DAHLONEGA — The No. 23 University of North Georgia dropped the first two of a three-game series against No. 19 Florida Southern Saturday in Bob Stein Stadium, losing game one, 8-4, before a 7-4 loss in the nightcap.
 
GAME ONE
Florida Southern's Austin Mauer reached first on an error from third baseman, Nick Clarno, putting a runner on first for the Moccasins. Clean-up batter Omar Villaman blasted a two-run homerun to right center, giving Florida Southern the lead, 2-0, through the first half inning.
 
The Nighthawk offense didn't come alive until the bottom of the third after William Mapes reached first on a dropped third strike. A passed ball allowed Mapes to take second, putting a runner in scoring position for the Nighthawks. Another wild pitch put Mapes on third while Chase Sudduth walked to first. With runners on the corners, Steven Tomlinson put up a base hit between short and third to bring Mapes home and put the Nighthawks on the board, 2-1.
 
Florida Southern continued to pull away from the Nighthawks in the seventh. Leading 3-1,  the Mocs used a two-RBI single from Dillon Costa to extend the lead to 5-1.
 
North Georgia answered in the seventh with a Conner Corbitt RBI double, but FSC got runs back in the eighth on back-to-back homers.
 
In the bottom of the ninth, Corbitt fought back with a homerun over the left field wall to make the score 8-4. The Nighthawks loaded the bases to force a pitching change, but were unable to capitalize.
 
GAME TWO
The Nighthawks were first to put a run on the board in the bottom of the second. Cameron Corbitt lined into leftfield for a base hit, and advanced to third on a line-double to left putting runners on first and second. Corbitt scored on Bill LeRoy's ground shot to third, giving the Nighthawks their first lead of the series, 1-0.
 
Florida Southern answered in the third with a base hit, a walk, and a sacrifice bunt from Omar Villaman to advance runners to second and third. Logan Browning delivered a two-RBI double to left center giving Florida Southern the lead, 2-1. His teammate Hayden Marze was right behind him with a two-run homerun extending the lead 4-1.
 
Steven Tomlinson got things started again for the Nighthawks in the third with a base-hit to left center, followed by a steal to put him in scoring position. Tomlinson advanced to third on a wild pitch, forcing an overthrow from the catcher which allowed him to score, 4-2.
 
The Moccasins pulled away from the Nighthawks in the fifth after a two-RBI base-hit, extending their lead 6-2. Cody Collett stepped up in the circle for the Nighthawks in relief, keeping Florida Southern scoreless for the next four innings.
 
Sophomore Andres Perez delivered a two-run homerun to score Clarno in the eighth, closing the gap to just 6-4, but Florida Southern pulled away again in the ninth after an RBI single from Dillon Costa to give the Moccasins the three-run win.
 
Both losses put North Georgia at 2-3 overall, while Florida Southern is now 6-0.
 
NOTES
- The Nighthawks left 23 runners on base in the doubleheader.
 
- Tomlinson went 4-for-8 for the Nighthawks. Perez was 2-for-8 with the homer.
 
- Only two errors were committed on the day, both teams charged with one.
 
NEXT UP
Game three of the series against Florida Southern is TBA due to weather conditions, but will take place either Saturday or Sunday in Bob Stein Stadium. Check @UNGBaseball on Twitter or UNGAthletics.com for more information.