BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Three runs were all that separated Longwood baseball and Gardner-Webb in a doubleheader to start Big South play on Saturday afternoon. Gardner-Webb (13-6, 2-0 Big South) won 1-0 and 6-4 to protect its home field as the Lancers (7-14, 0-2 Big South) are playing the first two of eight straight away from home.
 
SCORE:
 
Game 1
              R             H            E
LWU      0             3             0
GWU     1             6             0
 
Game 2
              R             H            E
LWU      4             9             1
GWU     6             11           1
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
Game 1:
The two pitching staffs were dialed in and surrendered a total of nine base hits. Gardner-Webb used eight strong shutout innings from ace Bobby Alcock. He earned the win, his fourth of the season, with 12 strikeouts against two walks and three hits. Dalton Wood walked one and hit one in the ninth, but he got out of the jam to earn the save.
 
For the Lancers, the duo of Logan Berrier and Guillermo Garcia, Jr. nearly matched them pitch for pitch. The two combined for eight strikeouts in eight innings of work while only giving up six hits and four walks that led to one run. Berrier took the loss after pitching into the fifth.
 
The lone run came in the fifth. After a leadoff single by Jacob Marcos, Curtis Robison doubled him home one batter later to put Gardner-Webb up 1-0.
 
The Lancers put the tying run on base in each of the following four innings, and the tying run was in scoring position in the top of the ninth. However, Gardner-Webb managed to get out of trouble each time, including turning a game-ending double play.
 
Game 2:
 
Both offenses found a little more purchase in the second game, as the two teams scored eight of their 10 runs in the first five innings.
 
The Runnin' Bulldogs struck first, but Longwood answered in the top of the third with a two-out rally. Drayven Kowalski put the Lancers on the board and tied the score at 1-1 with an RBI single. Quincy Sippio followed it up with a two-run triple one batter later to give the Lancers their lone lead of the game at 3-1.
 
Gardner-Webb answered with four runs in the home half of the third to retake the lead, 5-3. Shortstop Jacob McCaskey started the rally with a solo home run.
 
Gregory Ryan, Jr. cut the lead right back to one with a solo blast to left field in the fifth, but Gardner-Webb extended the lead back to two in the sixth inning.
 
In the eighth, the Lancers put the tying runs on base, but Gardner-Webb again ducked the big game-tying swing.
 
Tyler Switalski (3-2) earned the win for Gardner-Webb after pitching into the seventh inning. He struck out nine while giving up four runs, all earned, on seven hits and a walk. Connor Magi worked the ninth for his second save of the season.
 
Ryan Miller (1-2) took the loss for the Lancers. He was charged with five runs, all earned, on eight hits without giving up a walk in four innings of work. He struck out four.

WHAT THEY SAID:
 
"Our pitchers threw the ball well today," said Longwood Head Coach Chad Oxendine. "We had one bad inning in game two. Our guys know that we can play with anyone when we execute and have good approaches at the plate. It's a long season—we have to continue to believe in the process."
 
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
 
The six hits allowed by the Lancer pitching staff tied a season low in the first game.
 
Longwood had a baserunner in each of the final four innings of game one.
 
Hayden Harris, James Nelson and Luis DeLeon each had a base hit for the Lancers in a hit-sparse game one for both teams.
 
In game two, Eliot Dix, Tanner Thomas and Drew Camp each had multi-hit days. All three players had two hits apiece.
 
For Ryan, the homer was his sixth of the season. He leads the team.
 
Kowalski and Sippio combined to drive in three of Longwood's four runs as the seven and eight guys in the batting order.
 
UP NEXT:
 
The two teams will play the series finale at 2 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. The game will be aired on ESPN+.
 
#GoWood #HorsePower