Milligan, Tennessee – Shawnee State baseball split their third doubleheader of the season on Tuesday afternoon, falling to Milligan (Tenn.) 7-5 in game one but rallying for a 7-5 win in game two.
The Bears would open the scoring with three runs in the top of the first inning. Seth Clement (FR/Kissimmee, Florida) would start the inning off with a walk and reach third on Dalton Phillips (JR/Hastings, Michigan)' double to right field. Clement would then score on Levi Jones (JR/Millersburg, Ohio)' single, and Phillips would score on the same play, as Andrew Stanifer's wild throw would allow him to score and for Jones to reach third. Casey Claflin (SR/Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio) then singled in Jones to put SSU up 3-0 through the first half inning.
Milligan would rally to tie the game in the bottom of the first. Garrett Dalton and Jascanel Ferreras would open the inning with back-to-back singles. Clayton Conner would be hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Brandon Laboy would drive in Dalton and Ferreras to cut the Shawnee State lead to 3-2. Juan Vazquez would drive in Conner two batters later to tie the score at 3-3.
Shawnee State would score in the top of the second to re-take the lead. Clement would single to open the frame, and after stealing second would score on a Phillips single to deep shortstop, giving Shawnee State a 4-3 lead. However, Andrew Stanifer would score on an error by Phillips in the bottom of the frame to tie the game back up.
Milligan would take the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. After SSU starter Sam Gerhold (SR/Shelton, Washington) loaded the bases with one out, Jesse James (SR/Grayson, Kentucky) would enter to pitch. James would hit Ryan Young, driving in Chris Patterson to give the Buffaloes a 5-4 lead. James would then hit Vazquez to force in Conner. Laboy would score on Thomas Miller's groundout one batter later to give Milligan a 7-4 lead. JT Boggs (SR/South Shore, Kentucky) would drive in Jones in the top of the seventh, but Shawnee State would not be able to cut the lead any closer and walk away 7-5 losers in game one.
Conor Cotton got the win in game one by throwing two innings of relief, allowing no runs and striking out three. Sam Gerhold took the loss for Shawnee State, allowing seven runs on seven hits in 4.1 innings. Jeffery Mefford got the save.
Chris Patterson's RBI single in the bottom of the third would open the scoring in game two, but Shawnee State would explode for six runs to take the lead in the top of the fourth. Phillips and Jones would open the inning with singles, and JT Boggs would walk to load the bases. Gerhold would then walk to drive in Phillips to tie the game. Jacob Littleton would replace Milligan starting pitcher Nathan Atkinson, but the rally would continue. Joseph Campos (FR/Orlando, Florida) would single in Jones and keep the bases loaded, and Alex Medina (JR/Miami, Florida) would drive in Boggs on a fielder's choice to make the score 3-1. Pinch hitter Danny McGuire (FR/Cleveland, Ohio) would walk to load the bases again, and Clement would double down the left field line to drive in Gerhold and pinch runner Anthony Nichols (JR/Fargo, North Dakota) to make the lead 5-1. McGuire would score on a passed ball with two outs for SSU's sixth and final run of the inning.
Milligan would score one in the bottom of the fourth, and a two-run homer from Clayton Conner would spark a three-run bottom of the fifth to cut the Shawnee State lead to 6-5. The Bears would get an insurance run in the top of the sixth on Christian Helton (JR/Lexington, Kentucky)'s RBI groundout, and from there SSU's bullpen would lock down for a 7-5 victory.
Zach Straley (FR/Uniontown, Ohio) picked up the win, allowing five runs on eight hits in six innings, striking out eight in the process. Nathan Atkinson picked up the loss, allowing four runs on three hits in three innings. Casey Claflin pitched a scoreless seventh to pick up his first save of the season.
The split moves Shawnee State to 3-3 on the season. Milligan moves to 4-5 on the year.
Shawnee State return to action on Saturday, February 24 when they play a doubleheader against William Penn at the Shawnee State Baseball Bonanza Classic in Kokomo, Indiana. First pitch of game one is set for 4:00pm.
