DAHLONEGA, Ga. — The Carson-Newman baseball team dropped a 17-2 decision to 17th-ranked North Georgia on Tuesday afternoon at Bob Stein Stadium.

With the loss, the Eagles fall to 13-8 on the season, while the Saints improve to 16-7. The win gave North Georgia head coach Tom Cantrell his 600th career victory.

North Georgia starting pitcher James Wiley proved to be a difficult matchup for C-N. Wiley (3-0) earned the win after tossing a complete game and giving up two runs on eight hits. He also had two strikeouts on the day.

Sophomore Zach Long (Jefferson City, Tenn.) went 2-for-3 to lead the Eagles, while senior Jeff Lockwood (Knoxville, Tenn.) added a RBI double.

The Saints pounded out a season-high 19 hits on the day, including a 3-for-5 effort from sophomore Jordan Erisman. The Lawrenceville, Ga., native crushed two home runs and had seven RBIs to lead North Georgia.

Kenny Bellavance went 4-for-6, while Troy Snitker added three hits in the win.

The Saints pushed across a pair of runs in the bottom of the second inning off C-N starting hurler Robby Thigpen (St. Petersburg, Fla.) and they never relinquished the lead. Thigpen (1-3) was tagged with the loss after surrendering five runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings of work.

C-N trimmed North Georgia's lead to 2-1 in the fourth, but the Saints responded with four runs in the home half of the fourth and an eight-run outburst in the fifth inning to put the game out of reach.

The Eagles and Saints will play the final game of the two-game series Wednesday afternoon at Bob Stein Stadium. First pitch is set for 2 p.m.