JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – Matt Coles set the table with 6 2/3 scoreless innings as Carson-Newman opened the 2022 season with a 5-0 shutout victory over Milligan on Tuesday at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex with three hurlers combining for the first Opening Day shutout since at least 1990.
"The key to the whole day today was pitching on both sides," Carson-Newman coach Tom Griffin said. "Their pitching was really good and got out of some jams. We had some opportunities early that I thought their starter did a good job on. Their 'pen all did solid jobs of throwing strikes and competing in the strike zone.
"Matt Coles and Matt Parkinson were really good today. It was a good job of both Matts mixing it up, breaking ball early, fastballs late. The ability to adjust a little bit. Sometimes that breaking ball is working. When it isn't you have to go to something else and you have to have that feel. Both of them did a great job of that. Defensively, we played a solid game."
Milligan (3-2) did not put a runner on third base in the game and only two men reached second. Matt Coles (Winter Garden, Fla.) fanned three and gave up three hits and one walk across 6 2/3 scoreless stanzas throwing 86 pitches. Each of his first 11 pitches were strikes.
"I just kept doing what I've been doing," Coles said. "We've been doing dress rehearsals and I went out there and the best I could, put balls in play, get weak contact and let the defense get out of it. I was able to command everything from the start. I was throwing curveballs and changeups in the zone and getting weak contact early in counts."
Carson-Newman (1-0) secured a win in a home opener for the 10th consecutive year improving to 15-2 under Griffin and 25-4 since joining the NCAA in home openers. The Eagles tallied a seventh straight win over the Buffaloes improving to 21-9-1 in the series.
Jake Wright (Ringgold, Ga.) and Hunter Harritan (Huntersville, N.C.) combined to throw 2 1/3 scoreless innings out of the bullpen fanning two and giving up two hits.
Six different Eagles recorded hits and three drove in runs with Micah Genter (Jasper, Tenn.) going 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored for the 26th multi-hit game of his career. Three of the team's hits came with runners in scoring position.
Carson-Newman opened the scoring in the bottom of the third inning putting the first two runners on base. After the next two were retired, Harrison Travis (Soddy Daisy, Tenn.) roped a ball over the glove of the center fielder and off of the wall to score two on a two-out triple and put the home crew ahead 2-0.
Genter added the lead with his second hit of the day flaring a ball into right-center field to bring in a run in the fourth and stretch the margin to 3-0.
With one out and a runner in scoring position in the sixth, Andrew Carpenter (Morristown, Tenn.) slashed a base hit down the right-field line for a run-scoring double. Two pitches later he stole third and came in to score on a throwing error by the catcher swelling the advantage to 5-0.
Only one of the five Milligan hits came with a runner on base with former Carson-Newman player Eric Rigsby leading the offense with a 2-for-3 day on the diamond. Jack Bembry took the loss throwing three innings giving up two earned runs on four hits while striking out three.
The Orange and Blue turn their sights to their first road trip of the season facing Alabama Huntsville for a three-game series starting on Friday at 2 p.m. from Charger Park.
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