Buffs move to 2nd place after sweep of VI

MILLIGAN COLLEGE, TN (April 7, 2007) --- The Milligan College Buffs’ baseball team picked up two Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) wins against Virginia Intermont College on Saturday afternoon at Anglin Field. Milligan needed a late rally and extra innings for a 3-2 win in the first game and the Buffs completed the sweep with a 10-1 victory in the second contest.  

The wins improve Milligan’s AAC record to 10-2 and the Buffs move into second place in the conference standings behind No. 9 Tennessee Wesleyan College and their perfect 12-0 conference record.

Milligan now holds a 21-17 overall record while Virginia Intermont moves to 1-11 in the conference and 10-28-1 overall. 

Game 1 Milligan 3 Virginia Intermont 2 (10 Innings)

With the Buffs trailing 2-0, Virginia Intermont’s Josh Orrick got the first two outs of the ninth inning before Brandon Murphy (Johnson City, Tenn.) hit a single. Murphy’s courtesy runner, Drew Anders (Johnson City, Tenn.) advanced to second after Ricky Morgan (Johnson City, Tenn.) followed with a double. With the game-tying run at second base, Spencer Street (Jonesborough, Tenn.) delivered a two-run double to tie the contest and force extra innings.   

After Derek Koone (Winston-Salem, N.C.) threw a perfect tenth inning, Baker DeCamp (Miami, Fla.) was issued a lead-off walk to start the Buffs’ half of the inning. Garrett Reed (Gray, Tenn.) moved DeCamp over with a sacrifice bunt and Justin Sauceman (Alcoa, Tenn.) was hit by a pitch. Todd Sangid (Johnson City, Tenn.) reached safely after a Cobra fielding error to load the bases. Ben Huff (Bristol, Tenn.) followed with a ground ball to second and the Cobras were unable to turn the potential inning-ending double play as Huff beat out the throw to first and DeCamp scored the game-winning run on the play.

Virginia Intermont scored their two runs in the opening inning with back-to-back RBI singles from Josh Self and John Stearrett. Self drove in Shawn Wright while Stearrett’s single pushed home Chase Watkins.

Koone (3-2) earned the win in relief for the Buffs. He pitched two scoreless innings and only allowed one hit.

Brent Mullins suffered the loss on the mound as he recorded two outs in the tenth inning and allowed one run without a hit.

Street finished the first game 4-for-4 with three doubles and two important RBIs.

Milligan’s Brett Seybert (Columbiana, Ohio) threw eight-complete innings and only allowed the two unearned runs while he scattered seven hits with five strikeouts for a no decision in his start.

Game 2 Milligan 10 Virginia Intermont 1

Virginia Intermont once again struck again in the first inning when Self hit a RBI single to score Watkins for the Cobras’ only run of the game.

A Virginia Intermont error by Scott Stargardt on an attempted pick-off play at third base allowed Reed to score and tie the game 1-1. The go-ahead run was scored when Cody Cannon (Elizabethton, Tenn.) hit a sacrifice fly that allowed Sauceman to score and make the score 2-1.

Morgan hit his third home run of the season in the third inning, a three-run home run that extended the Milligan lead to 5-1. Street followed Morgan’s home run with a triple and then he scored on a single from Danny Bacon (St. Petersburg, Fla.) Bacon scored later on in the frame to put Milligan in front 7-1.

A pair of runs in the fifth and another in the sixth inning gave the Buffs enough of an advantage to hold on for the AAC victory.

Nathan Fritz (Kingsport, Tenn.) picked another win on the mound; he threw five innings and allowed one earned run on three hits. He also struck out five to improve his record to 6-2.

Street added a 3-for-4 performance, with a triple, two run scored and one RBI. Morgan also went 3-for-4, with three runs scored, three RBIs. His other two hits were doubles. Huff was 2-for-2 to go along with two walks while Sauceman was 2-for-3 with a double.

Milligan will host NCAA Division II foe Brevard (N.C.) College for a 5 p.m. doubleheader on Wednesday evening. In their first meeting of the season, Brevard won both games of a doubleheader, 6-1 and 2-1.