BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C. -- UPIKE baseball was able to keep most of its positive momentum from the weekend's sweep as the Bears split a midweek doubleheader on the road at Montreat College on Tuesday.
Game 1
Two tough innings did Pikeville in in the first game of the day, a 13-10 Montreat victory. The Cavaliers scored 11 runs in three innings to get a big early lead and the Bears' late comeback effort couldn't surmount the deficit.
After each team scored once in the first, UPIKE took a 2-1 lead on an RBI single from Anthony Houk. But then the Montreat rally began.
Montreat scored three in the third, five in the fourth, and three more in the fifth to take a 12-4 lead through five. Pikeville scored two in that time on a two-run Cavalier error.
Pikeville would try its best to come back with a five-run sixth inning that included five hits, a walk and hit batter. Luke Lubiniecki, Jay Vincent, and Dillon O'Grady all had RBI hits in the inning. Lubiniecki, Houk, and Tyler Menrath each had three hits in the game, while O'Grady had five RBIs.
UPIKE had the tying run to the plate in the seventh after Houk had another RBI single to cut the lead to 13-10, but there was no magic to be had.
Game 2
The Bears flipped the script in game two of the day, which would end up being a 8-4 decision for Pikeville.
UPIKE scored in six unanswered in each of the first four innings to take a big early lead.
Houk had yet another RBI single in the first, while a hit and two Montreat errors resulted in three runs for the Bears in the second. Brendan Halstrom had an RBI in the third and O'Grady hit an RBI double in the fourth.
Much like the first game, there was a strong comeback attempt by the trailing team, as Montreat scored four runs in the fourth inning.
The fourth inning was the only hiccup in an otherwise strong outing for Austin Wetherington, who earned his first career win in the game. Behind him, the Bears received near perfect outings from Ean Walda and Justin Dziuba who combined for 3.1 innings of three-hit, six-strikeout relief.
O'Grady added some insurance runs in the seventh with a two-RBI triple, his second multi-base hit of the ballgame.
O'Grady and Menrath each had two hits in the game, while Houk continued his strong day by going 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored.
UP NEXT
UPIKE will turn its attention back to Mid-South Conference play with a three-game set at Lindsey Wilson this weekend. The series will start with a single game at 4 p.m. ET on Friday, and a 1 p.m. ET doubleheader on Saturday in Columbia, Ky.
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