VIDEO: Mitchell Balint Interview
HARROGATE, Tenn. – Carson-Newman cranked two home runs and the pitching staff recorded 10 strikeouts to seal a game one 6-5 victory in South Atlantic Conference action over Lincoln Memorial on Saturday at the Silver Diamond Baseball Complex.
"The conditions you would think today would be a double-digit game for somebody," Carson-Newman coach Tom Griffin said. "Credit to both pitchers for competing and making pitches the way they did. I am really happy for Noah. He gave us everything. He was completely out of gas basically pitching on mindset and intestinal fortitude. Hughes was good in relief. I'm so happy for Tyler Shaver. He's had his struggles but he was tremendous today in a really big moment."
Griffin's group has won eight of the last 10 against the Railsplitters improving to 6-1 when the team wears the white pinstripe uniforms. Carson-Newman (17-15, 9-4) has beaten Lincoln Memorial (19-11, 6-7) in three straight meetings.
The Eagles pierced the scoreboard first getting three straight singles in the second inning to start the frame with a line smash up the box by Ryan Potts (Dandridge, Tenn.) plating the first run. Following a sacrifice bunt, Will Gibbs (Harrisburg, Ill.) lunged at pitch with one hand on the bat getting the bunt down to execute a perfect squeeze bunt and push the margin to 2-0.
With two outs and no one on base in the third, Mitchell Balint (Avondale, Pa.) launched a 0-1 offering over the left-field fence. Three pitches later Nelson Smith (Goodlettsville, Tenn.) laced a hustle double to left field. LMU's left fielder hurled a ball past the second base bag all the way up the hill in foul ground first base side to allow Smith to hustle in and push the lead to 4-0.
The Railsplitters sliced the margin in half in the top of the fifth trimming it to 4-2. After a walk, Cameron Bowen curled a 2-2 pitch down the left-field line over the wall for his third homer of the season.
After a lead-off single in the fifth, Balint banged the next offering well out of the park to left-center field for his second homer of the day to get the lead back to four runs at 6-2.
In the top of the sixth, LMU got a run back on a two-out single into center field before loading the bases. Tyler Boyd struck out swinging to end the threat and keep the margin at three, 6-3.
After the first two men were retired in the eighth inning, Bowen drew a walk. Ryan Kurth roasted a ball into the right-field corner to score Bowen but was thrown out going to third base to keep the score at 6-4.
The first two LMU batters drew walks in the ninth before a fielder's choice retired the runner at third base. Carson Boles singled to load the bases before a sacrifice fly from Andrew Keene made it a one-run game. Tyler Shaver (Dandridge, Tenn.) rifled a fastball by Kasten Harvey to clinch the team's fourth one-run win of the year.
Noah Pridmore (Ootlewah, Tenn.) threw at least five frames for the fifth straight start logging 5 2/3 innings allowing three earned runs on six hits and two walks fanning six batters to earn his fourth win of the season.
Balint tallied his first multi-homer game of the year driving in three while Denten added two hits and Smith was on base four times with two hits.
"To be honest with you [my mindset] has changed over the past couple days," Balint said. "I've been thinking a lot and the King game it wasn't clicking for me. James at first base told me to go up there and don't think about anything. Just go up there and hit the ball hard. That's what I did today."
Patrick Queener entered the game second in the league in ERA and had given up 11 runs all year before giving up six runs over seven innings on a career-high nine hits with six punch outs.
Boles finished the day going 4-for-5 while Bowen added a 2-for-3 line with three RBIs and two runs scored. The teams combined to go 3-for-19 with runners in scoring position in the game.
The two clubs wrap up the series on Sunday with a doubleheader starting at noon. Both games are available on FloSports with a paid subscription and with an audio-only stream on cneagles.com/live.
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