Baseball drops high-scoring game at Truett McConnell

CLEVELAND, Ga. (April 20, 2023) – The Milligan University baseball team fell into an early deficit and could not battle all the way back as the Buffs were downed 11-8 by Truett McConnell in an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) series opener in Georgia on Thursday.

Milligan falls to 26-16 on the season and 11-13 in AAC action. TMU moves to 32-10, 16-6 AAC.

Despite scoring the game's first two runs, Milligan fell behind in the bottom of the second inning as the Bears put up five runs in the frame. The Buffs scored for the third-straight inning on an RBI groundout to make the margin 5-3 TMU.

The Bears grew their advantage to 8-3 after four innings with two runs in the third and another in the fourth. A pair of sacrifice flies off the bats of Caleb Berry and Braden Spano in the fifth inning brought the score to 8-5.

TMU struck back with three runs in the bottom of the sixth as the Bears took advantage of a Milligan error and scored on a wild pitch and a groundout to lead 11-5.

Jaden Steagall smacked an RBI double and scored on a Logan Hullette single in the eighth. Angel Lobo lifted a sacrifice fly to make it a three-run game again at 11-8. The Bears loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning but Chance Hall inducted a force out to end the inning.

Singles by Casey Haire and Kobe Miles brought the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth inning but a pair of balls hit to the outfield were tracked down as TMU held on for the win.

The ballgame featured a combined 26 hits and six errors. The Buffs were 3-15 with runners in scoring position while TMU was 7-17 in the same situation.

Haire and Andrew Mathias each had two hits. Haire drove in a pair while Mathas scored one and had an RBI. Angel Lobo and Ryan Molinari each scored twice.

Milligan used six pitchers in the ballgame. Cade Elliott, Jacob Poe, Patrick Collins and Hall did not allow a run over the final three innings.

The Buffs and Bears conclude their AAC series tomorrow with a doubleheader starting at 2:00 p.m.