Wilson, NC - Mount Olive continued their Easter weekend series against Barton with two games, beating Barton in the double header to move to 19-17 on the season and reaching .500 against conference opponents.  The Trojans continue to swing in the right direction with their offensive capabilities swinging again.
The Trojans wasted no time setting the tone, manufacturing a run in the first inning as Lane McLean walked, stole second, and advanced to third before coming home on a sacrifice fly from Josh Mason.

After Barton answered with a run to tie the game at 1-1 in the top of the second, Mount Olive responded in the bottom half. The Trojans showed patience at the plate, drawing two walks and a single to load the bases with one out. Mason then delivered a sharp single to left field, driving in two runners and giving Mount Olive a 4-1 lead.
Building on their early offense, Mount Olive added another run in the third, sparked by one of the conference's top hitters. Jakhari Howard doubled to lead off and later scored on a Malachi Gales RBI double, pushing the lead to 5-1. Gales, among the team's key power bats, continued to deliver extra-base hits in important spots.

With the lead growing, the Trojans delivered the knockout blow in the fourth inning. Rowan Watt opened the scoring in the inning by ripping an RBI double, driving in the Trojans' sixth run. Moments later, Howard came through again, launching a two-run home run to left field that extended the lead to 8-2 and energized the dugout.

That offensive surge was more than enough support for Newton, who has quickly established himself as the Trojans' go-to pitcher for mid-series games.

The right-hander threw a complete game, striking out 10 over seven innings while allowing three runs—two earned. Newton controlled the tempo, stranding Barton's runners, including two strikeouts to end a seventh-inning threat.

In game three, Mount Olive completed a dominant day at the plate with an 18-1 route of Barton, securing the series behind a relentless offensive attack and strong pitching from start to finish.
After a quiet first two innings, the Trojans broke through in the third. Tanner Ferguson and Mac James set the table before Lane McLean delivered an RBI double, and Josh Mason followed with an RBI ground out to make it 2-0. McLean once again sparked the offense from the top of the lineup, contributing both speed and scoring ability.

The Trojans blew the game open in the fourth inning. Jakhari Howard singled to start the rally, and after traffic built on the bases, Ferguson crushed a two-run home run down the left field line. The inning pushed the lead to 6-0 and never looked back.

Mount Olive kept pressing in the fifth, as Malachi Gales hit a solo home run, showing why he is among the team's top power hitters. The biggest inning, however, came in the sixth.  The Trojans erupted for seven runs in the frame, capitalizing on walks, hit batters, and clutch hits. The key moments included Watt's two-RBI double that opened the scoring that inning, Garrett Moffett's two-run single that pushed the lead further, and Mac James's sacrifice fly that made it 14-0. The inning perfectly illustrated their offensive identity—patience, pressure, and lineup-wide production.

Despite the lead, Mount Olive kept adding on. In the ninth, McLean singled in a run, and Halstead hit a three-run homer for the 18-1 final.

On the mound, Pete Honse was outstanding, tossing six shutout innings while allowing just two hits and striking out four to earn the win. He set the tone early, keeping Barton off balance and preventing the Bulldogs from establishing any rhythm offensively.  Aidan Bisbano, Mike Walsh, and Hank Downum closed out the win, combining to allow just one run.

The Trojans look to their next competition against Newberry in Florence, SC, for a neutral-site game scheduled for 3:00 PM at Carolina Bank Field.