JACKSON, Tenn. – The Union University baseball team’s record moved to 10-14 overall (5-9 GSC) after splitting with Shorter University on Saturday.
In the first game, the Bulldog’s Sam Poindexter took the mound and gave Union five innings of four-run ball (three runs earned). Poindexter gave up five hits and struck out three on his way to his first win of the year. Ryan Evans came in to relieve Union in the sixth inning, Evans tossed three innings of scoreless baseball to close out any opportunity for the Hawks to get back in the game. Evans struck out one Shorter batter during his relief outing. Jamal Allen threw a clean ninth inning to secure his second save of the year.
Offensively for the Bulldogs, Grant Ross had a monster day at the plate. Ross homered twice in the first game, collecting five runs batted in and two runs to help power the Bulldogs over Shorter. Alec Hardy, Elijah Ramsey, and Carson Chavies all collected a hit in game one of the Saturday doubleheader.
In the second game of the double header, Eli Snelson (2-3) took the bump for the Bulldogs. Snelson struck out five in his five innings of three-run baseball. Snelson received a no-decision in the outing.
Shorter struck first in the third inning, scoring two runs and then tacking on a third in the fourth inning. Union rallied back to cut the deficit to one in the bottom of the fourth inning, courtesy of a Canyon Pace single up the middle. The Hawks answered in the top of the sixth with a solo homer off the bat of Griffin Clar. Clar then tacked on an insurance run for the Hawks in the sixth inning, giving Shorter a 5-2 advantage.
Shorter did not stop there, Alex Brodie brought in Jacob Pajer to give Shorter a 6-2 lead heading into the bottom half of the sixth inning. Union’s Pace hit a two-run, opposite blast to bring Union back within two in the bottom half of the second inning, Union trailed 6-4 after six innings. Elijah Ramsey then hit a hard ground ball, booted by the Shorter shortstop to knot the game up at 6-6. Alec Hardy successfully executed a hit and run to put runners at the corner with one out. Mitch Sisk came up to the plate with the bases loaded following an intentional walk of Grant Ross. Sisk single to give the Bulldogs their first lead of the game 7-6.
Shorter tied the game in the top of the seventh inning on a Logan Stockt sacrifice fly to centerfield. The Hawks then retook the lead on a wild pitch, the Hawks would win 8-7 in a nail-biting defeat.
Union will finish up the series with Shorter tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. General admission is free courtesy of FirstBank.
