GREENWOOD, S.C. | Lander University scored four runs in the fifth to break up a tie game as the Bearcats defeated Georgia College & State University 8-2 in the bracket final of the Peach Belt Conference Baseball Tournament Sunday (May 4) afternoon at Dolny Stadium.
The No. 2-seed Bearcats improved to 40-13 and will advance to the PBC Championship Series that starts Thursday (May 8). The No. 3-seed Bobcats ended their season at 30-24.
Connor Droze and Garrett Chun each had RBI hits in the first as Lander took a 2-0 lead, but the Bobcats tied the game at 2 with a run in the second and third innings.
Hank Noonan added an RBI single through the left side in the second and
Carson Phillips had a third inning run-scoring single an inning later.
The Bearcats broke open the game with four runs to take a 6-2 lead in the fifth. Zach Cowart had a two-run double and Taichi Nakao added a sacrifice fly before a wild pitch scored another.
Grant Sherrod added a two-run home to right-center field in the eighth to close out the scoring for Lander.
Jake Beaver (0-2) took the loss for the Bobcats. Beaver struck out five in 4.1 innings.
Phillips, who led GCSU with nine hits in the tournament and was named to the All-PBC Tournament team, had three hits for the Bobcats, while
Braeden Smith and
Mitch Cowan had two hits apiece.
About GCSU AthleticsÂ
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.
