MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Faulkner rebounded from a difficult performance in game one of a doubleheader against Abraham Baldwin Sunday to win the rubber game and take the series.
ABAC 14, FAULKNER 4
After having dropped the first game of the series 7-4 Friday, the Stallions took a 2-0 lead in the second inning of game one Sunday with a pair of solo homers from Joe Fisher and Chasin Cash. The lead did not remain narrow for long as ABAC exploded for seven runs in the third inning. Cash added a sacrifice fly RBI in the fourth to move the lead to 10-0.
The Eagles started to show signs of life in the fourth when
Christian Webb doubled to right to plate Edrien Martinez and get the home team on the board. ABAC tacked on two in the top of the fifth to move the advantage to 12-1 before Faulkner threatened a crooked number in the home half of the inning.
Martinez absorbed a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch to get
Juan Trinidad home and cut it to 12-2. Dariel Colon then drew a walk to get
Jeyson Polanco across the plate and cut it to 12-3. Faulkner looked to add more in the frame but left the bases loaded.
Cash wasted little time getting one of those runs back as he hit the first pitch of the sixth inning over the right field fence for his second homer of the day and a 13-3 lead. The Stallions showed no let-up during the ensuing plate appearances as they went on to load the bases with nobody out in the top of the sixth. A fielder's choice got a run home to move it to 14-3.
Marlon Oviedo started the home half of the sixth with a double and made it home on a Trinidad double to make it 14-4. After ABAC loaded the bases in the seventh,
Avery Shelton induced a pop up and recorded two strikeouts to get out of the mess with no runners crossing, marking the only inning of the game that did not include a Stallion score.
Trypp Lumpkin kept the Faulkner offense off balance for much of the day as he allowed only two hits and one earned run over five innings of work. For its part, the Faulkner pitching staff combined to allow 13 hits and issue eight walks while allowing 14 earned runs.
FAULKNER 14, ABAC 8
The Eagles proved resilient in game three of the series, twice avoiding the shutdown inning to hang a crooked number and regain a previously lost lead. The pivotal rally came in the bottom of the fifth when Faulkner put eight runs on the board. With his team trailing 7-5,
Orlando Lorduy singled to start the fire. Edrien Martinez followed with a double to center to drive him home and make it 7-6. Eduarny Martinez then singled up the middle to plate Edrien and tie the game. After a
Jeyson Polanco single, Oviedo singled up the middle to get Eduarny home for the 8-7 advantage.
Anthony Bassett Torres dropped down a sacrifice bunt and reached on an error to load the bases. Trinidad singled to plate Polanco to move it to 9-7 before
Kenny Di Clemente drew a walk to get Oviedo home for the 10-7 lead. Lorduy made the most of his second at-bat of the inning when he doubled down the rightfield line to drive in three and leave the Eagles up 13-7.
Faulkner added an insurance run in the eighth when Webb singled and gave way to courtesy runner
John-Michael Riley. After advancing to second on a passed ball, Riley moved to third on a grounder. Oviedo grounded to short to get Riley home for the 14-7 lead.
The Eagles opened the scoring in the first when Edrien Martinez drove in Trinidad with a fielder's choice. Eduarny Martinez followed with a single down the right field line to get Edrien home for the 2-0 lead.
The Stallions erupted for four runs in the third to go up 4-2. Lorduy singled in Trinidad in the home half of the frame to cut it to 4-3. Webb then singled home two runs to put Faulkner up 5-4. ABAC briefly took the lead back in the top of the fifth, setting up the game-changing sequence in the home half of the frame.
Alonzo Castellanos (3-1) delivered for the Faulkner bullpen in a major way as he entered in relief to cover five innings while issuing no walks and allowing just two runs.
Faulkner (19-5, 9-3 SSAC) hosts Bryan College for a midweek contest Wednesday at 3 p.m. before traveling to Mount Vernon, Ga. to take on SSAC foe Brewton-Parker Friday at 5 p.m.
