MARCH 18 – The Covenant Scots sweep a doubleheader from the Huntington Hawks in conference opener, Saturday, March 18.
 
GAME 1   Covenant 5, Huntington 3
 
Following four innings of scoreless baseball, in what began as a pitcher's duel between Scots junior pitcher Bryce Bollinger (Portland, Tenn.) and Hawks hurler Jacob McFarl, Huntington took a one-run lead in the fifth frame. Another Hawk would cross the plate in the top of the sixth on an error to further advance their lead.   
 
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Covenant junior catcher Harrison Adelgren (Spring Hill, Tenn.) drew a walk and senior first baseman Joseph Ridenour (Louisville, Tenn.) was hit by a pitch in order to get on base. With a runner in scoring position, junior shortstop Zeke Gilbert (Douglasville, Ga.) stepped to the plate and knocked a single to left field, driving in Adelgren. 
 
The Scots didn't stop there and continued to score in the sixth. Knotting the score at 2-2, Ridenour would come home on a Kenny Mills (Stockbridge, Ga.) sacrifice fly. 
 
In the bottom of the seventh, with the score still tied 2-2, Scots sophomore left fielder George Manera (Orange County, Ca.) led off with a single to center field, and almost singlehandedly manufactured the Scots go ahead run by stealing second base, stealing third base, and then scoring on a two-out wild pitch. Covenant was on top 3-2 going into the eighth inning. 
 
In the top of the eighth, after the Hawks tied the game at 3-3 and then loaded the bases with one out, Covenant brought in freshman pitcher Aeden Buening (Brunswick, Ga.) to relieve Bollinger, whose 7.1 solid innings pitched was his longest outing of the season. 
 
Mimicking his stellar performance against Emory earlier this season, Buening came through in the clutch and shut down Huntington with a strikeout and a fly out, not allowing another run to score in the top of the eighth. 
 
The bottom of the eighth would prove to be the deciding frame, as Covenant junior right fielder Chase McBryar (Chattanooga, Tenn.) reached on a fielder's choice. Stealing second base and then scoring on a single by George Manera, the Scots were now up 4-3.
 
Manera would come back around to score after advancing to third on a base hit credited to Andrew Brock (Fort Oglethorpe, Ga.). It would be Benjamin Johnson (Tranas, Sweden) that would bring home Manera for the Scots fifth and final run of the first game.
 
Aeden Buening shut down the Hawks in the top of the ninth and captured the final out by striking out Daniel Patton looking, preserving victory for the Scots and earning his first collegiate win, as the game ended 5-3 in Covenant's favor.  
 
 

GAME 2   Covenant 10, Huntington 4

In the second game of the doubleheader, the Hawks scored one run in the first to take an early lead, but the Scots came right back in the bottom of the frame and took a 2-1 lead when catcher Harrison Adelgren doubled down the left field line and scored on a single by shortstop Zeke Gilbert, who then scored on a double by center fielder Kenny Mills. Covenant never relinquished this early lead. 
 
In the bottom of the second inning, Covenant third baseman Andrew Brock reached on an error by the shortstop and advanced to third on a single by second baseman Benjamin Johnson. Sophomore catcher Zach Ferlita (Tampa, Fla.) drove in both Scots with a frozen rope triple to the left center gap, and eventually scored on a single by DH Harrison Adelgren – his second hit of the game – giving Covenant a 5-1 lead. 
 
Sophomore pitcher Scotty Smith (Cartersville, Ga.) retired the Hawks 1-2-3 in the top of the third, and Covenant's hot bats continued in the fourth, when second baseman Benjamin Johnson hit a solo bomb over the left field fence, his second dinger of the year. The Scots scored yet another run on a Kenny Mills single, extending the Scots lead to 7-1.
 
Huntington scored a pair in the top of the fifth, but Covenant answered with two more runs in the bottom of the inning, when left fielder George Manera launched a moon shot to left field. Catcher Zach Ferlita capped the rally by knocking in another run with a double to center field, his third RBI of the game, putting the Scots up 9-3. 
 
In the top of the sixth, Scots senior pitcher Nick Pettit (Knoxville, Tenn.) relieved Scotty Smith, who pitched five solid innings. In what would become his most impressive outing of the season, Pettit struck out two Hawks in the sixth, then retired the Hawks 1-2-3 in the seventh. 
 
The Hawks attempted to get a rally going after adding a run in the top of the eighth, but Scots defense quickly shut it down and answered with a final Scots run.
 
The final score was Covenant 10, Huntington 4, with Scotty Smith earning his first victory of the season, and Nick Pettit pitching four strong innings in relief, only allowing two hits, one run, and recording four strikeouts in his outing.
 
UP NEXT 
Covenant is back in action on Lookout Mountain on Tuesday, March 21 at 3:00 PM as they prepare to face the Oglethorpe Stormy Petrels. The Scots will then travel to LaGrange, Ga. for a three-game series. 

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.