BREVARD, N.C. - The Brevard College baseball team (12-14, 7-2 USA South) moved into a tie for first place in the USA South Conference by taking two games and finishing off a sweep of defending USA South champion NC Wesleyan (5-18, 3-6 USAS) on Saturday afternoon at Gil Coan Field.
Brevard dominated game one, 12-3, and used an RBI single in the bottom of the eighth and held NCW off the scoreboard the top of the ninth to wrap up the sweep with a 5-4 game-three triumph.
The Tornados jumped out of the gates right away, as Hayden Jennings notched an RBI single before Cale Oehler roped an RBI double that gave BC an early 2-0 edge through the first inning.
Frankie Vasquez launched his 13th career home run and extended his hit streak to 19 games in the bottom of the third, as the Pembroke Pines, Florida senior's two-run shot doubled up BC's lead, 4-0.
NC Wesleyan trimmed the deficit in half with a two-RBI double in the top of the fourth, but BC answered right back with a surge in the bottom-half of the frame. Jennings launched a three-run homer, followed by an RBI double from Tyler Kelson. Nico Bartolotti put a cap on the six-run frame with a two-RBI single that lifted the Tornados to an eight-run edge, 10-2.
NCW scored one in the sixth, but Vasquez put the game on ice in the bottom of the eighth, putting the ball into play. A dropped fly ball resulted in two more Tornado runs, as Brevard clinched the series with a 12-3 victory.
Pyle went 3-for-5 with two runs scored, while Jennings and Oehler each totaled two hits apiece. Jennings drove in a team-best four runs, while Vasquez pushed three runs across.
BC starter Jordan Searcy (4-4) clinched his fourth win of the season on the mound, going five innings with seven hits and two runs allowed with four strikeouts. Aaron Burchett notched the save, hurling the final four innings surrendering just three hits and a run with a strikeout.
BC jumped out again in the first inning, as Oehler curled a double down the right-field line that scored two runs for Brevard. Hunter Busque tacked on a pair in the bottom of the third with a two-RBI single with the bases loaded, pushing Brevard's early edge to a 4-0 margin through three innings.
NCW started to chip away with a run in the fifth and another in the sixth off a double play, as the Battling Bishops trimmed the deficit in half, 4-2.
With two outs in the top of the seventh, NC Wesleyan came through with a two-RBI single that tied the contest all square at four.
NCW put two runners into scoring position with two away in the top of the eighth, but Andy Fahringer (1-1) recorded a strikeout to end the threat.
Brevard's offense came back to the dish for a pivotal bottom of the eighth. Bartolotti kicked things off with a leadoff double, followed by a Busque walk. Lucas Granata came through with an RBI single that put BC up by one, 5-4, but NCW stopped the bleeding there with three-straight strikeouts.
NCW put together a two-out rally in the top of the ninth, but a force out ended the game and clinched the sweep for the Tornados.
Granata went 3-for-4 with the game-winning RBI single. Jennings, Sawyer, and Vasquez all collected two hits apiece, as BC totaled 13 hits and eight different Tornados recorded base knocks.
Jacob Thompson got the start, going six innings allowing just one earned run while recording his 100th career strikeout. Fahringer nailed down the win with 2.1 scoreless innings of work.
The Tornados will gear up for a road test next weekend in Fayetteville, North Carolina against Methodist, beginning with a doubleheader next Saturday, April 5.
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