Reinhardt, TWU Remain Undefated in Baseball Tournament Play

KINGSPORT, Tenn. – High scores were the name of the game on Thursday in the Appalachian Athletics Conference baseball tournament. The winners of the four games posted a combined 43 runs.

Union and Bryan staved off elimination in the morning session, while Tennessee Wesleyan and Reinhardt remained unbeaten with wins in the afternoon at Hunter Wright Stadium.

Friday's action will begin with a pair of elimination games, starting at 9 a.m. between Union and Montreat. At noon, Bryan will meet Milligan. 

At 4 p.m., Tennessee Wesleyan awaits the winner of the Union/Montreat game, while Reinhardt will play the winner of the Bryan/Milligan game in the nightcap. 

The tournament is being held at Hunter Wright Stadium in Kingsport, Tenn.

Tickets are now available and can be purchased by clicking here.

If unable to attend in person, all games will be streamed live online. To watch, click here.

Union 15, UPike 3: Freshman of the Year Mason Kelley hit two home runs among his four hits, driving in three and scoring five to lead the Bulldogs to the win in the opener. Union scored in six of its seven trips to the plate and had multiple runs in five of them. Luke Pell had three hits and drove in three as the Bulldogs had 16 hits and five starters record multiple-hit games.

Bryan 10, Bluefield 6: Bluefield built leads of 5-1 and 6-2 before Bryan charged back with two runs in the seventh and six in the eighth to pull out the win and remain alive. League Player of the Year Bryson Lofton had three hits including a pair of doubles and drove in three while Dante Morton drove in three as well. Bluefield's Andres Vega had three hits and scored three times in the loss.

Tennessee Wesleyan 13, Montreat 0: The Bulldogs posted multiple runs in five of its six trips to the plate, highlighted by a five-run fourth inning, to advance in the winner's bracket. Evan Magill and Daniel Stewart each had a home run among their three hits and both drove in four. Magill scored four times. Cayle Webster and Marco Martinez had two hits each for the Bulldogs, who had 15 in the win.

Reinhardt 5, Milligan 2: Nash Crowell blasted two home runs as part of his three hits and drove in four to lead Reinhardt to the win. The Eagles also got two hits each from Dylan Lewis and Adrian Vargas. Tied at one after three innings, the Eagles turned to all-conference pitcher Andrew Herbert, who closed it out, allowing only two hits and fanning nine to move to 9-0 on the season.

Tournament Schedule
Tuesday, April 30
Game 1 - No. 10 Union (19-27) def. No. 7 Johnson (24-21), 8-6 (box) - Johnson eliminated
Game 2 - No. 9 Bluefield (21-22) def. No. 8 St. Andrews (27-21), 7-3 (box) - St. Andrews eliminated

Wednesday, May 1
Game 3 - No. 4 Milligan (31-18) def. No. 5 Bryan (25-21), 10-3 (box)
Game 4 - No. 6 Montreat (27-23-1) vs. No. 3 Pikeville (30-18), 9-7 (box)
Game 5 - No. 2 Tennessee Wesleyan (34-15) def. No. 10 Union (19-28), 3-1 (box)
Game 6 - No. 1 Reinhardt (36-14) def. No. 9 Bluefield (21-23), 8-6 (12 innings) (box)

Thursday, May 2
Game 7 - No. 10 Union (20-28) def. No. 3 Pikeville (30-19), 15-3 (7 innings) (box) - Pikeville eliminated
Game 8 - No. 5 Bryan (26-21) def. No. 9 Bluefield (21-24), 10-6 (box) - Bluefield eliminated
Game 9 - No. 2 Tennessee Wesleyan (35-15) def. No. 6 Montreat (27-24-1), 13-0 (7 innings) (box)
Game 10 - No. 1 Reinhardt (37-14) def. No. 4 Milligan (31-19), 5-2 (box)

Friday, May 3
Game 11 - No. 10 Union (20-28) vs. No. 6 Montreat (27-24-1), 9 am
Game 12 - No. 5 Bryan (26-21) vs. No. 4 Milligan (31-19), 12 pm
Game 13 - No. 2 Tennessee Wesleyan (35-15) vs. Game 11 Winner, 4 pm
Game 14 - No. 1 Reinhardt (37-14) vs. Game 12 Winner, 7 pm

Saturday, May 4
Schedule will be finalized following the results of Games 13 and 14. If only one game, it will be played at 2 pm. If only one 'if necessary' game is needed, it will be played at 11 am with the championship game at 3 pm. If both 'if necessary games are needed, the games will be played at 11 am, 2 pm, and 6 pm.