BREVARD, N.C. - Freshman outfielder Tyler Kelson drove a RBI single inside the left field chalk to complete an exhilarating comeback for the Brevard College baseball team (10-14, 5-2 USA South), as the Tornados battled back from a five-run deficit in the ninth inning with a 9-8 victory over North Carolina Wesleyan (5-17, 3-4 USAS) on Friday afternoon at Gil Coan Field.
Hayden Jennings tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with a two-RBI single, sending the contest to extras as BC overcame a seemingly insurmountable five-run deficit in the final inning of regulation. The walk-off win also beat the setting sun, as the winner came just before daylight expired.
Hunter Busque and CP Pyle each logged three hits apiece, with Kelson and Frankie Vasquez also totaling multi-hit performances as the Tornados totaled 15 hits as a team.
Each side stranded a runner in the first frame, but neither scored a run. In the top of the second, NC Wesleyan loaded the bases up with two outs, and Quintana delivered with a hard-hit two-RBI single into center field that put the Battling Bishops up early. NCW added a run to its lead in the top of the third, driving in one on a sacrifice fly to extend its lead to a three-run margin.
Vasquez drove a two-out single to center to extend his lengthy hitting streak, but that was all the Tornados could muster off Marc DeNunzio in the bottom of the fourth. NCW added one in the top of the fifth, extending the inning on a Tornado fielding error and capitalizing with an RBI single.
BC put together a two-out rally in the bottom-half of the frame, as Busque reached on a dropped third strike wild pitch, Pyle singled to center, and Jennings walked to load the bases up. Logan Sawyer drove in the first run for BC on a bases-loaded walk that came on an 11-pitch at-bat, but the bases were stranded after that when DeNunzio forced Cale Oehler to pop up to second base.
NC Wesleyan led off the top of the sixth with a single and a walk, chasing Zack Wilson (2-1) out of the ballgame. The Battling Bishops scored twice, but Kaden Tuten stopped further damage with consecutive looking K's, stranding the bases loaded.
DeNunzio's day was through after the sixth, as the Tornados jumped on NCW's bullpen in the bottom of the seventh. Sawyer drove in two runs in the bottom of the seventh to cut the deficit to three runs. After Hatcher Bailey put up his second scoreless inning in a row, BC threatened further in the bottom of the eighth with Kelson's leadoff single and Busque's one-out double to put runners on second and third base.
Lucas Granata followed suit with a walk, loading the bases up. However, the potential Tornado rally was stifled as the Battling Bishops sat two-straight Tornados down swinging to send the contest to the ninth.
NC Wesleyan added to its lead late, scoring twice in the top of the ninth to push the edge to five runs, 8-3.
BC kicked its pivotal ninth-inning rally off when Oehler and Vasquez drew one-out walks. A wild pitch advanced the duo to second and third base, and Kelson hustled down to first on a dropped third strike wild pitch that loaded the bases up for the Tornados.
Nico Bartolotti reached a fielder's choice, driving in Oehler to cut the deficit to four, however, the Tornados were down to their final out. Busque came through with an RBI single to extend the inning. Following a pitching change, Granata was hit by a pitch to load the bases back up. Pyle then pushed a single through the left side of the infield, trimming the NCW lead to two runs.
Jennings came through for his first hit of the ballgame, drilling a two-RBI single to left-center field, bringing in Kyle Andrew and Christian Riley and tying things up at 8-8. Sawyer drew a walk on the next at-bat, loading the bases back up for Oehler. In his second plate appearance of the inning, the Concord, North Carolina native drilled a fly ball to the warning track that nearly got out, but a catch was made up against the wall, sending the game to extra innings.
After Matthew Evans (2-3) held the Battling Bishops off the scoreboard in the top of the 10th, Vasquez led off the bottom-half of the frame with a scorching double off the left-field wall. Jackson Mix pinch ran and advanced to third on a wild pitch ahead of Kelson's game-clinching RBI single down the line that completed the monumental comeback for the Tornados.
BC and NCW will finish the series on Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at noon at Gil Coan Field.
To follow the latest news and updates surrounding Brevard College Athletics, follow the Tornados on Twitter and Instagram @bctornados, subscribe to 'Brevard College Tornados' on YouTube, and follow 'Brevard College Athletics' on Facebook. In addition, follow 'brevardcollege' on Flickr for photos from Brevard College events.
-BC-