Hickory, N.C. – Carson-Newman first baseman Kyle Koeneman (Seymour, Tenn.) homered twice and had five RBIs as the Eagles' exploded for 18 hits in a 14-8 win in their South Atlantic Conference series opener on Friday night in Hickory, N.C.
Carson-Newman improves to 10-12 overall and 6-4 in SAC play, while Lenoir-Rhyne falls to 5-20 and 2-8 in league play.
Koeneman hit a three-run home run in the top of the second inning and the Eagles led by a 5-0 score before the Bears rallied to tie the game at five after four innings of play.
Each team plated a single run in the fifth inning before Koeneman highlighted a three-run sixth inning for the Eagles with his second home run of the night and seventh of the year, a two-run round-tripper.
Carson-Newman held a 10-6 lead before Lenoir-Rhyne junior shortstop Dalton Hall (Hickory, N.C.) hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to cut the margin to 10-8 but the Eagles put the contest away with a four-run ninth inning. Hall drove in a team-high three runs.
Zach Long (Jefferson City, Tenn.) added three hits and three runs batted in for the Eagles, who finished with 18 hits in the win. Long also had the game-winning RBI triple in the sixth for Carson-Newman.
Junior outfielder Rai Robinson (Kings Mountain, N.C.) and freshman third baseman Mike Mastroberti (Ramsey, N.J.) each drove in a run for the Bears despite the loss.
On the mound, Carson-Newman's Daniel Sharp (Johnson City, Tenn.) improved to 1-1 with the win while Ryan Fillers (Greeneville, Tenn.) earned his third save of the season.
For L-R, junior Christian Hicks (Charlotte, N.C.) (1-2) suffered the loss.
Both the 14 runs and 18 hits were season highs for the Eagles.
Koeneman finished 3-for-5 and reached four times. He was intentionally walked in the eighth.
Senior Lance Rorex (Chattanooga, Tenn.) and sophomore Phillip Duncan (Knoxville, Tenn.) each had three hits for the Eagles. They helped the top five batters in the C-N lineup go 13-for-25 in the win.
Lenoir-Rhyne and Carson-Newman wrap up the conference weekend series on Saturday with a doubleheader at Bears Field beginning at 1:00 p.m.
