DAHLONEGA – Rain continued to follow a make up game for the University of North Georgia baseball team against Emmanuel at Bob Stein Stadium at Lynn Cottrell Park Wednesday evening. After their original contest had to be rescheduled due to inclement weather, the Nighthawks and Lions were interrupted again Wednesday in the eighth inning of a one-run game.
As the rain continued to pour late in the game, the two teams were forced to suspend play in the bottom of the eighth for player safety.
With that decision, the Nighthawks moved to 26-12 on the year with a 9-8 victory.
The Lions jumped out to an early lead in the contest after scoring five runs in the first two innings against UNG freshman starter Andrew Cedano.
Redshirt sophomore first baseman Phillip Ard put UNG on the board for the first time with his team leading eighth home run of the year, a solo blast to make it 5-1.
Ard has been a hitting machine for the Nighthawks this season. Of all qualified hitters (min. 2 PA/game and 75% of games played), he leads the team in batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, home runs, total bases and walks.
He's had a hit in 10 of the last 11 games and is hitting .450 in the month of April with a pair of home runs and a .625 on base percentage.
After Ard's blast, UNG strung together a major rally in the fourth. After two runs had scored to make it 5-3, sophomore outfielder Josh Sosa stepped up to the plate with two runners on and only one out.
As he lopped a ball into center field, Lions freshman outfielder Bailey Stroud dove in an attempt to catch the ball. His lunge came up short as the ball bounced in front of him and rifled towards the center field wall.
With freshman third baseman Kyle Robitzsch and sophomore second baseman Brady Skipper having already scored to make it 5-5, Sosa chugged for third.
Head coach Tom Cantrell gave the sophomore the wave for home as he approached the bag at third. Sosa hustled home and slid in safely for a go-ahead, inside the park home run to put the Nighthawks in front 6-5.
It was a lead they would never relinquish.
Sosa added another RBI to his career total of five in the game with a sacrifice fly the next inning to plate Ard and make it 7-5.
Emmanuel got a run back the next inning thanks to an RBI single from junior infielder Hayden Beall.
UNG added another run in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI ground out from freshman designated hitter Noah Darden.
Then it was Sosa's turn again in the seventh as he brought home Skipper on a fielder's choice, making it 9-6.
Beall did damage again in the top of the eighth with a two run homer to pull Emmanuel with one run at 9-8. The long ball was his fourth of the year.
Darden led off the bottom of the frame with a walk but Lions senior pitcher Sam Boggie slipped on the mound resulting in a wild pitch that sent Darden to second base.
That pitch would be the last of the game as the two teams decided to pause play after Boggie slipped on the hill.
UNG secured the win after the delay in its final game of a 10-game home stand. Now the Nighthawks head back into conference play on the road as they head to Flagler for a three game set in St. Augustine, Fla. First pitch in game on is set for 5 p.m. on Friday, Apr. 12 as the series concludes at 12 p.m. on Sunday, Apr. 14.
