ATLANTA, Ga.– The University of Tennessee at Martin baseball team jumped out to a 2-0 lead but fell to Georgia State 9-3 in Game 1 of the weekend series at GSU Baseball Complex.
Brody Capps (second multi-hit game of the season, one walk, one RBI) and Jalen Fithian recorded doubles while TJ Grines (one stolen base, one walk, one RBI), Jordan Hudson (one walk), Arderrius Townsend (one walk), Blaze Bell (RBI single), Jonah Katsaboulas (single), Tommy Koch (two walks) and Garner Anderson (one walk) made contributions to the offense.
Brandon King (0-1) started the game going 2.2 innings pitched and was followed by Quincy Thornton (2.1 innings pitched), Quin Long (1.1 innings pitched, no hits, no earned runs) and Shawn Perez (1.2 innings pitched, no hits, no runs allowed).
Fithian rocketed a ball to right field to get the game started and scored when Grines reached first on an error by the first basemen. The speedy Grines proceeded to steal second and would score from there with a double by Capps. King left two runners stranded in the home half after his catcher Koch tossed out a would-be base stealer for the final out of the frame.
Georgia State (4-0) knotted the game up in the bottom of the second from a ground out and single to left field. The Panthers rattled off two more runs in the second and Thornton would make his UT Martin (2-2) debut by getting the final out of the third.
Quin Long entered the game for the Skyhawks in the sixth after Georgia State assumed a six-run advantage, inducing two flyouts with a groundout. Long got his first career punchout in the bottom of the seventh to conclude his day before Perez took to the mound. The Cutler Bay, Fla. native induced a double play groundball to conclude a scoreless seventh for UT Martin.
The top of the eighth saw the Skyhawks load the bases after three consecutive walks and Bell cashed in a run with a base hit to third. After a clean inning from Perez in the bottom half of the eighth, UT Martin got two runners on in the top of the ninth with no outs but was unable to cut in to the Georgia State lead.
The Skyhawks look to even up the series tomorrow at 1 p.m.
