EMORY, Va. --- The Tusculum University baseball team used a pair of five-run innings as the Pioneers posted a 20-8 South Atlantic Conference win at Emory & Henry University Saturday afternoon at Porterfield-Devault Field.
Tusculum (9-12, 4-8 SAC) completes the three-game sweep of the weekend series with the Wasps (5-14, 3-9 SAC).
The Pioneers accounted for 19 hits including 3-hit performances by Alejandro Ponte, Jake Absher, Jack Gagen and Jake Smith. Absher finished with four RBI, while Ponte and Landon Dockery drove in three RBI apiece.
Tusculum got on the board first in the opening inning as Evan Goins and Ryan Ortega were both hit by pitch and Goins scored on a RBI single off the bat of Pena.
The Wasps responded with three runs in their half of the first utilizing three hits and a TU error to go up 3-1.
Tusculum regained the lead with three runs in the second as Gagen led off with a walk and later scored on Smith's double down the left field line. Ponte would give TU the lead with his two-out, two-run double as the Pioneers led 4-3.
E&H tied the game in the bottom of the frame as Jaret Hoppes led off with a walk, stole second and later scored from third on a Kyle Fields' sacrifice fly to knot the score at 4-4.
Tusculum took the lead for good with a five-run inning in the fourth as the Pioneers took advantage of three hits, two walks two stolen bases and a pair of Emory & Henry errors as TU went up 9-4.
After the Wasps scored in the bottom of the fourth on Jadden Rodriguez's solo homer, the TU bats went back to work in the fifth, scoring five more times as TU muscled out six more hits including two-run singles by Absher and Dockery as the Pioneers led 14-5.
Tusculum would score six more times, four in the sixth and two more in the seventh. In the sixth, Watson had a RBI single, followed by an Absher two-run triple. Gagen capped the scoring in the inning with his RBI double as TU led 18-5.
The Pioneers added a pair of scores on pinch-hitter Steve Scarfone's two-run homer to center.
Emory & Henry would score three times in the bottom of the seventh, but it would not be enough as the contest ended via run-rule.
TU starter Walker Pedante improved to 2-2 with the victory as he allowed five runs (3 earned), five hits, five walks and five strikeouts.
The Pioneers will wrap up their four-game road trip on Tuesday as they travel to King University for a rematch with the Tornado. TU started its current four-game winning streak with Tuesday's 11-8 win over King.
