Asheboro, N.C.----The third-seeded Wingate University Bulldogs concluded their incredible run to a title by prevailing 9-1 over Lincoln Memorial University to claim the 2024 South Atlantic Conference baseball tournament championship. The 'Dogs swept the two-game championship series against the Railsplitters after winning four straight elimination games last weekend, improving to 33-23 overall. LMU falls to 33-17 on the season.

NOTES

- Eighth SAC Tournament title for the Bulldogs
- Second in the last four years and fourth since 2011
- The last tourney title came in 2021, when the 'Dogs captured the national championship
- Wingate also has seven regular season SAC titles, for 15 total league championships
- WU lost the first game of the SAC Tourney before reeling off six straight victories
- The Bulldogs piled up 60 runs on 81 hits in the six wins
- The victory gives Wingate the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament
- It will be the ninth appearance in the NCAA Tournament and third in the last four years
- WU won the national title in 2021, then hosted regionals in 2022
- Sean Barnett was named the tourney MVP
- He piled up 15 hits in the six wins with seven homers, two doubles and 16 RBI, scoring 10 runs
- Barnett was five-for-10 with three homers, eight RBI and four runs scored in the two games this weekend
- He now leads Division II with his 24 homers, while also driving in 82 runs on the year

KEY STATS

- Wingate out-hit LMU 12-4
- The Bulldogs had six of the seven extra-base hits with all four homers
- The Railsplitters left eight on base; the 'Dogs stranded seven
- WU pitching struck out nine and walked four; LMU had nine strikeouts and seven walks

KEY BULLDOGS

- Brett Adams went three-for-five with two homers and three RBI
- Barnett was two-for-five with a homer and three RBI
- Ricky Clark also homered, scoring a pair of runs
- Cam Harris added a double, RBI and two runs scored
- Jake Courville went two-for-three with a double, RBI and run scored
- Isaiah Williams-Rhem also had a pair of hits and scored a run
- Carson Morton went seven innings, allowing just one run on four hits, striking out seven
- Jonathan Velazquez struck out one in a scoreless inning of work
- Chad Harvey added a strikeout in a 1-2-3 ninth inning

FIRST INNING

- Williams-Rhem and Harris drew walks to start the game
- Barnett unloaded on a three-run bomb to left center to get the 'Dogs on the board
- Adams made it back-to-back blasts with a solo shot to right, giving WU a 4-0 lead

FOURTH INNING

- Clark connected on a solo homer to right in the fourth to put the 'Dogs on top by five

SEVENTH INNING

- Courville led off the frame with a walk, then moved to second on a Williams-Rhem sacrifice
- He scored on an RBI double from Harris to make it 6-0
- An RBI single from Adams plated Harris to extend the lead to seven

EIGHTH INNING

- Clark drew a leadoff walk, then moved to second on a Lane Rhodes sacrifice
- Courville ripped an RBI double to right to make it 8-0

NINTH INNING

- Adams put the finishing touches on the afternoon with another solo shot to center, making it 9-1
- Harvey worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning, striking out the final batter of the game

WRAPUP

- Morton got the win, moving to 4-3 on the year
- He worked through seven scoreless innings, then allowed a pair of walks to start the eighth
- The freshman allowed just one run on four hits while striking out seven and walking four
- The Railsplitters scored 31 runs in their three SAC Tourney wins last weekend, but could not get on track against Morton on Saturday
- After scoring three runs in the first inning of game one Friday, LMU scored just two runs over the final 17 frames
- Eli Edds took the loss, allowing six runs on seven hits in 6 1/3 innings of work

UP NEXT

- Wingate has locked up a bid to the NCAA Tournament
- The field will be announced Sunday, May 12 at 10:30 p.m. on NCAA.com