Eagles Look for Series Win After Dropping Thursday Finale
By Mike DeVader, Reinhardt Director of Athletic Communications & Media
CLEVELAND, Ga. – The Eagles and Bears of Truett McConnell (Ga.) split a Thursday doubleheader on the diamond after No. 25 Reinhardt took the opener, 8-3, before being blanked in game two by the score of 6-0.
With the 1-1 day, the hometown team hit the 30-plus-win plateau at 30-17.
"We did some things well today that we haven't been able to do in a few games," head coach Jonathan Burton said. "Their game-two guy was very good, and he kept us off balance all night.
"Big day tomorrow as we still have a chance to finish runner-up in this league after a tough couple of weeks. Our team will respond and be ready to go."
Ethan Foley threw a gem from the mound in the opener after he shut down the hosts with eight innings of work and allowed just six hits (two earned runs) and gathered three strikeouts. He got run support from his teammates beginning in fifth following a 3-run double down the right-field line from Nick Sanders for a 3-0 advantage.
The contest was then blown open in the seventh after two players scored on a wild throw, and then that was followed up by a 2-RBI single by Dalton Turnbow.
The Bears broke their scoreless streak in the bottom of the eighth after trailing 7-0 and put up two tallies on a groundout and a single to shortstop. Keven Jimenez singled and got one of the runs back to make it 8-2 in the ninth, but a Truett McConnell blast ended the contest with a five-run spread.
The hosts gave up just three hits in game two and needed only two frames to put the game away – the fourth and fifth – as the Bears notched two and four tallies, respectively.
Truett McConnell would essentially win the contest in the bottom of the fourth on a solo shot to left for a 1-0 lead, which was doubled just a couple plays later on a single. In the fifth, and with one swing of the bat, the Eagles fell behind, 6-0, after a grand slam put the matchup to bed.
Daniel Dolensky got the loss after throwing 4.1 innings (three earned runs) and striking out four.
The team looks to finish the regular season with a series win tomorrow evening at 5 p.m.
For up-to-the-minute Eagles sports news, follow Reinhardt Athletics on Facebook, @RU_Eagles on Twitter and @ru_eagles on Instagram.
For more information on Reinhardt Baseball, please click here.