March 11, 2008

                Mt. Berry, GA—Once again it was a tale of two completely opposite games for the Lions on Tuesday as Bryan was defeated 18-4 in the lopsided first game of the twin-bill, before regrouping enough to defeat the host Vikings 8-4 in the night cap.

                Bryan got things going early, putting 2 runs on the scoreboard in the first frame. Ryan Henn led the game off with a double in the gap and singles by Michael Kent, Will Newman and Brad Starnes contributed to the pair of first inning runs. Jeremiah Peters started game 1 for the Lions, and threw well, but received no help from his defense as he surrendered 10 runs only 1 of which was earned in his 2 innings of work.  For the Vikings it was Freshman 3B Mitch Terry who swung the hot bat, blasting a 3-run homerun in the 6 run second inning and again delivering a big blow with a 2 run triple in the Viking’s 6 run 4^th inning.

                Bryan managed only 5 hits over the next 4 innings, but could push only 2 more runs across. Never willing to quit, the Lions pushed 2 runs across in the top of the 5^th inning, but were unable to keep the rally going, and the game ended in the 5^th inning due to the mercy rule. Jeremiah Peters was the hard-luck loser, with a final line of 10 runs (1 Earned) on 6 hits over 2 innings of work. For Bryan, Henn, Newman and Junior 1B Matt Hicks had 2 hits apiece in the losing effort, with Newman driving in 2 of the Lions’ 4 runs.

                Bryan new Game 2 would be a test of their heart, and it seemed a test the Lions were ready for. Taking advantage of Viking Starter Jason Dorcey’s control problems in the early going, the Lions posted 4 runs in the first frame to take the early lead. Dorcey didn’t retire a single Bryan hitter, surrendering 4 runs on 2 hits and 4 walks before his early departure. Scott Pollock came on in relief of Dorcey and ended the 1^st inning threat, but Bryan tacked on another run in the 2^nd and another in the 4^th to take a 6-3 advantage.

                On the hill for the Lions was junior left-hander Daniel Bosarge. Having graduated from Rome High School, just down the road from the Berry campus, Bosarge was tremendous for Bryan, allowing just 2 earned runs and scattering 8 hits over 6 1/3 innings of work. Mark Barnwell came on to record the final 2 outs for the win. Bryan pushed 2 more insurance runs across in the top of the 7^th to extend their lead to 8-4, setting the table for Barnwell to close the door on the Vikings. As in game 1, Newman and Henn had the hot sticks for Bryan as Newman drove in 2 runs and Henn had a 2-for-4 performance at the plate while scoring twice. Brad Starnes was 3-for-5 at the plate and Matt Hicks was 2-for 3, capping off his 4 hit day.

                Bryan Head Coach Joel Johnson was proud of his team’s resiliency: “We really were bad in game one, and I was frustrated with our approach in all aspects of the game. It says a lot about our upperclassmen to flush that game from their minds and come out and score early and often in game 2. Will Newman and Matt Hicks had some big hits for us tonight, as did Brad Starnes. It was nice to see (Daniel) Bosarge throw well in front of his family and friends, but more importantly we needed a big performance out of him and he delivered. This is two splits in two days against quality opponents, which shows that we’re heading in the right direction. We need to start winning both ends of a doubleheader, but Berry is a quality opponent and while we’re not satisfied with a split, I’m proud of the way we battled tonight.”

                The split places Bryan at 10-13 as they head to Montreat, NC to take on the Cavaliers this weekend in an AAC twin-bill. First pitch will be thrown at 1PM. The Cavaliers are currently 18-7 and 3-1 in the Appalachian Athletic Conference.