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Samford University Athletics

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Samford Baseball takes the field on March 18, 2023 against UT Martin.
Chase Cochran | Samford Athletics
12
Samford SAM 13-11, 2-1 SoCon
17
Winner ETSU ETSU 11-11, 1-2 SoCon
Samford SAM
13-11, 2-1 SoCon
12
Final
17
ETSU ETSU
11-11, 1-2 SoCon
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Samford SAM 2 5 0 1 0 1 1 0 2 12 17 1
ETSU ETSU 0 2 0 6 2 2 1 4 X 17 16 1

W: Nathanial Tate (3-1) L: Bortak, Blake (0-1) S: Derek McCarley (2)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Series Sweep Eludes Baseball in Game-Three Setback at ETSU

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – Despite scoring double-digit runs for the fourth-straight contest, the Samford Baseball Team fell 17-12 to the ETSU Buccaneers in the series finale on Sunday.
 
With the loss, Samford drops to 13-11 overall and 2-1 in SoCon action. ETSU improves to 11-11 overall and 1-2 in conference play.
 
The Bulldog bats recorded 45 runs on 48 hits over the weekend and knocked 13 home runs in one of the program's most productive weekends in recent memory. 
 
Stephen Klein slugged a pair of home runs to give him four total for the weekend. The senior first baseman went 3-4 on the day with four runs driven in. 
 
Kaden Dreier finished just a double shy of the cycle in a 4-5 effort. Dreier drove in one and scored three times.
 
Garrett Staton also scored a team-high three times and left the yard for the four-consecutive game. Staton tallied three hits with three RBI and has reached base safely in his last 12 games. 
 
Lucas Steele also logged a three-hit performance while driving in a pair of runs. Freshman outfielder Aaron Walton earned his first collegiate start, notching an RBI single and a run scored. 
 
Blake Bortak (0-1) shouldered the loss in relief, allowing two runs on one hit over an inning of work from the Bullpen. Starter Will Lynch allowed just two earned runs on six hits over 3.2 innings while striking out four.
 
The Bulldogs got the scoring action going in the top of the first when Klein launched his third homer of the series and fourth of the season to put Samford up 2-0. Davis collected an infield hit up the middle one batter before to set up Klein's opportunity. 
 
The Bulldogs added five more runs in the top of the second to take a 7-0 lead. Walton plated the inning's first run with an RBI single to right, followed by a Staton RBI hit batsman and a sacrifice fly to center field from Jayden Davis. Klein and Steele followed suit by knocking a pair of RBI singles to account for the rest of the damage done in the inning. 
 
ETSU cracked the scoreboard in the bottom of the second, courtesy of a two-run homer from Marshall Awtry but Samford answered with an RBI single from Steele in the top of the fourth that gave the Bulldogs an 8-2 lead. Staton led off the frame with a double to right that helped set up the run-scoring opportunity. 
 
The Bucs took control of the game's momentum by hanging six runs up in the bottom of the fourth, taking advantage of a Bulldog throwing error that led to all six runs coming in the unearned variety. A bases-loaded walk and sac fly brought in the first two runs and was followed by a two-run triple by Tommy Barth and a two-run double by Garrett Wallace. 
 
After seeing ETSU add two more runs in the bottom of the fifth to take a 10-8 lead, the Bulldogs cut their deficit in half courtesy of Klein's second homer of the afternoon in the top of the sixth. Nick Iannantone put the Bucs up 12-9 with a two-run blast in the bottom of the sixth but Samford responded with a solo blast by Dreier in the top of the seventh to trim its deficit to 12-10.
 
ETSU added a run in the seventh via a sac fly and put the game out of reach by scoring four in the eighth. Staton brought home the game's final two runs with his sixth home run of the season in the top of the ninth.
 
"That was an old-school SoCon Sunday battle," Head Coach Tony David said. "It was an unreal finish to an incredible week for our hitters. We had 17 hits and 12 runs with a ton of hard-hit outs today. We had the one miscue on a come-backer we would like to have back before their big inning in the 4th, not just for the six unearned runs but the complete shift in momentum."
 
Samford batted a series-high .415 (17-41) on Sunday, with a clip of .409 (.9-22) with runners on and .429 (6-14) with two outs. 
 
"Both teams swung it well today. Even with all the guys that are down, we feel like we have enough arms on the mound each weekend. Just not today."
 
The Bulldogs will be back in action on Tuesday, March 28 when they take on Mississippi State. First pitch from Starkville, Miss. is set for 6:00 p.m. (CST)
 
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For the latest news and information on Samford Baseball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordBaseball (Facebook), @SamfordBaseball (Instagram), and @SamfordBaseball (Twitter).
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