CLINTON, S.C. – Longwood baseball earned a hard-fought split in a doubleheader at Presbyterian on Saturday afternoon. The offense muscled out 17 hits in a 12-2 win to open the series, and Ryan Miller gave Longwood (21-29, 9-14 Big South) a quality start. In the second game, Guillermo Garcia, Jr. was equally as strong on the mound, but Presbyterian (19-32, 10-13 Big South) rallied in the seventh to win 4-2 and even the series.
 
SCORES:
 
Game 1
               R             H            E
LWU      12           17           0
PC          2             5             1
 
Game 2
               R             H            E
LWU      2             5             1
PC          4             7             1
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
Game 1:
The Lancer offense tied a season-high with 17 hits to open the three-game series, and Longwood never trailed thanks to Miller's strong start.
 
Miller (4-5) walked five but only gave up two hits in six scoreless frame. He didn't allow a hit in the first inning and retired 11 straight from the second through fifth inning.
 
Meanwhile, the offense jumped out to a 3-0 lead on RBI singles by Hayden Harris, Drayven Kowalski and Dylan Wilkinson in the second inning, but they broke it open in the middle of the game.
 
After Luis DeLeon doubled in a run in the fifth, Eliot Dix smashed a grand slam in the sixth that doubled the Lancer lead to 8-0. DeLeon drove in another run a few batters later, and the Lancers never looked back.
 
Ryan had an RBI double of his own, and Wilkinson and Corbin McCloud capped the run production when each was hit with the bases loaded.
 
Dix and DeLeon each had three-hit days, and every Lancer  that started in the lineup had a base hit.
 
Duncan Howard (3-5) took the loss for Presbyterian on the mound. He gave up six runs, five earned, on 10 hits and a walk with two strikeouts in 5.2 innings.
 
Game 2:
Garcia was excellent on the bump in game two for Longwood, and the righthander struck out seven in his six scoreless innings. He only surrendered three hits and two walks on his way to a quality start.
 
The Lancer offense again struck early with a pair of runs in the third. This time, Collin Hughes opened the scoring with an RBI double down the right field line, and Keondre Shelton singled up the middle a few batters later to score Hughes for a 2-0 lead.
 
However, Longwood was unable to solve Presbyterian starter Charlie McDaniel (4-7) from that point on. The lefthander pitched into the eighth. He struck out three and limited Longwood to four hits and two walks while striking out three.
 
Presbyterian broke through in the seventh inning and scored four runs, three earned, off Logan Berrier (2-5), who took the relief loss. He gave up three hits and two walks.
 
Longwood had an opportunity in the ninth after loading the bases with two outs, but Tanner Smith earned his seventh save of the season with a trio of strikeouts to keep the Lancers at bay.
 
Hayden Harris had two of Longwood's five hits in the second game.
 
WHAT THEY SAID:
 
"Our guys competed all day long," said Longwood head coach Chad Oxendine. "Our pitching staff did a heck of a job. We have a big one tomorroww—we have to come out ready to rock."
 
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
 
The first game marked the second time this season Longwood has had 17 hits. The first time was against High Point on April 1.
 
The Lancers are still unbeaten when scoring at least 10 runs. The team is a perfect 10-0.
 
In that first game, 14 of Longwood's 17 hits were singles.
 
Dix had his 21^st multi-hit game of the season.
 
It was also Dix's first 4 RBI game this year.
 
DeLeon had his 10^th multi-hit game in the first game as well.
 
Ten Lancers had a base hit in the game.
 
UP NEXT:
 
Longwood and Presbyterian battle for the series on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. The game will be aired on ESPN+. The Lancers will send freshman lefthander Ethan Walker to the mound to take on Presbyterian's Daniel Eagan.
 
#GoWood