No. 25/22 Mountain Lions reel off 12 unanswered runs in 15-5 win over Carson-Newman

Photo by Steve Miller / YHC Athletics

Young Harris College reeled off 12 unanswered runs in the seventh and eighth innings as the Mountain Lions defeated Carson-Newman University 15-5 (8 innings) in a non-conference baseball game Wednesday (April 12) afternoon at Zell B. Miller Field.

YHC, which is ranked No. 25 in the Collegiate Baseball poll and No. 22 in the NCBWA poll, improved to 30-11. The Mountain Lions have won at least 30 games four times since joining the NCAA. The Eagles fell to 20-18. The Mountain Lions hit the road for a Peach Belt Conference weekend series against the University of South Carolina-Beaufort in Hardeeville, South Carolina. The three-game set begins Friday (April 14) at 6 p.m..

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE:

• The Mountain Lions took a 1-0 lead on Jeremy Begora's single back up the middle in the first.

• Carson-Newman retook the lead at 2-1 with two runs in the top of the third.

• Young Harris tied the game at 2 as Marco Colina was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third.

• The Mountain Lions tied the game at 3 in the fifth on Begora's solo homer to left field. It was his team-leading 12th long ball of the year.

• The Eagles reclaimed the lead at 5-3 on James Denton's two-run homer to left field in the top of the seventh.

• YHC erupted for seven runs in the bottom of the seventh to take a 10-5 lead. Colina had a bases-loaded walk and another run scored on a passed ball to knot the game at 5. Rome Wallace smacked a three-run homer to left-center field to give YHC the lead for good at 8-5. It was Wallace's fifth home run of 2023. James Basham drove in the final two runs with a single up the middle.

• The Mountain Lions added five more runs - four of them unearned - in the eighth. Drew Bray knocked in run on a fielder's choice, while Ethan Underwood ended the game with a two-run single down the left field line.

• Young Harris tallied 13 hits, including three from Begora and two each from Jarrett Ford and Bray.

• Matthew Pearce (1-0) earned the win with 1.2 innings of scoreless relief.