LMU Defeats Carson-Newman to Claim SAC Baseball Championship Title

FOREST CITY, N.C. - Lincoln Memorial University freshman right-hander Wes Todd tossed a complete game for the Railsplitters Sunday evening, leading fifth-seeded LMU to a 9-4 victory over sixth-seeded Carson-Newman in the title game of the 2013 Food Lion SAC Baseball Championship at McNair Field. The Railsplitters win the tournament title for the first time in school history, improving to 26-24 overall while receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Carson-Newman falls to 22-26 on the year.

Nick Pressley had a homer and three RBI to lead the LMU attack, scoring a pair of runs. Andrew Rodriguez was three-for-four with two RBI and two runs scored, while Josh Coker added a double, three RBI and a run scored for the Railsplitters. Scott Miller had two hits and two runs scored for LMU.

LMU shortstop Curt Fuqua was named the tournament MVP. He went two-for-four in the title game. He hit .381 in five games with a tournament-best eight hits, adding a homer, two doubles, four RBI and five runs scored. The rest of the All-Tournament team will be announced Monday on thesac.com.

Evan Jurjevic was two-for-four with an RBI and a run scored to lead the Carson-Newman offense. Cody Fox went one-for-three with a double, RBI and a run scored, while Kevin Franchetti added a double and an RBI for the Eagles.

Carson-Newman jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. A leadoff single from Joe Tipton followed by a Brandon Roberts single put runners on first and second. Tipton would advance on consecutive wild pitches, scoring the game's first run to put the Eagles on top 1-0. Jurjevic added an RBI single to make it 2-0.

LMU had the answer with three runs in the bottom of the frame. Miller ripped a one-out single up the middle, then went to third on a Rodriguez single. They would both score when Pressley connected on his first homer of the year, a three-run shot down the left field line, over the 25-foot wall to give the Railsplitters a 3-2 lead.

Carson-Newman regained the lead with two runs in the third. Fox plated the first run with an RBI double off the wall in left, while Franchetti's RBI double off the wall in left center drove home Fox to give the Eagles a 4-3 advantage.

Lincoln Memorial had the emphatic response, scoring five runs in the third. Rodriguez tied the game with an RBI single. Pressley followed with a single to load the bases for LMU. Coker cleared the bases with a three-run double to right center, putting the Railsplitters on top by three. Coker drove in nine runs in Lincoln Memorial's two victories on Sunday. Colin Buckner plated Coker with an RBI single to make it 8-4.

A sacrifice fly from Rodriguez in the sixth plated Brandon Morris to make the final margin 9-4.

Todd went the distance to pick up his fifth win of the season, tossing 124 pitches, allowing four runs on eight hits while striking out three to improve to 5-1. Evan Faithfull took the loss, falling to 2-1. He allowed seven runs on six hits in 2 1/3 innings, striking out one and walking one.

Lincoln Memorial will learn its postseason fate when the NCAA Tournament bracket is released on May 12.

[Game 10:  Lincoln Memorial 12, Newberry 10]

FOREST CITY, N.C. - Lincoln Memorial's Josh Coker hit a pair of homers Sunday afternoon, including grand slam and the go-ahead two-run shot in the seventh to send the fifth-seeded Railsplitters into the championship game of the 2013 Food Lion SAC Baseball Championship at McNair Field. LMU defeated fourth-seeded Newberry 12-10, improving to 25-24 overall. Newberry is eliminated from the tournament, falling to 29-22 on the season. 

Coker was two-for-four on the day with six RBI and four runs scored to lead the LMU attack. Colin Buckner was two-for-four with a double, three RBI and a run scored. Nick Pressley went two-for-four with an RBI and three runs scored. Scott Miller added two hits, an RBI and a run scored, while Cody Baker had two hits and a run scored for the Railsplitters.

