YOUNG HARRIS, GA – Junior shortstop Michael Wilson's grand slam highlighted a six-run fifth inning as Francis Marion University defeated Young Harris College 11-6, Thursday evening (May 2) in Peach Belt Conference baseball action at Zell B. Miller Field.

The Patriots improved to 26-16 overall and move into second place in the PBC standings with at 18-9.  The Mountain Lions fall to 22-23 and 8-19. The two teams conclude their three-game series with a doubleheader on Friday at 1 p.m.

Wilson, senior third baseman Stephen Tarkenton, and junior right fielder Isaac Davenport all had two hits apiece.  In addition to the grand slam, Wilson drove in a fifth run with a sacrifice fly.  Davenport extended his hitting streak to 12 games.

The Mountain Lions jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the fourth as Trey Rogers and David Atwood led off the inning with back-to-back doubles.

Francis Marion broke the game open in the fifth against Young Harris starter Adam Moore (4-5) as the Patriot rally consisted of four hits, a hit batter and a walk. The Patriots tied the game at 1 on Davenport's RBI-single through the left side. Tarkenton followed with a sacrifice fly to right field to put FMU up 2-1 and Wilson then hammered his second homer of 2013 over the right field fence to stake the Patriots to a 6-1 advantage.

FMU tacked on two unearned runs in the seventh as took advantage of two of the four errors that Young Harris committed. Young Harris rallied for four runs in its half of the seventh to pull within three runs at 8-5. Mike Medori had an RBI single after Moore started the outburst with a double to left-center field. Atwood and Jack Morrow added run-scoring singles before Zach Bricknell contributed a sacrifice fly.

Francis Marion added three insurance runs in the ninth as one run scored on a throwing error, Wilson hit his sacrifice fly, and senior first baseman Rhodes Dickerson tallied an RBI single.

Senior right-hander Gary Ashcroft (6-4) earned the win with 6.1 innings of work, while junior righty Jeffrey Stoner earned his third save as he pitched the final 2.2 innings, including working out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh.