Story written and posted by Anthony Perry '08, Fisher College Assistant Athletic Director/Sports Information
MARION, N.C. – The Fisher College Baseball team battled hard against #11 ranked Georgia Gwinnet College this morning ultimately falling twice to the defending NAIA National Champions, 6-3 and 16-1. The pair of losses sends the Falcons to 21-23 overall on the season while the Grizzlies improve to 30-11.
Game One: #11 Georgia Gwinnett College 6, Fisher College 3 (Final)
Junior Angel Rivera (Caguas, Puerto Rico) tossed four scoreless innings of relief to give the Falcons a chance however they were unable to find the key hit offensively in the opening loss to Georgia Gwinnett. The right-hander allowed three hits and struck out three. Sophomore Fernando Ortiz (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico) also tossed a scoreless frame in the seventh allowing one walk and striking out one. Junior left-handed starter Ronald Luke (Malden, Mass.) was credited with the loss, he is now 5-3 on the season, after allowing six runs (five earned) on six hits over two innings of work.
Senior Cameron Pearson (Orlando, Fla.) went 2-for-3 with a RBI double and classmate Nicholas Lucchese (Long Island, N.Y.) added an RBI on his 1-for-3 performance. Sophomore catcher Miguel Torres (Villalba, Puerto Rico) knocked in the other run for the Falcons with a walk in the second as he ended the opener going 1-for-2 at the plate.
The Grizzlies were led by senior Austin Bates (Ossining, N.Y.), who was 1-for-3 with two RBI in the contest. Sophomore Cohen Wilbanks (Cartersville, Ga.) chipped with a 2-for-2 showing and freshman Braxton Meguiar (Auburn, Ky.) was 1-for-3 with two runs scored and a RBI. Junior Rob Hamby (Demorest, Ga.) picked up his fifth win of the season as the right-hander tossed six innings, surrendering three runs (all earned) on six hits while walking three and striking out six. Senior Tuck Tucker (Mineloa, Texas) earned his first save with a clean seventh allowing one hit.
Game Two: #11 Georgia Gwinnett College 16, Fisher College 1 (Final)
A nine run explosion for the Grizzlies in the fourth inning sealed the game as Georgia Gwinnett completed the double-header and three game series sweep with a 16-1 victory.
It was a solid start for Fisher freshman right-hander Travis Traviza (Mayaguez, Puerto Rico), who held one of the top ranked offenses scoreless over the first three frames. However, the Grizzlies got to him in the fourth as the young starter ended his afternoon allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits while striking out three.
Offensively the Falcons received a sacrifice fly from sophomore Alejandro Sola (Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico) in the seventh to account for the only run of the contest. Senior Jacob Deziel (Merrimac, Mass.), Pearson, Torres, and sophomore Emanuel Rosado (Bayamon, Puerto Rico) recorded the four base hits for Fisher.
GGC starter senior Rian Mann (Lawrenceville, Ga.) pitched effectively as the right-hander allowed three hits over four scoreless innings of work to improve to 4-1 on the year. Junior Jonathan Habb (Norcross, Ga.) struck out all three batters he faced in the fifth and classmate Antonio Buckley (Centreville, Va.) allowed the lone Falcon run in the seventh during his only inning of work.
At the dish, the Grizzlies saw senior Livingston Morris (Woodstock, Ga.) and sophomore Adam Alicea-Brooks (Fairburn, Ga.) each knock one out of the park while Meguiar collected three hits. Morris finished 2-for-3 with the home run and four RBI while Alicea-Brooks was 1-for-1 with the three run homer in the seventh.
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Fisher will return to action on Wednesday afternoon as they travel to Lyndonville, Vt. for a 4pm game against Northern Vermont University - Lyndon. This will be the first trip to Lyndon since the Falcons caputred the 2006 Sunrise Conference Championship over the Hornents on April 30, 2006.