GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — The Tusculum University baseball team rallied from a 4-0 deficit to defeat visiting King University 7-6 Tuesday at Pioneer Park.
The Pioneers (6-15) sweep the season series over the Tornado (4-19) and have won six in a row over their in-state foes from Bristol.
Tusculum used a six-run, second-inning and got solid relief performances from Aiden Tipton, Scout Martin and Mason Huffstickler.
The Tornado jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning thanks to a pair of hit batters, two walks and a Tusculum error. With King up 1-0 and the bases loaded with one out, Tipton took over and limited the damage. He got a pair of ground outs, bookending a bases-loaded walk as TU trailed 2-0.
In the top of the second with two outs, King’s Nathan Borchardt doubled off the right field wall and later scored on Levi Meford’s two-run blast to left field as the Tornado led 4-0.
In the Tusculum half of the second, the Pioneers sent 10 batters to plate against local product Carson Whaley who took over in relief to start the frame. Tusculum had two runners on board thanks to a hit batter and a walk with two outs. TU shortstop Caleb Webster got aboard with an error which scored a run as the Pioneers trailed 4-1. With runners at second and third, Ryan Ortega drew a walk to load the bases. Justin Millsaps came through with a two-run single as the Pioneers trailed by one at 4-3. Bhraedon Meredith took over for Whaley as he surrendered a two-run triple by Omar Carreras as the Pioneers led 5-4. A wild pitch allowed Carreras to score from third as Tusculum went up 6-4.
The Pioneers added a scoring tally in the third when Max Schmarder got aboard with a singled and later scored on Ryan Ortega‘s infield single as TU stretched its lead to 7-4.
Meanwhile, after giving up the home run to Medford, Tipton bounced back and retired six in a row before Jose Ruiz was hit by a pitch in the fourth inning, But Tipton would pick off Ruiz at first base to end the inning.
In the top of the fifth, Medford and Joey Armunategui drew back-to-back, one-out walks. Martin took over for Tipton as he hit Turner Stout with a pitch to load the bases. Michael Starrs legged out an infield single to drive in Medford as King trailed 7-5. But Martin ended the threat with a strikeout and a ground out to preserve the two-run lead.
King pitching kept the Tornado in the game as the quartet of Seed Allred, Jonathan Webster, Royal Philo and Cole Pletcher blanked the Pioneers for the final five innings.
King got runners on in each of the final three innings against Martin. In the seventh, Armunategui reached on a one-out error, but Tusculum turned an inning-ending double play. In the eighth with two outs, pinch-hitter Truman Roper got on with his seventh double of the season. But Martin ended the threat with a ground out. In the top of the ninth Martin retired the first two batters, but surrendered a homer to Medford, his second of the game and fifth of the year to trim the deficit to 7-6.
Tusculum reliever Mason Huffstickler took over and ended the game on the first pitch as he got Armunategui to fly out to center.
Tipton (1-0) went four innings, allowed two hits, three runs, three walks and one strikeout in his 61-pitch performance and record his first victory of the year. Martin went 4.1 innings, allowing one run on three hits, no walks and posted five strikeouts. For Huffstickler, it was his second save of the season.
Medford scored four runs, went 2-for-3 and posted three RBI. TU’s Caleb Mulchahy went 2-for-4 with a double, while Carreras and Millsaps each had two RBI.
With each recording hits on Tuesday, Webster and Schmarder increase their hitting streaks to 13 in a row. Schmarder has also reached base safely in 18 straight games while Millsaps and gotten aboard in 14 consecutive outings.
Tusculum returns to South Atlantic Conference play on Friday as the Pioneers host Anderson University for a 6 p.m. contest.
