BIRMINGHAM, Ala.—The 14th-ranked Birmingham-Southern baseball team opened its Southern Athletic Association schedule this weekend with a three-game sweep of Oglethorpe, culminating in a 9-0 win this afternoon at Striplin Field.

The Panthers moved to 8-0 overall and 3-0 in the SAA, while the Stormy Petrels fell to 4-5 overall and 0-3 in the league.

The game was a scoreless three-hit affair until the bottom of the fourth. Junior Taylor McCracken led off with a single, then stole second and third. With two outs on the board, sophomore Sam Roberts walked and stole second to put runners on second and third. Sophomore Jack Rhodes then singled through the right side, scoring both runners before he was thrown out at second to end the inning.

The Panthers scored twice more in the home half of the fifth on an RBI double by freshman Ross Anderson and a McCracken sac-fly, and BSC added three more runs in the bottom of the sixth. Anderson was walked with the bases loaded, and junior Matt Brown singled, also with the bases loaded, to plate Rhodes and Roberts, putting the Panthers up 7-0.

The last two runs of the game came in the bottom of the eighth, courtesy of RBIs from seniors David Bourbonnais and Casey Lambert.

Brown was 3-4 at the plate to lead BSC's nine-hit effort. Brown, Rhodes, and Anderson posted a game-high two RBIs apiece.

Senior Paul Caudill (2-0) started for the Panthers and went six innings, giving up two hits and two walks with six strikeouts. Junior Wilson Jamison, sophomore Stephen Himic, and junior Kyle Royalty took care of the final three innings.

BSC travels to Atlanta this Tuesday, March 3, to face No. 3 Emory before continuing conference play next weekend with a series against Centre in Danville, Ky.