DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The No. 29 University of North Georgia (UNG) baseball team opened the 2026 season with a road win Friday night, defeating Embry-Riddle 2-0 in the opener of a three-game series.

Matthew Heard tossed six scoreless innings to lead the Nighthawks. He allowed four hits with no walks and eight strikeouts in his first start of the season, retiring eight of the first nine batters he faced.

North Georgia struck first in the second inning when Brody Yeomans singled to drive in Caleb Farr. Brady Skipper added an RBI double in the fourth to score Farr again and extend the lead to 2-0.

Avery Brown closed the shutout for UNG, pitching the final three innings. He allowed one hit and struck out two.

Heard and Brown, both returners to the pitching staff, did not issue a walk in the win. Dating back to last season, Nighthawks pitchers have recorded three no-walk games in their last 16 contests, dating to April 18, 2025, against USC Aiken, after not accomplishing the feat in the previous 76 games dating to March 10, 2024, at Claflin.

The Nighthawks totaled eight hits, led by Ben Hamacher, Cam Hodge and Skipper, who each recorded two.

North Georgia returns to action Jan. 31 for game two of the series. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.