JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – John Sharpe hit a two-out game-winning home run in game one to lead Carson-Newman to a 6-5 win over Catawba before falling 9-3 in the second game Friday afternoon at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex.
In both games, Carson-Newman (14-7) was outhit by Catawba (9-14, 5-3) in each game and by 23-13 margin overall on the day. The Eagles have a chance to win a series against the Indians for the first time since 2015.
After not hitting a home run through his first 69 at-bats in a C-N uniform, Sharpe hit a pair in five ABs tallying three hits and four RBIs on the day.
Game One: CARSON-NEWMAN 6, Catawba 5
Kyle Smith drew a walk to open the contest and was at third base after a double to right field by Chance Bowden. On the first pitch of his at-bat, Luke Setzer singled into center field to score Smith and give the Indians a 1-0 advantage.
On a 1-2 offering to start the second stanza, Heath Mitchem launched a home run to right center to make it a 2-0 contest.
Ethan Goforth (Blacksburg, Va.) started the bottom half of the second with a bunt single to third, stole second and advanced to third on a ground out. John Sharpe (Franklin, Tenn.) hit a sacrifice fly to center field to pull the Eagles within a run at 2-1 to start a string of six straight half innings where a team scored.
Back-to-back base hits from Brendan Campbell (Yardley, Pa.) and Sharpe ignited the bottom of the fifth frame for C-N. Colby Morgan (Hixson, Tenn.) ripped a single to left to tie the outing at two.
The two sides traded long balls in the sixth as Luke Setzer deposited a 0-2 offering over the left-field wall to put Catawba back on top 3-2. Cade Snapp (Seymour, Tenn.) had the answer for the Eagles launching a two-out roundtripper to left to tie it at three.
With two on and two outs in the top of the seventh, Bowden ripped a 1-1 pitch into center field to score a pair and give Catawba a two-run lead.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, C-N once again produced with two outs as Cal Smith (Kellar, Texas) lined a base knock into left field to score Campbell and cut the deficit to 5-4.
The first two men were retired in the bottom of the eighth before Kilian Daughtry (Simpsonville, S.C.) drew a pinch-hit walk on four pitches. On the next pitch, Sharpe cranked his first home run in a C-N uniform over the 20-foot high wall in left-center field to give the Eagles the edge at 6-5.
In the top of the ninth, Catawba put two men on with one out. Will Gardner (Morristown, Tenn.) induced a fly out to center and a game-ending fielder's choice to seal the victory for the Eagles.
Greg Valentine (Knoxville, Tenn.) allowed two hits while recording four outs to earn his sixth win of the season. Gardner allowed a walk and hit in his inning of work.
Game Two: CATAWBA 9, Carson-Newman 3
Setzer started the scoring in the top of the first inning with a home run to left-center field. In the second, Jackson Raper drove in a pair with two men down to push the bulge to 4-0.
C-N began a comeback in the bottom of the second stanza as Sharpe uncorked his second long ball of the day over the left field wall.
A single and a throwing error brought home Brett Langhorne (Mechiancsville, Va.) in the third inning. Snapp hit a base hit into left field to pull the Eagles within a run at 4-3.
It would be the last time C-N scored as Catawba scored five straight runs with two in the fourth and three more in the fifth.
Six players had multi-hit games for Catawba as Raper drove in three with Setzer and Jacob Nester registering a pair of RBIs.
The Eagles used seven hurlers in the game as Kyle Cagle (Fairview, N.C.) lasted an inning giving up four runs, two earned, on five hits.
After Hunter Shepherd last two innings, D.J. Laxton and Connor Johnson combined to yield two hits in the final five frame to earn the win and save respectively.
The two teams will lace it up in the rubber game on Saturday at noon from the SDBC. Broadcast coverage with audio and video channels will be available on cneagles.com/live starting at 11:50 a.m.
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