FLORENCE, SC – Sophomore center fielder Caleb Oakley's sacrifice fly capped a two-run rally in the bottom of the ninth inning as Francis Marion University rallied for the game-one win in what would ultimately be a split of its doubleheader with Barton College on Saturday afternoon (Apr. 15).  The Patriots secured game one 3-2, but fell 5-2 in nightcap.
 
Francis Marion sits at 23-20 overall, while holding a 14-11 record in league play and will entertain their final home regular-season contest with the series finale versus Barton on Sunday at 11 a.m. (PLEASE NOTE the earlier start time) FMU will honor 13 Patriots for Senior Day before the start of the contest.
 
In game one, sophomore right-hander Robbie Jordan started for FMU and tossed seven strong innings.  He allowed one run on five hits, and struck out 10 Bulldogs, just one shy of his career-high. Sophomore closer Josh Adams (3-0) picked up the win by going two innings, allowing one run on one hit with one strikeout.
 
Five Patriots recorded two hits apiece with seniors Will Hardee and Naphis Llanos grabbing extra bags. Hardee extended his hitting streak in today's doubleheader to 15 games and his streak of safely reaching base to 27 games.
 
After the Bulldogs scored one run in the ninth to reclaim the lead at 2-1, the Patriots had their backs to the wall in crunch time. Llanos cracked a double down the left field line to kick off the inning and would move to third on a sacrifice bunt. Junior shortstop Blake Falor then blooped an RBI single down the right field line to score Llanos and tie the score at 2-2. 
 
Junior left fielder Zack Summerville followed with a single through the middle despite a defensive shift, which moved the winning run to third. Oakley cracked a sacrifice fly to center field to bring home Falor for the walk-off win.
 
The Bulldogs rattled off one run in the first to give them an early lead. A single by Carelle Gonzalez followed by a wild pitch put the right fielder in scoring position. A single to center field by Jared Beebe would score Gonzalez for a 1-0 advantage.
 
The Patriots would respond in the third after starting with a single to right field by Hardee. With FMU runners on the corners, a single off the bat of sophomore first baseman Kollin Crepeau would tie the score at 1-1.
 
Barton opened the ninth with a Corey Walter double to the left field wall, and he advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. A sacrifice fly to right field scored Walters and helped the Bulldogs jump in front 2-1.
 
Lefty reliever Brett Anderson (2-3) was tagged with the loss. 
 
In game two, junior southpaw Chas DeBruhl (5-4) took the loss tossing 3.1 innings on the rubber. Sophomore reliever Tyler Reynolds pitched three scoreless innings allowing just one hit and striking out one.
 
Graduate student second baseman Tanner Wakefield led Francis Marion at the plate going 2-of-3, while five other Patriots picked up a hit apiece. Crepeau led FMU with the Patriots' only two runs batted in.
 
The Bulldogs opened with a run in the first inning after a wild pitch and added two more in the third to lead 3-0. The Patriots began to catch fire in the third plating two runs. With two outs, singles by Oakley and Hardee gave Francis Marion two runners in scoring position.  Crepeau followed with a two-run single to left to cut the Barton lead to 3-2.
 
Barton answered with two more runs in the fourth and held FMU at the plate over the next three innings to solidify their victory in game two 5-2.
 
Junior southpaw Tanner Halvorson (8-2) grabbed the win for the Bulldogs (22-16, 15-8) recording his seventh complete game of the season (first in NCAA Division II baseball).  He tossed seven innings, allowing two runs off seven hits, walking two, and striking out six.

 
 
Francis Marion Univ. 3, Barton College 2 (Apr 15, 2023 at Florence, SC) (Game 1)
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Barton College......... 100 000 001  -  2  6  1      (21-16, 14-8 CC)
Francis Marion Univ. 001 000 002  -  3 10  0      (23-19, 14-10 CC)
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Pitchers: Barton College - Connor Patterson; Patrick Groark(7); Brett Anderson(9) and
James Holladay. Francis Marion Univ. - Robbie Jordan; Josh Adams(8) and Isaac Schuck.
Win-Josh Adams (3-0)  Loss-Brett Anderson (2-3)  T-2:22  A-253
Weather: Partly Cloudy,81,WindsNE@11mph
 
 
Barton College 5, Francis Marion Univ. 2 (Apr 15, 2023 at Florence, SC) (Game 2)
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Barton College......... 102 200 0 -  5  9  0      (22-16, 15-8 CC)
Francis Marion Univ. 002 000 0 -  2  7  2      (23-20, 14-11 CC)
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Pitchers: Barton College - Tanner Halvorson and James Holladay. Francis Marion Univ. -
Chas DeBruhl; Cory Poulsen(4); Tyler Reynolds(5) and Tucker Rabun.
Win-Tanner Halvorson (8-2)  Loss-Chas DeBruhl (5-4)  T-1:51
Weather: Partly Cloudy,81,Wind NE@10mph