with a solo shot to left, his third of the year. Clark followed with his second homer of the season, a solo shot to left center to put the 'Dogs on top by two.
Lincoln Memorial tied it in the bottom of the frame when Brito connected on a two-run homer, making it 2-2.
Brown started the second with a double, while a pair of hit batsman loaded the bases, but a double play helped LMU get out of the inning unscathed. Sacrifice flies from Brito and
Jonathan Lowe gave LMU a 4-2 lead in the third.
Wingate had the answer in the fifth, scoring four times to regain the lead. Barnette started the frame with a double, then went to third on a Spitz single. Brown tied the game with a two-out, two-run single. Prince followed with a two-run homer to left center to put Wingate on top 6-4.
Lincoln Memorial had the immediate response, scoring four runs to take a two-run lead. Kalman started it with an RBI single, while Floyd's two-out, two-run triple put the Railsplitters on top. Floyd scored on an RBI single from
Logan Augustine to make it 8-6.
Trailing by two in the ninth, Barnette started the frame with a single. After a pair of lineouts, back-to-back walks loaded the bases. LMU reliever
Ryan Burlison induced a game-ending groundout to give the Railsplitters the win.
Nick Morabito got the win for LMU, tossing four shutout innings, striking out four while allowing three hits. Junior right-hander
Tyler Brown (Suffolk, Va.) took the loss, falling to 1-1. He allowed seven runs on seven hits in 4 2/3 innings, striking out four and walking two. Burlison earned his second save of the year. Wingate sophomore right-hander
Brandon Donahue (Charlotte, N.C.) allowed just one run in 3 1/3 innings of work, striking out two without walking a batter.
The two teams are back in action Saturday, meeting for a doubleheader at 1 p.m.
