MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. | Lander University took a pair of ninth inning nailbiters as the Bearcats swept a Peach Belt Conference baseball doubleheader from No. 28 Georgia College & State University to spoil Senior Day Saturday (April 13) afternoon at John Kurtz Field.

The Bearcats scored twice in the ninth to take the opener 5-3 before claiming the nightcap 4-3 on a run in the ninth inning.

Lander improved to 31-11 overall and to 16-5 in the PBC, while the Bobcats fell to 24-16 and 14-7. GCSU returns to action Tuesday (April 16) with a 4 p.m. road contest against the University of West Georgia in Carrollton, Georgia.

Prior to the doubleheader, the Bobcats honored their four seniors - Jacob Ryan, Cam McNearney, AJ Mathis and Brandon Bellflower. 

Bellflower was also named the recipient of the John Kurtz Award, given to the best representative of GCSU baseball's senior class each year. It is the top honor Bobcat baseball can award.

GAME 1

With the game knotted at 3, Lander scored twice in the top of the ninth. With the bases loaded, Chandler Moeller drew a bases-loaded off GCSU reliever Lex Kenny (2-2) to give the Bearcats a 4-3 lead. Lander added an insurance run on a ground out by Oliver Zohn.

Bearcat reliever Tyler Overholt earned his eighth save of 2024 with a scoreless ninth.

Georgia College took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first as they scored a run on a balk and an Evan Cowan sacrifice fly.

Lander reclaimed lead at 3-2 with two runs in the fifth before the Bobcats tied the game at 3 in the bottom of the seventh on a wild pitch.

Gabriel Wuerth posted three of the five hits by the Bobcats, including a pair of doubles.

GAME 2

Logan Kobis' sacrifice fly in the ninth inning off GCSU reliever Owen Thomas (1-2) was the difference in the nightcap.

GCSU took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an Evan Cowan single to left-center field. Lander tied the game at 1 in the fourth before Wuerth scored on a balk in the fifth to give the Bobcats a 2-1 lead.

Lander tied it at 2 in the sixth inning before a Mitch Cowan RBI single through the right side in the bottom half of the frame to give GCSU a 3-2 advantage. The Bearcats would tied the game at 3 an inning later.

The Bobcats outhit the Bearcats 9-7 in the nightcap with Wuerth, Bellflower and Evan Cowan each recording two hits. Both of Bellflower's hits went for doubles.

About GCSU Athletics 
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among all public colleges and universities in Division II for three consecutive academic years, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won four consecutive Presidents' Awards for Academic Excellence, and are two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup and four-time winners of the PBC Institution of the Year Sportsmanship Award. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in postseason competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics embodies the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life." Sign up at @GCSUBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports or subscribe to the GSCU Athletics e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and to interact with GCSU Athletics.
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