JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) – ETSU baseball appeared in danger of being swept at home by the Bulldogs on Sunday afternoon at Thomas Stadium, trailing 7-0 in the second inning.
However, a six-run fourth inning leveled the score, 8-8, before the Blue and Gold took the lead for good with two more tallies in the bottom of the fifth. A high-scoring affair ended 17-12 in favor of the Bucs.
The two teams combined for 33 hits and 28 RBI on the day, as a combined eight pitchers stepped up to the rubber.
Four Bucs registered a trio of RBIs on the day, including Nick Iannantone. The designated hitter finished 4-for-5 at the plate with two doubles, a triple and a home run. Tommy Barth also returned to form, turning in a pair of hits and scoring a run.
Senior Ashton King was the only other ETSU batter with four hits, while also scoring four runs.
Nathaniel Tate lasted 6.1 innings on the mound, allowing ten earned runs and 14 hits. However, he still earned his third win of the season. Derek McCarley picked up his second save of the year, hurling the final 2.1 innings, allowing two earned runs on a pair of hits, while striking out three batters.
The Bulldogs were led by Stephen Klein, who connected for three hits and 4 RBI in four at-bats. Blake Bortak took the loss, despite allowing just two earned runs in a single inning of work.
ETSU (11-11) returns to .500 on the season, as the team travels next to Radford on Tuesday for a single game with the Highlanders. First Pitch is set for 6 p.m.
