ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Gardner-Webb scored three runs in the third and fourth innings to go on to take a 5-2 decision at UNC Asheville Friday evening.
Gardner-Webb (26-18, 11-8 Big South) won its fifth straight contest in Friday's series opener, while UNC Asheville (10-31, 5-14 Big South) dropped its fifth straight decision.
Asheville scored the first run of the evening in the bottom of the second inning as Kole Harris connected with a base knock to right field, plating Brandon Lankford.
The Diamond 'Dogs answered in the top of the third on a base hit to deep left field with two outs by
Eric Jones that allowed
Corey Howard to score all the way from first base.
GWU claimed the lead in the top of the fourth inning.
Chris Clary led off the frame by ripping a double to dead center field, followed by a base hit through the left side of the infield by
Luke Kaesmeyer to put runners on the corners with no outs.
Gardner-Webb broke the tie on a sacrifice fly by
Justin Kunz to right field that sent Clary across the plate, and later scored once more on a RBI single up the middle by
Mickey Dugan to give the 'Dogs a 3-1 edge.
Asheville sliced into the GWU lead in the bottom of the sixth as a RBI single to the right field gap by Tyler Serricchio to make it a one-run game.
The Diamond 'Dogs expanded their lead in the top of the seventh inning on one swing of the bat, as
Chandler Redmond belted a two-run shot over the right field wall, his 13th home run of the season, which leads all batters in the Big South Conference.
Tyler Johnson stopped any chance of an Asheville comeback in the final innings, allowing no base runners with three strikeouts in the final two frames to seal the contest.
Gardner-Webb had nine base hits throughout the game, with Dugan (2-for-5, RBI), Jones (2-for-5, RBI, run), and Clary (2-for-4, 2B, run) each having multiple-hit evenings.
UNC Asheville collected 11 hits, paced by Chris Troost (2-for-4), Greg Gasparro (2-for-4), and Serricchio (2-for-4, RBI).
Langdon Wilson (2-0) picked up the win for the Diamond 'Dogs, allowing just one run on six base hits with three strikeouts in five innings.
Landon Mitchell recorded two outs in the bottom of the sixth, surrendering one run on three hits while fanning one batter, and Johnson worked the final 3.1 innings, scattering two hits with five strikeouts to earn his first save of the season.
Blake Brown (0-5) took the loss for Asheville, giving up three runs on six base hits with a pair of strikeouts. Jordan Fulbright tossed the last five innings, allowing two runs to score on three hits while fanning four batters.
Both teams will square off again tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 pm at Greenwood Field. The contest will be broadcast live on the Big South Network (www.bigsouthsports.com).
