EMORY, Va. – The Emory & Henry College Baseball Team (10-34, 6-20 SAC) swept both games of a South Atlantic Conference doubleheader against Mars Hill University (15-29, 5-21 SAC) Saturday afternoon. The Wasps earned a narrow 3-2 victory in game one before exploding for a 22-4 win in the nightcap. Emory & Henry also honored its 16 seniors before game one. 

The Basics
GAME ONE – Emory & Henry 3, Mars Hill 2
GAME TWO – Emory & Henry 22, Mars Hill 4 (Seven Innings)
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – Porterfield-DeVault Field
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (10-34, 6-20 SAC); Mars Hill (15-29, 5-21 SAC)

Game One - Emory & Henry 3, Mars Hill 2
The Lions were first on the board as they tallied a pair of unearned runs on three hits and an error to take the early 2-0 in the top of the second inning. Both teams' bats were kept silent through the third and fourth, but the Wasps broke through in the bottom of the fifth. Junior third baseman Steven Smith (Salisbury, N.C.) drew a one-out walk and moved up to third on a double by sophomore catcher Garrison Bullock (Concord, N.C.). Junior first baseman Jacob Bebber (Taylorsville, N.C.) delivered an RBI sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 2-1. 

The Wasps' bullpen continued to blank the Lions and the offense struck again in the bottom of the seventh inning. Senior outfielder Jared Foley (Sparta, N.C.) drew a one-out walk and advanced to second on Smith's single. Bullock roped a single to center to plate Foley and tie the game at 2-2. Bebber walked to load the bases and senior designated hitter Caeden Howell (Roaring River, N.C.) lofted a deep drive to center for another RBI sacrifice fly to put the home team ahead 3-2. Senior righty Jack Swarbrick (Haverhill, Mass.) came in with a pair of runners on second and third base in the top of the eighth and put out the fire, striking out two of the next three batters and inducing a weak ground ball to tiptoe out of danger and keep the Wasps in front. Another shutout inning from Swarbrick in the ninth sealed the victory and gave him his first save of the season.

Fifth-year pitcher Zach Clover (Cary, N.C.) was terrific out of the bullpen in relief as he went five scoreless innings, allowing just three hits while striking out four batters to earn the win. Jake Wagoner took the loss for MHU after giving up three runs on seven hits over 6 ⅓ innings on the hill. Fifth-year righty Nick Cerrato (Oswego, Ill.) received the no decision after scattering two unearned runs on three hits in two innings of work. Smith paced the E&H offense with three hits while Bullock, Bebber and Howell each had a run driven in. Senior shortstop Kolby Anderson (King William, Va.) added a pair of knocks and Foley's double in the bottom of the eighth extended his hit streak to 22 games.

Game Two - Emory & Henry 22, Mars Hill 4 (Seven Innings)
The visitors took the lead for the second time in the afternoon as Alex Naran launched a leadoff solo home run in the top of the first inning. The Wasps would answer back in a big way in the bottom of the inning. Foley walked, Bullock was hit by a pitch and Bebber drew a walk to load the bases. Howell cleared the bases with a three-RBI double down the line in right to give the Wasps a 3-1 lead. Fifth-year outfielder Christian Schmidt (Fuquay-Varina, N.C.) drew another walk and senior outfielder Triston Hensley (Covington, Va.) was hit by a pitch to load the bases again. Junior outfielder Khadeem Lewis (Chesterfield, Va.) drove in a run with an RBI single and fifth-year second baseman Noah Mazza (Plainfield, Ill.) scored another with a bases-loaded walk. Foley made history as he smashed a grand slam over the wall in center to break his own program record for single-season hits with 68 and push the Wasps' advantage out to 9-1 after one inning.

E&H tacked on two more in the bottom of the second. Howell was hit by a pitch, moved up on an error and came around to score on Lewis's second RBI single of the afternoon. Foley plated another on a sacrifice fly and the score stood at 11-1 in favor of the home team after two innings of play. The Wasps continued to pour it on as Schmidt drilled a two-RBI double into the gap in left-center in the home half of the third to increase the margin out to 13-1. Lewis contributed another RBI single up the middle and the Wasps had a 13-run lead after the third. 

Howell blew the game open in the bottom of the fourth with a grand slam, his fourth long ball of the year, to balloon the margin to 18-1. Schmidt followed suit with a solo home run to make it 19-1. Sophomore outfielder Clay Caldwell (Salem, Va.) got in on the hit parade with a two-RBI single in the bottom of the fifth. The Lions finally found an answer as Chris Bleeker launched a three-run shot in the top of the sixth to run the score to 21-4. 

Senior right-handed pitcher Bryson Wagner (Salisbury, N.C.) was the winning pitcher as he threw all seven innings, scattering four runs on four hits while fanning nine batters. Grady Bivens was handed the loss after allowing eight runs on three hits while lasting only ⅓ of an inning. Howell led the offensive onslaught for the Wasps with seven RBIs on two hits. Foley added five RBIs while Lewis and Schmidt each had three driven in.

Up Next
The Wasps will wrap up the three-game series on Sunday with a single nine-inning game against the Lions. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. from Porterfield-DeVault Field. 

--E&H--