Milligan University

BLUEFIELD, Va. — The (RV) Milligan University baseball team concluded their road Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) series at Bluefield University on Saturday afternoon with a pair of contests. A 10-6 win in game one of the day preceded a 6-2 victory in the seven-inning battle to earn the Buffaloes another AAC sweep.

In inning number one of the opener, back-to-back singles from Braxton Baird and Gaven Jones preceded a double steal attempt by the Buffs that saw Jones cut down at second but Baird advancing all the way across the plate to take a 1-0 lead early.

A solo homer from Nick Iezzi in the top of the second doubled that edge, giving MU a 2-0 lead after one-and-a-half.

With two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the second, the Rams worked back-to-back walks to force two runs home and tied the game 2-2.

Inning number three began with the Buffaloes notching a run on a RBI double by Jones out to left-center field. Nick Moss scored from first base after walking to start the frame. With a 3-2 lead and runners at the corners, Brody Melton stole second base and advanced to third on a throwing error by the Bluefield catcher, which allowed Jones to come home from third base. Milligan regained their two-run lead at 4-2.

The offenses would slow down from there until the top of the sixth inning, when Reagan Smith delivered a two-out RBI triple to score Landon Lutterman and put Milligan up 5-2.

Following a leadoff triple by Baird on the seventh, Jones delivered a sacrifice fly to inch the Buffs further in front, 6-2.

A run-scoring groundout by Bluefield in the bottom of the seventh got them back to within three runs at 6-3, but a pair of two-run doubles by Milligan in the top of the eighth by Baird and Cade Kalehuawehe put them up by seven runs at 10-3.

The Rams did battle back with a pair of RBI singles and a bases-loaded walk to notch a three spot in the bottom of the eighth inning. Additionally, they kept the Buffs off the board in the top of the ninth, giving the hosts a chance in the bottom half. They would pick up a pair of singles, but the game would end in a 10-6 Milligan win.

A lower scoring second contest would follow, as the scoring began in the top of the third frame when Baird homered for the first time in the series. His solo shot made it 1-0, then Jones reached on an error and stole second before advancing to third on a groundout. Melton then singled to the shortstop and drove in Jones to make it 2-0.

Bluefield would notch a solo homer in the bottom of the third to lead the frame off, cutting their deficit in half at 2-1.

Across the next three innings, Milligan would add one run in each. A Jones RBI single in the fourth, a run-scoring single by Iezzi in the fifth and a sacrifice fly by Jones in the sixth made it 5-1. 

The Rams grabbed a single run on a one-out RBI single through the middle of the infield. It was a 5-2 MU lead after six full frames.

A RBI walk by Baird in the top of the final frame would push the lead to 6-2, scoring Iezzi. 

After back-to-back singles to start the bottom of the seventh for Bluefield, Milligan turned a double play and induced another groundout to put an end to the game by the final score of 6-2.

Baird continued his hot-hitting series, totaling six hits in nine at-bats on Saturday, equaling a 9-for-13 weekend overall. He homered, tripled, doubled and stole a pair of bases on Saturday, as well. Jones totaled four hits in eight ABs, driving in four just like Baird. He had a double on the day, as well as a stolen base. Melton also had four hits in nine at-bats with an RBI. Smith was the final hitter with four knocks on the day, driving in a run and scoring twice. Kalehuawehe, Iezzi and Wyatt Heidle all provided two hits, while both Moss and Landon Lutterman had one.

Jonah Ward (6 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 3 K, 3 BB) earned his sixth win in seven decisions this season in game one. He was relieved by Devin Gutierrez in the seventh. Gutierrez tossed 1.1 innings and allowed four runs (three earned) on two hits and three walks with a pair of strikeouts. Cole Wessel rounded things out with 1.2 innings of work, allowing four hits but no runs with a walk and a punchout.

Jack McLaury (5 IP, ER, 4 H, 6 K, BB) and Sai Vickers (2 IP, ER, 4 H, BB) recorded the win and the save for the Buffs in game two, closing out the series on a strong note for MU. For McLaury it was win number six and for Vickers it was his first career save.

Milligan (34-8, 20-4 AAC) is now in a prime position with just a single AAC series remaining to contend for the regular-season title. Before their final two series of the season—one non-conference and one in the AAC—the Buffaloes will be playing host to No. 2-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College on Anglin Field on Tuesday, April 14 at 3 p.m.