CLEVELAND, Ga. (January 29, 2023) - On Saturday, the Truett McConnell University baseball team competed in Rio Grande series doubleheader, where a tough 6-8 loss in game one proved not a dilemma for the Bears as they dominated in game two with a final score of 13-5 to secure the series. 

GAME 1 | 6-8
The Bears hit the board early in the bottom of the first with an RBI double from Andrew Johnston to score Tanner Griffith from first, followed by a single up the middle by Jake Edwards to send Johnston home (2-0). Andrew Fry started on the mound for TMU, keeping the Red Storm scoreless for the first three innings. The Bears were capable of adding a third run to scoreboard in the bottom of the third after perfectly placed ball from Edwards allowed Mikal Mascarello to reach home. The top of the fourth saw RIO Grande fight back with four runs, putting TMU down by one (3-4). Both teams worked to put runners on but produced zero runs, until the bottom of the sixth when a Mascarello RBI single evened the play (4-4), followed by two more runs to put TMU ahead by 6-4. The Red Storm responded in the top of the seventh with a single run and continued to add to their score in the top of the eighth to make the score 6-8. The bottom of the eighth saw TMU with a runner in scoring position, but ultimately fell short to a final score of 6-8.  

LEADERS
Edwards went 2-5 at the plate with two RBIs, while Mascarello 2-3 at the plate , along with a single run, a single RBI and two walks. Griffith was featured going 1-2 at the plate with one RBI, one run and two walks, followed by Andrew Johnston who went 1-4 at the plate with one run, one RBI and one walk. 

Pitcher Jacob Adams recorded three strikeouts on the day, while Fry recorded two strikeouts and Phillip Braswell recorded one strikeout. 

GAME 2 | 13-5 
TMU was hot from the start with an early lead in the bottom of the first with a Mascarello double to deep center to score Griffith, an Ethan Roberts single to left to score Mascarello and perfectly executed ball to second from Caleb Ramsey to send  Roberts home from third (3-0). Rio Grande added two runs in the bottom of the second, but the Bears did not hold back as they added seven runs in the bottom of the second, sparked by a Mascarello RBI single and ending with a Jordan Kenty two RBI single to make the score 10-2. Caleb Johnson held his own on the mound, holding the Red Storm to three runs, featuring two strikeouts and a single walk. TMU continued to widen the gap with three more runs in the bottom of the third, while Rio Grande added two run in the top of the fifth (13-4). The final inning saw the visiting team working hard to cut the deficit with one run scored, but a stout Bears defense shut the Red Storms offense down  in the top of the seventh to steal game three and secure the series with a score of 13-5. 

LEADERS
Mascarello went 2-3 at the plate with three runs and two RBIs, while Edwards went 2-3 with three runs and Roberts went 2-3 with three RBIs. Johnson earned his first win the season.

UP NEXT 
The Bears are back inside the tMU Baseball Complex for a non-conference matchup with Toccoa Falls College on Monday, January 30, with game time set for 4:00 p.m.