LIVINGSTON, Ala. – The West Alabama baseball team issued its first shutout of the season, splitting the doubleheader against Young Harris College on Saturday. The Tigers (4-11) dropped the first game against the Mountain Lions, 9-3, but picked up the second game, 8-0, at Tartt Field.
In game one, right-hand pitcher Thomas Boothe (0-2) started on the mound for UWA for the loss. The Fairhope, Ala. native pitched 4.0 innings for two hits against, two runs (none earned), five walks, and three strikeouts.
West Alabama scored three runs on eight hits while committing five errors as a team. Jake Nemith and Josh Bower led at the plate with 2-for-4 appearances. Nemith added one RBI, and Bower scored a run.
Young Harris (8-5) scored nine runs on 10 hits with one error. Several Mountain Lions recorded two hits, including Kyle Ayers, Ethan Underwood, Noah Fitzgerald, and Marco Colina. Three tallied two ribbies; Ayers, Fitzgerald, and Colina.
Mason Herbert (1-1) took the win on the mound, pitching 6.0 innings. He saw six hits against, two earned runs, one walk, and seven strikeouts. Travis Burnette received the win, finishing the game with 3.0 innings pitched with two hits against, one unearned run, and five strikeouts.
Young Harris scored in the first frame, picking up two runs on two singles. The Tigers tied the game at two with runs in the bottom of the second and third.
The Mountain Lions won at the top of the seventh with five runs scored. They went on to pick up single runs in the seventh and eighth while holding the Tigers to just one run in the seventh for the 9-3 victory.
Graduate student Peyton Warren received his first win on the mound, pitching the complete seven-inning second game. Facing 25 batters, the Brentwood, Tenn. native saw five hits against with one walk and nine strikeouts to shut out Young Harris.
As a team, the Tigers scored eight runs and connected for 10 hits in the 8-0 conquest. Brayden Lyman led UWA in hitting, having a 3-for-4 appearance with a double, one run, and one RBI. Gavin Rogers had two RBIs in scoring, and Kyle Vogler and Jake Nemith came in for two runs.
In the effort, junior first baseman Josh Bower hit his first home run of the season for an RBI.
The Tiger scored three runs in the first inning on a sacrifice fly and an error. West Alabama added two in the second frame on a double and another sacrifice fly. UWA rounded out its scoring in the fifth, with Bower leading off for a home run, an error, and a wild pitch.
West Alabama 3, Young Harris 9
Scoring Recap
T1/ Noah Fitzgerald singled for an RBI to score Ethan Underwood. Fitzgerald would then come home on a single by Jackson Jones. UWA 0, YHC 2
B2/ Houston Kitterman scored Bower on a sacrifice fly. UWA 1, YHC 2
B3/ Gavin Rogers singled up the middle to score Kyle Vogler. UWA 2, YHC 2
T6/ Marco Colina doubled to right-center to score Steven Spell and Aaron Copeland. Colina came home on a double by Kyle Ayers. Ayers eventually came home on a double down the left-field line, and Ethan Underwood scored on an error by the Tigers' first baseman. UWA 2, YHC 7
T7/ Ayers singled to second base to score Spell. UWA 2, YCH 8
B7/ Jake Nemith singled to shortstop to bring Colden Peeples home. UWA 3, YHC 8
T8/ Fitzgerald homered to left-center. UWA 3, YHC 9
West Alabama 8, Young Harris 0
Scoring Recap
B1/ Gavin Rogers scored Kyle Vogler on a sacrifice fly. Brayden Lyman and Jake Nemith scored on an error by Young Harris's first baseman. UWA 3, YHC 0
B2/ Lyman doubled to left-center to score Vogler. Rogers scored Nemtih on a sacrifice fly. UWA 5, YHC 0
B5/ Josh Bower hit his first home run of the season to right-center. Kitterman scored on an error by the third baseman, and Colden Peeples scored on a wild pitch. UWA 8, YHC 0
UP NEXT
The West Alabama baseball team will be back in action on Sunday, Feb. 26, facing Young Harris in the final game of the three-game series. The first pitch is set for 1 p.m.
To stay connected with the UWA baseball team, follow @UWA_baseball on Twitter. General athletic news, along with game recaps and box scores, can be found at uwaathletics.com. Additional updates and information are available @UWAAthletics on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
