After dropping a pair of games to Mississippi College on Friday at Larry Carpenter Stadium, Lee University bounced back and posted a 1-0 victory in a superb pitching duel on a windy Saturday afternoon.
The important GSC win improved the Flames to 6-9 in conference action and 13-13 overall.
The defeat ended a 10-game winning streak by the Choctaws. They slipped to 10-5, 17-9.
Lee remains at home on Tuesday and will face another tough challenge against Young Harris (Ga.) College, with a 4 p.m. first pitch.
Saturday
FLAMES 1
CHOCTAWS 0
Lee broke the scoreless tie in the bottom of the seventh inning, when Josiah Miller doubled down the leftfield line to begin the rally.
Gavin Baxter put down a sacrifice bunt to move Miller to third before Malachi Cloud singled home Miller with what turned out to be the winning run.
Lee put together seven hits in posting the badly needed win. Tucker Platt had a pair of singles to lead the way. Baxter tripled and JJ Williams doubled while Isaiah French and Cloud had the other hits.
Colt McKibben (2-0) turned in the top pitching performance of his career. The junior lefty worked seven innings and allowed only two hits. He struck out six and did not surrender a walk.
Seth Parker was called on for 1.2 innings and allowed one hit. Tim Gooden picked up his second save when he came out of the pen to record the final out after giving up the Choctaws only free pass of the contest.
Mississippi College had one serious scoring threat. In the fifth inning Logan Shurden reached on an error. He stole second and Blaise Breerwood also reached on a Flame miscue and Shurden advanced to third. McKibben recorded a strikeout for the second out and then picked Breerwood off first for the final out of the inning.
Bryce LaRocca, Korey Cooper and Bryce Capobianco had the other hits for the Choctaws, all were singles. Caleb Peterson gave the Mississippi College team seven solid innings of pitching. The right-hander allowed seven hits and one earned run. He did not issue a free pass and fanned eight. Kyle Collet pitched the eighth inning and gave up a hit.
“It was a big win for our team against a really good MC team," declared Lee head coach Mark Brew.
"Nothing is coming easy for us as a team, but our guys are fighting. McKibben gave us a great start and Parker and Gooden did a great job closing the door. The weather was crazy, even into the last out.”
Friday
Visiting Mississippi College took advantage of 12 walks and three hit batters in sweeping a doubleheader from Lee on Friday afternoon at Larry Carpenter Stadium. The Choctaws claimed the first contest 9-1 and the second seven-inning affair 6-3.
Game 1
CHOCTAWS 9
FLAMES 1
A pair of Choctaw pitchers held the Flames to five hits in the win. Holland Townes worked seven innings and allowed just two hits in recording his first victory of the year. Dylan Cope came on in relief for the final two frames and surrendered three hits and one earned run. Townes fanned eight and walked two.
Former Bradley Central and Cleveland State standout Cooper Casteel (3-2) was charged with the loss. He hurled the first six innings and gave up just two hits but got in trouble with five free passes and allowed four earned runs.
Nelson Smith also had control problems in retiring two batters. He surrendered three earned runs. Evan Bloomer was called on for 1.1 innings and gave up three hits and an earned run, while Braylon Hall pitched the final perfect inning.
Jordan Evans pulled off a rare feat. He did not collect a hit, but walked four times and scored four runs.
Korey Cooper ripped a wind-blown three-run homer over the leftfield wall after the Lee pitcher had walked a batter and hit another to give the Choctaws a 4-1 lead.
The visitors put the game out of reach in the seventh with four big runs. A two-base hit by Bryce Capobiance plated three big runs. He later scored to make it an 8-1 affair.
Tucker Platt was the only Flame with two hits. He also scored a run. Cooper Isaac came on as a pinch hitter and collected a base hit that plated Lee’s only score. JJ Williams and Luke Collier had the other hits for Lee in the loss.
Game 2
CHOCTAWS 6
FLAMES 3
The top of the order did the job again for the Choctaws in the second game. Capobiance led the charge with a double, single, three RBI and a run scored. Cooper followed with two hits and tallied two runs. The winners made the best of six hits but Lee pitchers walked five batters and hit another.
The Flames outhit MC 8-6 in the loss but could not put their hits together. Levi Cloud was the only Lee player with two hits. He also collected a double. Platt had a two-base knock while Collier and Brock Sisson had a hit and a RBI. Williams, Isaiah French and Ashton Simmons had the other singles in the loss. Simmons also plated a run. Josiah Miller was credited with a RBI on a ground out while Malachi Cloud stole three bases.
Lee used four pitchers in the defeat. Will Baker started and gave the Flames the first two strong innings. He allowed just one hit and struck out four. After working out of a jam in the second inning, the lefty was not able to return for the third frame. After apparently suffering a pulled stomach muscle.
Dylan Van Meeteren (2-3) came on for 2.1 innings. He allowed two hits and two earned runs and was charged with the loss. David White retired one hitter and Matthew Delph pitched the final 2.1 frames. The lefty was solid, allowing two hits and no earned runs.
The Choctaws started Blake Gollott (4-0) and he got the win. He hurled four innings and allowed one earned run and three hits. Gabe Garner followed for two innings and surrendered four hits and two earned runs. Colby Gollott came on for the final frame and picked up the save.
