MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. (April 6, 2019) â€" Juan Vasquez, Isaac Barkley and Chayse Frye all went deep to lead the Milligan College baseball team to a series-opening win, 12-2, over Bluefield College Saturday at Anglin Field. Bluefield bounced back in game two of the doubleheader, winning 7-4 to split the twin bill.
 
Homers highlight game one
Game one was nearly all Milligan (12-19, 5-12 AAC), and the Buffs put the run rule into effect with plenty of late scoring. After a Frye two-RBI double in the first and RBI's from Kirby Smith and Camron Harper in the second, Milligan led 4-2 through five and a half innings before going deep in each of the last three frames.
 
Vasquez hit his homer on a 3-2 pitch, winning an eight-pitch at-bat where he battled back from an 0-2 count. Milligan led 5-2 at the time, not entirely one-sided until Vasquez's fifth dinger of the season. It landed well beyond the left field fence and scored three, making it 8-2.
 
Barkley followed in the next inning with a two-run shot which landed on the softball field beyond the right field fence, making it 10-2. This marked Barkley's third long ball of the year.
 
Frye ensued in the eighth inning with another two-run homer, sending the Buffs to an immediate victory as the run rule was put into place. Frye's, his second of the season, drove in Bailey Psathas who was pinch running for a Harper single.
 
On the mound, Wyatt Sowers made the start and went 4-2/3 innings before handing it over to Blake Lucas midway through the fifth. Sowers struck out four and walked three while allowing seven hits and two earned runs. Lucas pitched the next 2-1/3 allowing only one hit and one walk. He struck out three and took the Buffs out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth with a strikeout on three pitches.
 
Lucas picked up the win for the first decision of his collegiate career.
 
Bluefield wins game two despite Milligan's early lead
Milligan took an early lead in game two, both in the first inning and again in the second, but Bluefield (18-15, 8-9 AAC) did most of the scoring from that point forward.
 
William Oliver put the Buffs on the board first with a two-out single to center. After Bluefield scored two in the top of the second, Milligan retook the lead with two in the bottom half. Will Queen drove in the first of the two second-inning runs before coming home to score on a Harper RBI single in the next at-bat.
 
Blake Dutton drove in Milligan's final run of the game on a two-out, pinch-hit single through the left side, but Bluefield led 6-3 at the time and added one more run of insurance in the final frame.
 
Nine Buffs accounted for nine hits on offense in the nightcap, while four pitchers shared the defensive effort. Harper made the start and went 5-2/3; Wyatt Richardson, Jack Bembry and Andrew Smith all saw relief roles. Harper was stuck with the loss to move to 3-3 on the year.
 
Up next
Milligan and Bluefield will decide the series Sunday at TVA Credit Union Park, home of the Johnson City Cardinals, in Johnson City. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.