Florence, SC – Despite a resilient offensive effort and multiple lead changes, the University of Mount Olive baseball team fell 10-9 to Newberry on Tuesday night. Despite a high-scoring non-conference game , the Trojans could not hold off a late Wolves rally. With the loss, the Trojans are now 19-18 on the season.
Newberry jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the top of the first, capitalizing on a pair of UMO defensive miscues and a two-run single. Nevertheless, the Trojans responded immediately in the bottom half. After
Rowan Watt and
Jakhari Howard sparked the rally with RBI singles, sophomore
Malachi Gales delivered a clutch two-run triple to right-center field to flip the script.
Mac James capped the five-run frame with an RBI single, giving UMO a 5-3 advantage.
However, the lead was short-lived, as the Wolves reclaimed a 6-5 lead in the second inning behind a three-run outburst aided by two more Trojan errors. Not to be outdone, Mount Olive refused to go away; junior
Lane McLean launched a solo home run to left field to lead off the second—his fifth of the year—followed by a
Rowan Watt RBI double to put UMO back in front, 7-6.
After Newberry tied the game with a solo homer in the third, the Trojans manufactured a run in the fourth when Howard reached on an error to score Watt, making it 8-7. The score remained locked until the sixth, when Newberry tied it at 8-8. From there, in the bottom of the seventh,
Garrett Moffett executed a perfect bunt single to score Watt, reclaiming a 9-8 lead. However, Newberry found an equalizer in the eighth and secured the winning run at the top of the ninth on an RBI single up the middle.
To navigate the frequent lead changes, Mount Olive used five pitchers.
Pete Honse took the loss (2-1), giving up one run in the ninth.
Kole Hopkins tossed two scoreless innings, and
Mike Walsh struck out three in his two innings.
The Trojans look forward to the weekend, when they take on King at home on Friday in game one of their weekend series, with the matchup scheduled for 4:00 PM.