Ryan Cranmer had a homer and three RBI to lead the Newberry offense. Eric Barbieri was three-for-five with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored. Alex Kirby added two RBI and a run scored, while Jermale Paige had an RBI and run scored for the Wolves.

LMU scored a run in the first on an RBI single from Pressley.

The Wolves answered with six runs in the second to take a five-run lead. Newberry loaded the bases with a double and two walks. A bases-loaded walk, followed by a hit batsman plated two runs to put the Wolves on top. Paige added an RBI groundout to make it 3-1. Cranmer followed with the big blow of the inning, a three-run homer to left center to give Newberry a 6-1 advantage.

LMU started to chip away at the lead with a run in the bottom of the frame on a sacrifice fly from Scott Miller. Buckner's two-run double to left in the third cut Newberry's lead to 6-4.

LMU scored four times in the fourth to regain the lead. A single and two walks loaded the bases with one out. Coker connected on his 10th homer of the year to right center, clearing the bases with a grand slam to make it 8-6.

Newberry had the answer, tying the game in the fifth. Barbieri's RBI double made it 8-7, while a sacrifice fly from Bradley Nichols tied the game at eight.

Andre Rodriguez led off the sixth inning with his fourth homer of the season, a solo shot to left center to put LMU back on top. Buckner added an RBI single later in the inning to make it 10-8.

Newberry again had the answer, scoring twice in the top of the seventh to tie it at 10. Kirby drove home the first run with an RBI single to right, while pinch-hitter JoJo Bradley plated the tying run with an RBI groundout.

Curt Fuqua led off the seventh with a single. He would score when Coker belted his second homer of the day and 11th of the season over the wall in right field, a two-run shot to make the final margin 12-10.

Ian Creager got the win, improving to 5-3. He pitched the final 2 2/3 innings without allowing a hit, striking out one. Coker also pitched 2 1/3 innings for the Railsplitters. Hunter Cox took the loss, falling to 0-1. He allowed two runs on two hits in 2 1/3 innings.

[Game 9:  Carson-Newman 8, Lincoln Memorial 3]

FOREST CITY, N.C. - The sixth-seeded Carson-Newman University Eagles plated five runs in the fifth inning Sunday morning, handing fifth-seeded Lincoln Memorial University its first loss of the tournament on day four of the 2013 Food Lion SAC Baseball Championship at McNair Field. The Eagles won by a final of 8-3 to improve to 22-25 overall, while LMU falls to 24-24 on the season. 

Bo Ausmus had a homer and two RBI to lead the Carson-Newman attack. Joe Tipton also homered, scoring two runs for the Eagles. Cody Fox was two-for-four with two RBI and two runs scored while Kevin Franchetti went two-for-four with an RBI for the Eagles.

Curt Fuqua had a homer and two RBI to lead the Lincoln Memorial attack. Nick Pressley was two-for-four with an RBI for the Railsplitters.

LMU took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on Pressley's RBI double off the wall in left. The Eagles answered in the bottom of the frame, tying the game on an RBI single from Evan Jurjevic.

Lincoln Memorial took a 3-1 lead in the third when Fuqua connected on his eighth homer of the year, a two-run shot over the 25-foot wall in left field.

Carson-Newman cut the lead to one in the fourth on an RBI double from Zach Long.

The Eagles plated five runs in the fifth to take a 7-3 lead. The first two hitters of the inning were retired via a lineout and groundout. Tipton connected on his first homer of the year to tie the game at three. Ausmus put the Eagles on top with an RBI triple to right field. Fox added a two-run single, while an RBI double from Franchetti put Carson-Newman on top by four.

Ausmus connected on his eight homer of the year to start the seventh, a solo shot to left to make the final margin 8-3.

Dustin Dunagan picked up his first win of the season, tossing 147 pitches in 8 1/3 innings of work, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out eight to move to 1-5 on the season. Patrick Morris took the loss, falling to 5-2. He allowed seven runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 innings, striking out three and walking two.