LIVINGSTON, Ala. – Host University of West Alabama held Lee to only three runs in Saturday's doubleheader and the results were a three-game sweep by the Tigers. It also threw the Flames, Tigers and Trevecca into a three-way tie for fifth place in the important GSC standings. Lee, West Alabama and Trevecca each have a 15-15 conference record. Both the Flames and Tigers are 23-22 overall.
Eight teams will qualify for the conference tournament, which is slated to get underway in Oxford, Ala. on May 2. Lee is scheduled to host Trevecca in closing out the regular season with a three-game series this weekend. It will be a part of Military Appreciation Day on Saturday.
Game 1 – West Alabama 2, Lee 1
The Flames outhit the Tigers 8-4 in the loss but left 10 men on base. West Alabama took a 2-0 lead and broke open a pitcher's duel in the bottom of the fifth inning. With one out, Lee's starting pitcher Ty Cobb walked and hit the next two batters he faced. Eli Burwash singled home a run and Blake Vineyard knocked in the only other run the winners would need in the contest.
Lee had opportunities to score in the second, sixth and seventh innings before finally putting their only run on the board in the eighth. Luke Collier started the rally with a single to center. A ground out moved Collier to second and an infield hit allowed Collier to rest on third. Malachi Cloud singled home Collier.
The Flames threatened one more time in the top of the ninth. Josiah Miller picked up a free pass and moved to second on a sac bunt by Levi Cloud. A fly out left the Flames with only one remaining, but JJ Williams kept things alive when he was hit by a pitch. A popup ended the final threat.
Tucker Platt doubled and had two singles in the loss. Collier collected a pair of hits. Isaiah French, Malachi and Levi Cloud had the other Lee hits while Malachi collected the only RBI.
Lee got excellent mound work from Ty Cobb (1-2) and Jax Howard. Cobb pitched 4.1 innings and was charged with the loss. He gave up four hits and two earned runs. Howard registered his best outing of the year. In 3.2 frames, the tall right-hander did not allow a hit or run while striking out four and not walking a hitter.
Baker Green (2-4) was the winning Tiger pitcher. In five innings he allowed just two hits and struck out four. Four other West Alabama hurlers followed Green to the mound for one inning apiece. Judah Buckner got his second save in a row in pitching the ninth inning and giving up one walk.
Vineyard had two of the Tigers' four hits. He also collected a RBI. Burwash got into the act with a hit and the other run batted in. West Alabama drew three walks in the contest and left seven men on base.
Game 2 – West Alabama 7, Lee 2
The Flames jumped on top 1-0 in the second inning. Brock Sisson singled but was thrown out at second trying to steal. Cooper Doughman put the Flames on the board with his first homerun of the year.
The Tigers came roaring back in the bottom of the inning. They scored four runs on three hits. The big blow was a three-run homer by Austin Thacker. The home club had scored a single run when Tanner Jones picked up a RBI on a fielder's choice.
The 4-1 lead stood up until the top of the fifth when the Flames seemed ready to explode for a big inning. Doughman got a one-base hit. With one out, Gavin Baxter singled and Williams doubled down the right-field line that scored Doughman, putting runners on second and third making it 4-2. The Tigers wiggled out of the jam with a strikeout and ground out to end Lee's biggest threat of the day.
West Alabama put a little icing on the sweep with three scores in the bottom of the sixth inning. Tim Gooden came on to pitch for Lee and quickly retired two batters but got into trouble when he allowed a single and walked a batter. Joe Watkins drilled a three-run homer over the right-field wall which led to the final score reaching 7-2.
Watkins had a double and homer plus three RBI. The Tigers made the best of five other hits, one being the homer by Thacker that also plated three runs.
Lee had seven hits with Doughman leading the way with his homer and single. He also knocked in one of Lee's runs and scored the other. Williams, Collier, French, Sisson and Baxter collected a hit apiece. Williams had a double that almost cleared the right-field wall and joined Doughman with a RBI.
Dylan Van Meeteren (2-6) was the Flames starter. In 1.2 innings he gave up four hits and four earned runs. Seth Parker and Hunter Lane gave Coach Mark Brew solid work out of the pen. Parker hurled 2.1 frames and did not allow a hit. He walked one and fanned two. Lane pitched a perfect one inning. Bryant Quimby (6-5) worked the entire seven innings for the Tigers. The lefty scattered seven hits, gave up two earned runs, did not walk a batter and struck out five.
