Lions Complete Four-Game Series Sweep of Lawson State

The Wallace State baseball team completed a four-game conference series sweep with two wins over Lawson State on Sunday afternoon.  The Lions won game one 11-3 before winning 8-1 in the series finale.

The Lions sit at 17-9 overall and 5-3 in conference play, while the Cougars are now 3-23 (0-8 ACCC).

G1: Wallace State 11, Lawson State 3

In game one, the Lions struck early and often in their 11-3 win over visiting Lawson State.

Wallace State took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Colten Payton hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Casen Heaps from third.

The Lions added four runs in the bottom of the second to extend their lead to 5-0. Sam Henegar got the inning started with a walk and a stolen base. After advancing to third on a wild pitch, Henegar scored on a Heaps single to left. Austin Nix delivered a big blow when he hit a three-run home run to right field, plating Heaps and Conner Hensley.

Wallace State added three more runs in the bottom of the third, pushing the score to 8-0. Andrew Lawrence reached second on an error to start the inning. Conner Lowery then walked to give the Lions runners at first and second. Henegar laid down a sacrifice but, advancing the runners to second and third. After a groundout for out #2, Riley Jackson had an infield single that scored Lawrence from third. Heaps then hit a bases clearing triple to plate Lowery and Jackson.

Lawson State finally got on the scoreboard with three runs in the top of the fourth. All their runs came with two outs.

After the Cougars cut the lead to 8-3 in the top of the fourth, Wallace State plated three more runs to make the score 11-3. Lowery got the scoring started with a double to center that brought home Jamie Howze, who had walked earlier in the inning. With runners at second and third, Henegar had an infield hit that drove home Lawrence and Lowery.

Lions pitchers kept the Cougars scoreless the remainder of the game, leading Wallace State to an 11-3 victory.

Heaps finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored to lead the Lions offense. Henegar and Nix each added a hit and two RBIs, while Lowery, Payton and Jackson each had an RBI.

Eli Cannon (3-0) earned the win after allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits in 5.1 innings of work. Greyson Howard pitched 1.2 innings of relief, allowing one hit while striking out three.

G2: Wallace State 8, Lawson State 1 

The Cougars got on the board first when two Wallace State errors helped plate the first run of the game. The Lions responded in the bottom of the inning when Nix hit a home run to straight away center to tie the game at 1-1.

WallaceState added a run in the bottom of the second when Will Perry scored on a wild pitch, giving the Lions a 2-1 lead. They added two runs in the bottom of the fourth when Cooper Sanford hit a two-run homer to right field, plating Perry for a 4-1 lead.

With two outs in the bottom of the fifth, Nix had an infield single that brought home Lowery for a 5-1 lead. They extended their lead to 7-1 in the seventh when Heaps infield hit brought home Perry and then Nix drove home Heaps with a double to right field.

The Lions finished the scoring in the eighth when Sanford was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, bringing home Lawrence, who was hit by pitch earlier in the inning.

Wallace State pitchers combined to strike out 10 Lawson State batters, while allowing only one run on five hits.

Jayden Martin (3-1) pitched five innings to get the win. He gave up two hits and one run while striking out six. Ryan Everly closed out the game with four innings of scoreless relief, allowing one hit and striking out four.

Nix finished 3-of-4 with three RBIs and a run scored to lead the Lions. Sanford added two hits, three RBIs and a run scored, while Heaps added a hit, an RBI and a run scored. Perry finished with two hits and three runs scored.

Upcoming

Wallace State will travel to Chattahoochee Valley in Phenix City to start a four game conference series on Thursday, March 20th. They will return home on the 22nd to complete the series with the Pirates.

Chattahoochee Valley is 9-16 overall and 5-3 in conference. They are coming off a four-game split with Shelton State, winning 8-1 and 7-0, while losing 10-0 and 6-2.

Justin Veloz leads the Pirates offense and is fifth in the conference with a .430 batting average, while Josh McDonald is fourth in the conference with 22 RBIs. Trey Fulmer leads the conference with seven home runs, while Zach Johnpeer is fourth with five.

Conner Michel leads the Chattahoochee Valley pitching staff and is fourth in the conference with a 3.13 ERA. Gavin Blair sits third in the conference with 38 strikeouts.