MONTGOMERY, Ala. - After allowing six unanswered runs in a 6-3 setback in the opener, Faulkner exploded past Mobile 12-0 in the nightcap to earn a split of their Southern States Athletic Conference doubleheader here Sunday afternoon at Harrison Field.

The top-ranked Eagles (30-7, 13-4 SSAC) remained atop the league standings with the split, while the Rams saw their record drop to 24-11 overall and 10-7 in the conference.

"It was good to see us bounce back in the second game after a tough one in the first," Faulkner head coach Patrick McCarthy said. "You're not going to win them all, and I was proud the way our guys stayed with it after suffering some adversity. We'll try to get out here and win the series tomorrow."

In Game 1, Michael Cruz hit a sacrifice fly in the first for a 1-0 Eagles' lead, and Dauris Holguin's RBI single highighted a two-run second as Faulkner built a 3-0 advantage. The Rams, however, battled back with a vengeance, as Philip McDuffie and Taylor Hardy each drove in runs in the third to trim the margin to 3-2. Neil Hudson's solo home run in the fourth tied the game at 3, and a pair of walks and two wild pitches from Faulkner starter Thomas Dorminy allowed the Rams to take a 4-3 lead in the sixth.

McDuffie's second RBI - a sacrifice fly - and Braxton Hamil's run-scoring single, both coming in the top of the seventh, allowed Mobile to stretch its lead to 6-3. Mobile starter Jeff Price coaxed a pair of double play grounders to get out of the fifth and sixth innings unscathed, and retired the Eagles' Michael Cruz on slow grounder with the bases loaded to end the seven-inning affair.

Dorminy lost his first game of the season, dropping to 6-1, while Price improved to 6-1 with the victory. Holguin and Robert Llera were the only Eagles with multiple hits, each collected two singles.

In the nightcap the Eagles once again jumped on top, but this time they stayed there. Chris Madera's RBI single in the first inning gave Faulkner a 1-0 advantage, and the Eagles broke it open with a six-run third. Llera had a two-run single and Luis Sanchez an RBI single to highlight the uprising, which included three wild pitches resulting in three additional runs.

Cruz drove in another run with a sacrifice fly in the fifth to make it 8-0, and Llera followed with a two-run double to push the lead to 10-0. The Eagles scored two more in the sixth, one on a dropped fly ball and another on a wild pitch.

Eight of Faulkner's runs came from baserunners who had reached either by walk, being hit by a pitch or courtesy of a Ram error. Four Mobile pitchers issued eight walks and hit three Eagle batters in the game.

Holcombe was efficient in running his record to 6-2, scattering six hits in six innings of work in the shortened seven-inning game. Vincent Lujan closed it out by pitching a perfect seventh inning for the Eagles.

Faulkner and Mobile complete the series Monday afternoon at 1 at Harrison Field.