DAHLONEGA – The No. 29 University of North Georgia (UNG) baseball team clinched the series win over No. 21 Mississippi College behind a season-high 17 runs on Saturday afternoon at Bob Stein Stadium at Lynn Cottrell Park.
The Nighthawks got on the board first in the bottom of the first inning after Hunter Thompson singled to right field, bringing Kyle Robitzsch and Cam Hodge home to put UNG up 2-0.
After a scoreless second inning, Hodge ripped his second home run of the season over the left field wall to put UNG up by three. Solid hitting and plate discipline from the Nighthawks lead to multiple opportunities for a bases-loaded walk. The Nighthawks took advantage and left the third inning with a 7-0 lead.
The Choctaws bats started to come alive once the game reached the fourth inning. Alex Johnson's second home run of the series cut the deficit to four, but those would be the final runs of the game Mississippi College put on the board.
UNG's offense caught fire in the eighth inning, as singles from Ben Hamacher, Schley Gordy and Robitzsch put the game out of reach for the Choctaws, leading to the 17-4 win for North Georgia.
Kevin Cox picked up his second win of the season, tossing six innings with five strikeouts while allowing four runs and seven hits. Rhaylin Carvajal closed out the final three innings for UNG, giving up just one hit while recording four strikeouts.
Thompson had a stellar outing for UNG, finishing with a career-high four hits in five plate appearances this afternoon. Gordy also had his best offensive game as a Nighthawk, finishing the game with three hits and a game-high five RBIs.
North Georgia will go for the series-sweep on Sunday at Bob Stadium. First pitch is set for 12 p.m.
