FLORENCE, SC – Senior right fielder JD Crowe collected two hits and drove in four runs to help lead Francis Marion University to a 15-10 win over Georgia College and a split of their Sunday afternoon (April 3) Peach Belt Conference baseball doubleheader.  The Bobcats used a six-run fifth inning to capture a 7-4 victory in game one of the twinbill.

The Patriots, now 20-15 overall and 8-10 in conference play, move into eighth place in the conference standings. Georgia College leaves Florence 19-13 and 9-9.

Francis Marion will play at North Greenville University on Tuesday at 6 p.m. before returning home to host local PBC rival UNC Pembroke for a three-game series next weekend.

FMU sophomore shortstop Brooks Kennedy extended his hitting streak to 23 games with three hits in each of Sunday's contests, including a 3-for-5 game-two performance that included two runs scored and one RBI.

Francis Marion built an 11-3 lead after seven innings, but had to hold off a late Georgia College rally.  The Bobcats scored seven times in the eighth to trim the margin to 11-10, but junior Zach Callahan came in from the bullpen to record the third out and strand three runners on base.

The Patriots responded with four insurance runs in their half of the eighth inning.

Callahan then pitched a perfect 1-2-3 ninth inning with two strikeouts to earn his first career save.  He started the game as the designated hitter and went 2-for-5 with two runs scored and two driven in.  FMU senior righty Brandon Cook (4-2) earned the game-two win with a seven-inning effort.  He scattered eight hits and struck out seven.

Crowe's three-run homer highlighted a four-run Patriot fifth.  FMU plated six runs in its next at bat, all scoring via different avenues: wild pitch, sacrifice fly (by junior third baseman Antonio Pino), fielder's choice grounder (Crowe), double (senior center fielder Shuler Ward), single (junior catcher Logan Koch), and throwing error.

In addition to Kennedy, Crowe, and Callahan's game-two stat lines, three other Patriots registered two hits: Pino, Ward, and junior left fielder Chase Haas.

Bobcat center fielder Logan Mattix went 3-for-5 with an RBI in the second contest, while first baseman Tanner Giesel was 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs.

Georgia College starter Trevor Guthrie (1-2) was tagged with the loss after surrendering five runs in 4.1 innings.

In Sunday's opener, Kennedy's infield single off the pitcher's glove in the last of the third led to a 1-0 FMU lead.  He moved to third on an errant pickoff throw by Bobcat starter and winning pitcher Charlie Hecht (4-2) and came home on a sacrifice fly by Pino.

Georgia College quickly tied the game when Mattix homered to right field leading off the top of the fourth.

The Bobcats broke the deadlock by pushing across six runs in the top of fourth and knocking out FMU senior southpaw Matt Kelley (4-4). Mattix again contributed to the scoring, this time with a two-run single through the left side. The outburst concluded with a three-run homer to left center by catcher Brandon Purcell.

FMU junior righty Chance DuCharme pitched well in relief allowing only one run on four hits in 4.2 innings of work.

The Patriots plated three runs in the sixth inning to climb within 7-4.  Koch lined an RBI single down the right field line, followed by a run-scoring double from Haas and an RBI single to shortstop by senior Cole Morris.  However, FMU left the bases loaded in the frame and would strand three more runners over the final three innings.

Kennedy finished the opener 3-for-5, while Koch was 2-for-4.

Right-hander Chris Gammon pitched a scoreless ninth for the Bobcats to earn his fifth save of 2016.  Mattix and left fielder Garrett Green both had two hits for Georgia College in game one.