Kodak, Tenn.----The seventh-seeded Tusculum College Pioneers scored six runs in the top of the eighth inning Friday afternoon, rallying for a 7-2 victory over second-seeded Wingate University in South Atlantic Conference Tournament baseball action. The Pioneers improve to 25-25 overall and will face the winner of Friday night's Carson-Newman vs. LMU contest. The Bulldogs fall to 34-16 overall and will face Catawba Saturday at 12 p.m. in an elimination game.

Trey Hinton, Bryson Ford and Nate Montgomery each drove in two runs to lead the Tusculum offense. Colby Skeen went three-for-five with an RBI and a run scored for the Pioneers.

Sophomore infielder McCann Mellett (Charlotte, N.C.) drove in a pair of runs to lead the Wingate attack. Senior outfielder Trent Wynn (New Bern, N.C.) was two-for-four with a double, while senior infielder Brett Branton (Athens, Ga.) added a hit and a run scored.

Tusculum took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second on an RBI single from Ford.

Wingate took the lead with two runs in the third. Wynn started the inning with a double, while a walk and hit batsman loaded the bases. Mellett put the 'Dogs on top 2-1 with an RBI single.

That was all of the scoring until the eighth, when the Pioneers scored six times. Skeen's RBI double tied it, while Hinton's two-run single put TC on top 4-2. Ford followed with an RBI single, while a two-run single from Montgomery put the Pioneers on top by five.

Andrew Willis got the win, moving to 1-0. He tossed four shutout innings, striking out seven while allowing three hits. Senior right-hander Hunter Morgan (Summerfield, N.C.) took the loss, falling to 6-3. He allowed five runs on eight hits in seven innings of work, striking out four and walking one.