FEBRUARY 24– Junior shortstop
Zeke Gilbert (Douglasville, Ga.) accounted for nine runs in the Covenant Scot's 14-4 victory over the MUW Owls, driving in seven and scoring two.
The Scots fell behind early as the Owls scored four runs in the first two innings, with the Scots scoring just one unearned run in the bottom of the first.
However, the momentum soon began to shift after Scots sophomore left fielder
George Manera (Orange County, Ca.) doubled to left center and senior third baseman
Joseph Ridenour (Louisville, Tenn.) drew his first walk in the bottom of the third.
It was
Zeke Gilbert's second single of the game that knocked in Manera and Ridenour for the first two of his seven RBIs, the Scots now trailing just 4-3 after three innings.
Some big defensive plays for the Scots allowed Covenant to hold the Owls to zero runs in the fourth–Senior catcher
Harrison Adelgren (Spring Hill, Tenn.) showed off his cannon as he gunned out Baker Watson on an attempted steal to end the top of the inning.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Covenant bats got hot. After senior second baseman
Andrew Brock (Fort Oglethorpe, Ga.) reached on an error and junior DH
Wes Dusek (Wheaton, Ill.) singled,
George Manera knocked in Brock with his second hit of the game, knotting the score at 4-4.
Next up, senior center fielder
Kenny Mills (Stockbridge, Ga.) singled to left field, loading the bases for
Zeke Gilbert, who slugged his third single of the day to drive in Manera and Dusek, giving the Scots a 6-4 lead. Sophomore first baseman
Chris Savage (Burleson, Texas) then doubled down the left field line and drove in Gilbert and Mills, putting the Scots up 8-4 at the end of four innings.
In the top of the fifth, the Owls were retired 3-up, 3-down, with junior pitcher
Bryce Bollinger (Portland, Tenn.) striking out two batters.
Covenant batted around again in the bottom of the fifth, with
Andrew Brock leading off with a single to centerfield, eventually scoring on a fielder's choice by
Kenny Mills, making the score 9-4 Scots.
Joseph Ridenour followed Mills with a single, and up to the plate stepped
Zeke Gilbert, already 3-for-3 with 4 RBIs. Both Mills and Ridenour scored when Gilbert went yard over the left-center field fence with his first homerun of the season, giving the Scots a 12-4 lead.
Not to be outdone by his infield compadre (Gilbert), Covenant cleanup hitter
Chris Savage hit a frozen rope over the centerfield fence. With the Scots up 13-4, catcher Harrison
Adelgren knocked a triple to center field, eventually scoring on a single by junior right fielder
Chase McBryar (Chattanooga, Tenn.), and the Scots were up 14-4, which turned out to be the final score of this seven inning game.
Despite making two errors in the game, the Covenant defense shined in the top of the sixth inning when Chris initiated a rare 3-6-1 (Savage-Gilbert-Bollinger) double play.
After allowing four runs in the first two innings, Scots pitcher
Bryce Bollinger found his groove in the third and pitched five hitless innings with five strikeouts, notching his first complete game as a Scot and second victory of the season.
In addition to Gilbert's stellar 4-for-4 at the plate, every Scot had at least one base hit. Following Gilbert's seven RBIs, Savage knocked in three, while Mills, McBryar, and Manera each drove in a solo Scot.
Tyler Estabrook led the way for the Owls, going 2-for-3 with an RBI, while Tanner Evans was 1-for-3 with two RBIs. Starting pitcher Campbell McCluney went three innings and got the loss, striking out three and walking three.
UP NEXT
Covenant is back in action on Lookout Mountain on Tuesday, February 28 at 2:00 PM as they play No. 4 ranked Birmingham Southern. The Scots then travel to Emory in Atlanta for a single game on Friday, March 3 at 2:00 PM, returning to Lookout Mountain on Saturday, March 4 for a double-header against Emory beginning at noon.
CONNECT WITH THE SCOTS
Be sure to follow the Scots all season long on
athletics.covenant.edu and on social media at
Facebook,
Twitter and
Instagram for up-to-date scores, news and other information.
