Forest City, N.C.----The fifth-seeded Wingate University Bulldogs piled up 18 hits and 17 runs Thursday afternoon, cruising to a 17-9 victory over eighth-seeded Carson-Newman on day one of the 2015 South Atlantic Conference baseball tournament at McNair Field. The Bulldogs improve to 27-20 overall, advancing to the double-elimination portion of the SAC Tournament. Carson-Newman is eliminated from the tournament, falling to 24-21.

SAC Freshman of the Year Bradley Brown (Rockingham, N.C.) was three-for-five with a double and five RBI to lead the Wingate attack. First team All-SAC outfielder Thomas Spitz (West Chester, Pa.) was three-for-four with two doubles, four RBI and two runs scored, while all-conference infielder Shane Billings (Kernersville, N.C.) went four-for-four with a double, homer, three RBI and five runs scored. Senior catcher Josh Clark (Clemmons, N.C.) drove in a pair of runs, while sophomore Colby Barnette (Monroe, N.C.) and senior Blake Prince (Winter Park, Fla.) each added an RBI and a run scored for the Bulldogs.

Wingate jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Spitz plated the first run with an RBI double, while Brown and Clark followed with RBI singles. Senior first baseman Brad Cherry (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) drove home the fourth run with an RBI groundout.

Billings drew a one-out walk in the second, then moved to second on a Michael Godinez (Cutler Bay, Fla.) single. Brown plated both with a two-run double to make it 6-0. Billings started the fourth with a double, then moved to third on another Godinez single. Both scored on a Spitz two-run double to put the 'Dogs on top by eight. Clark followed with an RBI single to make it 9-0.

Two walks and a single loaded the bases for the Bulldogs in the fifth. Spitz drew a bases-loaded walk, while Brown followed with a two-run single to make it 12-0.

Carson-Newman scored three times in the sixth to cut the lead to nine. Bryan Everhart started the rally with an RBI single, while and hit batsman and wild pitch made it 12-3.

A walk and a single put two on base for Billings in the bottom of the sixth. The sophomore connected on his ninth homer of the season, a three-run shot to left to make it 15-3. Barnette added an RBI double in the seventh, while an RBI groundout from Prince made it 17-3.

The Eagles scored six times in the ninth to make the final margin 17-9. Everhart connected on a two-run homer, while Brandon Roberts added a two-run triple for Carson-Newman.

Senior right-hander Brett Morgan (Clemmons, N.C.) got the win, moving to 6-3 on the year. He allowed three runs on three hits in 5 1/3 innings, striking out two and walking five. Jamie Miller took the loss, falling to 5-2. He allowed nine runs on 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings, striking out one and walking one.

With the victory, the Bulldogs advance to day two of the SAC Tournament. The rest of the tournament will be double-elimination. Wingate will face number two seed Newberry at 3:45 p.m. on Friday at McNair Field.