CLINTON, S.C. ? Presbyterian College's baseball team picked up its first NCAA Division I victory on Saturday with a 4-2 game two win over the UNC Asheville Bulldogs at the PC Baseball Complex.
The game two victory by PC earned the Blue Hose a split with UNCA in their season-opening doubleheader on Saturday. UNC Asheville claimed a 10-0 victory in game one.
Both teams are now 1-1 on the season entering the series finale at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 24 at the PC Baseball Complex.
In PC's 4-2 win in game two the Blue Hose allowed the Bulldogs to strike first and take a 1-0 lead going into the bottom of the first inning. The lead would not last.
In fact, PC scored three runs in the bottom half of the first inning and never looked back.
Jesse Harmon (Newberry, S.C.) got things going for the Blue Hose in the frame by doubling to left centerfield. Cory Lyda (Simpsonville, S.C.) then gave PC its first run of the 2008 season by hitting a double to right field to plate Harmon.
The score 1-1, Lyda then scored on an error by the UNCA first baseman to give PC a 2-1 advantage. Freshman Nate Horton (Spartanburg, S.C.) a couple batters later then singled up the middle to score Casey Carlson (Lexington, S.C.) and give PC the eventual game-winning run.
Asheville would score one run in the top of the third to make it 3-2, but PC plated one more in the sixth inning to place the game out of reach.
Zac Rhinesmith (Acworth, Ga.) acquired the RBI for PC in the sixth when he sacrificed to right field to bring in Steven Henry (Hoschton, Ga.), who had doubled down the line to start the inning for PC.
Overall in game two, Horton led PC, finishing 2-for-3 with an RBI at the dish. He was the only PC player to record multiple hits. Elliot Arrington led UNCA at the plate as he also went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Ben Dollar (Gaffney, S.C.) pitched seven strong innings against UNC Asheville to earn his first victory of the season from the hill. Dollar allowed just three hits and fanned six in the 4-2 game two win. Ben Buchanan allowed nine hits and struck out seven in his losing effort from the mound for UNCA.
In UNC Asheville's 10-0 win in game one, PC was only able to claim one hit. Henry picked up the hit for PC.
Alan DeRatt pitched seven innings of no-hit baseball for UNCA to pick up the win. He was replaced in the eighth by Jeremy Hall, who surrendered the hit in the contest to Henry.
