Senior shortstop Jason Jucker hit his first career home run as the Brevard College baseball team (14-7, 3–1 USA South) claimed a 6-3 victory over Piedmont University (8-10-1, 0-1 USAS) in a USA South Conference showdown on Friday night at Loudermilk Field in Demorest, Georgia.
Jucker’s first-career blast stretched BC’s lead to a 4-0 margin after Brevard posted three runs in the top of the fourth inning, breaking the scoreless tie. BC added a pair of critical insurance runs in the top of the eighth, and the Tornados were able to shut the door on the series-opening win.
Matthew Scavotto (3-2) earned his third win of the season, hurling five and two-thirds innings without allowing an earned run. The senior lefty struck out five Piedmont batters en route to the conference win.
Bryce Bowers earned his second save of the season, throwing three and a third innings of relief with four strikeouts, allowing just two hits and a run to help seal the victory.
Jucker tallied the first home run of his collegiate career, while Jack Atkinson went 2-for-4 with a run scored and a stolen base. Logan Clark and Cale Oehler each had two hits apiece, as Brevard outhit the Lions 9-6.
Noah Aaron and Carter Ballstadt led the Piedmont offense with two hits each, including doubles. Peyton Irvin (1-3) was saddled with the loss after seven and a third innings of work and six runs allowed.
Brevard kicked the scoring off in the top of the third, as Blake Burchett‘s RBI groundout scored his cousin, Blake Burchett, making it a 1-0 Tornado lead. A Piedmont error allowed Zach Allison and Brett Burchett to cross the plate in the same frame, pushing the Tornado lead to a 3-0 margin.
Piedmont stranded a total of five baserunners through the first four innings, as Scavotto and the Tornado defense made key plays to escape jams in each frame.
Jucker drilled a one-out homer to left field that extended BC’s advantage to a 4-0 mark, as his 116th career hit was the first home run of his Tornado career.
The Lions were able to take advantage of two Tornado errors, scratching across a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth to cut the deficit in half, 4-2. With the bases loaded and two outs, Bowers came in and forced a flyout to limit the damage for Brevard.
Brevard tallied a pair of critical insurance runs in the top of the eighth after a Piedmont error allowed two Tornados to come across the plate, extending its advantage back up to four runs, 6-2.
Piedmont used a leadoff double and a one-out RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to trim the Tornado lead to three runs, 6-3, but Bowers slammed the door with a strikeout and a fly out, sealing the conference triumph.
Brevard and Piedmont will square off in game two of the three-game series on Saturday at 3 p.m.