MILLIGAN, Tenn. – The Milligan University Baseball team won the first of three games in their Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) series against the Montreat College Cavaliers on Friday afternoon at Anglin Field. The Buffs took the lead in the first frame and did not look back. Masterful pitching and a flurry of hits in the contest saw Milligan come out on top by a score of 10-1.
Montreat came out swinging to begin the ballgame, scoring their only run of the contest in the top of the first on three hits. From that point on, the Milligan pitchers would hold firm.
The Buffs would answer quickly, as Braxton Baird led off the bottom half of the first with a double. Brody Melton would change places with him soon thereafter, driving Baird in with an RBI double of his own. Tank Hansen then drove Melton in on a great piece of two-strike hitting with an RBI single, putting the Buffs up 2-1.
After holding the Cavaliers scoreless in the top of the second, the Buffs got right back to work offensively. Milligan found itself with runners on the corners and nobody out after a leadoff double by Angel Lobo and a subsequent single by Gaven Jones. Reagan Smith then proceeded to drive in Lobo on an RBI sac-fly to right field. After a walk and three stolen bases, Cade Kalehuawehe drove in both Jones and Baird with a 2 RBI single to right field, putting the Buffs up 5-1 after two innings.
The score would remain where it was until the bottom of the sixth, where Milligan would have its biggest inning of the day. A hit-by-pitch, Jones single, and a walk would load the bases for Baird with nobody out. Baird proceeded to hit a 2 RBI sac-fly to the deepest part of the yard, scoring both Lobo and Jones thanks to aggressive baserunning by Jones. A single by Kalehuawehe put runners on the corners for Melton, who blasted a 3 RBI homerun to right-center field on the first pitch he saw, scoring Josh Lail, Kalehuawehe, and himself. This blast would put the Buffs up 10-1, which would be the final tally.
Milligan's offense exploded for 12 hits in the contest led by Jones, who went 3-3 with three singles. Melton finished with a long-ball, double, and four RBIs. Kalehuawehe and Lobo each added two hits to the team's total, including a double from Lobo. Kalehuawehe had two RBIs for the Buffs. Baird reached base safely in all but one of his plate appearances, finishing with a double and two walks. Six Buffs hitters scored in the contest, four of which scored twice.
Canyon Geren got back on track in the contest on the mound, going six innings with six Ks, allowing only one run on six hits. Geren secured the win and moved to 4-2 on the season. Joe Ducharme followed with a clean inning of work, allowing no runs on one hit. Jacob Poe tossed the final two innings of play for Milligan, striking out three while allowing no runs on three hits.
Two more conference games are in store for Milligan baseball tomorrow, Apr. 19, starting at noon. The Buffs will look for the home sweep to honor their Seniors. Senior Day festivities will begin immediately following the completion of the doubleheader.
