MARYVILLE, Tenn. -- The Covenant baseball team could not hold on in extra-innings in a 10-9, 10-inning loss in game one, and then fell 6-1 in the series finale to Maryville on Friday night in Maryville.

Covenant (9-16, 7-8 USA South) scored three runs in the top of the 10th inning in game one, but a wild bottom of the inning saw Maryville (22-5, 7-5 USA South) rally and take the win. It is just the second time this season that Covenant has lost a USA South series.

GAME ONE: Maryville 10, Covenant 9 (10 innings)

Covenant scored three runs in the top of the 10th to take a 9-6 lead, but a crazy bottom of the 10th saw Maryville score four times and walk-off with the 10-9 win in Friday's first game.

In the top of the 10th, Covenant got to the Maryville bullpen and scored three runs on three hits. John Mitchell led off the inning with a pinch-hit single and moved to third after a sacrifice bunt and a Devin Cerrato single. After Caleb Bloye was intentionally walked to load the bases, Donny Lewis followed with a four-pitch walk to bring in Mitchell and give the Scots a 7-6 lead. Two batters later, Trenton Nobles delivered a two-out, two-run single that plated Bloye and Cerrato giving Covenant a 9-6 lead.

However, in the bottom of the 10th Maryville rallied for the win. Hayden Hollingsworth had an RBI single and Andrew Henry followed with a bunt single that drove in a run to draw Maryville within 9-8. With runners at the corners and nobody out, Maryville executed a double steal and Covenant's throw to home plate was wild and enabled Henry to score all the way from first on the play with the winning run.

Covenant had to rally multiple times earlier in the contest. Joel Johnson hit a two-run homer in the first inning, his fourth home run of the year, to give Covenant a 2-0 lead but the visiting Scots trailed 5-2 after two innings. Covenant got two runs back in the fifth on a Bloye two-run single to get within 5-4. In the eighth, Tyler Moore produced a two-run double that gave Covenant a 6-5 lead.

Maryville knotted the score at 6-6 in the home half of the eighth. Covenant had a chance to take the lead in the ninth as the Scots loaded the bases with one out, but Maryville reliever Jerod Dickey worked out of the jam as second baseman Hollingsworth made an standout play up the middle robbing Ken Alexander of a base hit to end the frame.

Covenant received tremendous work out of the bullpen from Jackson Heuer and Andrew Cline. Following Matt Reitz's start that lasted 1.1 innings, Heuer threw 3.2 scoreless innings and allowed just one hit. Cline came on for the next 2.2 innings and allowed one run on three hits. Adam Carver (2-2) was saddled with the loss.

Bloye went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and a run scored, while Moore finished 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs. 

Christian Poulsen made the start for Maryville and went 4.1 innings. Jacob Gossett (2-0) tossed the final 0.2 innings and got the win. Hollingsworth was 4-for-5 with an RBI and three runs scored.

GAME TWO: Maryville 6, Covenant 1

In the series finale, Maryville completed the sweep with a 6-1 victory behind strong starting pitching and timely hits.

Covenant mustered just three hits in the contest, a double from Cerrato and singles from Nobles and Moore, against Maryville starter Ricky Ward. Ward (3-0) went seven innings and allowed one run on three hits with seven strikeouts. Sam Joiner came on for the final two innings to collect the save.

Covenant's lone run came in the sixth inning. Cerrato led off with a double and scored on a CJ Edmond sacrifice fly that tied the game at 1-1.

Maryville scored twice in the bottom of the sixth, both runs coming across on wild pitches, to take a 3-1 lead. The host Scots scored three more times in the eighth to add cushion to the lead and secure the series sweep.

Taylor Bloye (3-3) went seven innings in his second start of the year and allowed two earned runs on six hits with seven strikeouts. 

Johnny Carpenter was 3-for-4 to lead Maryville offensively.

UP NEXT

Covenant will travel to Emory on Tuesday, March 27 for a single-game. First pitch is set for 3 p.m.

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