DAHLONEGA – The No. 8 University of North Georgia (UNG) baseball team split a doubleheader with Nova Southeastern, taking a tight opener before dropping a high-scoring second game Tuesday afternoon at Bob Stein Stadium.
Game One: North Georgia 2, Nova Southeastern 1
North Georgia used timely pitching and a late break to secure a 2-1 victory in the opener.
After a quiet start, Nova Southeastern struck first in the fourth inning on a solo home run. The Nighthawks answered immediately in the bottom half, as
Caleb Farr launched a solo shot to right field to even the score at 1-1.
The game remained deadlocked until the seventh inning when the Nighthawks capitalized on a wild pitch.
Cam Hodge advanced to second, and
Brody Yeomans came around to score what proved to be the game-winning run.
At the plate,
Ben Hamacher, Yeomans and
JD Coleman each recorded two hits to pace the Nighthawks' offense.
On the mound, North Georgia leaned on a strong bullpen effort.
Chandler Thiel earned the win with 4.2 innings of one-hit, shutout relief, striking out five. He took over for
Evan Carter, who allowed just one run while striking out four over 4.1 innings in the start.
Game Two: Nova Southeastern 16, North Georgia 5
Nova Southeastern erupted early and never looked back, handing the Nighthawks a 16-5 loss in the nightcap.
The Sharks sent 15 batters to the plate in the first inning, scoring 11 runs on a combination of timely hits, walks and defensive miscues to take immediate control.
North Georgia got on the board in the bottom of the first on an RBI from
Jake Streeter, but Nova Southeastern continued to add on with five more runs in the third to extend the lead to 16-1.
The Nighthawks showed some fight in the third inning, plating four runs.
Cam Hodge delivered an RBI single,
Caleb Farr drove in a run while benefiting from an error that allowed two more to score, and
Schley Gordy added an RBI single to cap the inning.
Brady Skipper led the Nighthawks with a 2-for-4 performance, while Hodge chipped in a hit and an RBI.
Despite a difficult start from the pitching staff,
Tyler Chinpire provided a bright spot out of the bullpen, tossing 2.2 scoreless innings with four strikeouts.
North Georgia returns to action April 10-12, hosting Columbus State in its final Peach Belt Conference series at home.
