MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Top-ranked Faulkner (32-2) countered a brief Georgia Gwinnett (25-6) lead with six unanswered runs to secure the 6-1 victory here in tonight's series opener at Harrison Field.

The No. 2 Grizzlies scored their lone run of the outing on a wild pitch in the third inning.

The visitors did load the bases in the subsequent at-bat, but solid defensive work dug the Eagles out of the jam.

Reid Long tied the contest with an RBI single just out of the second baseman's reach in the fourth inning before T.J. Riles edged the Eagles into a slight advantage on a single in the sixth.

Riles was 2-for-4 in the game.

A balk advanced the Faulkner lead to 3-1 in the eighth frame, but it was Gage West's three-run jack just moments later that put the affair permanently in the Eagles' clutches.

Tyler Thornton got the start and held the mound for three innings before a minor injury brought forth the first pitching change of the day. The senior gave up an unearned run on four hits while striking out three batters.

Brandon Suttles allowed a hit and logged an out in the fourth inning, but it was stellar work by long reliever Alex Carrillo (2-0) that provided the defensive stiff-arm Faulkner needed against the national power.

The junior right-handler surrendered just four hits and sliced through nine Grizzlies at the plate over 5 2/3 shutout innings of work in the win.

The two teams will go toe-to-toe again tomorrow in a doubleheader slated for 2 p.m.