MOBILE, Ala. – GAME 1 – Blue Mountain Christian and No. 18 Mobile met up for their three-game SSAC series here Saturday, as the Toppers would take Game 1 from the Rams 9-6.
The Rams were red-hot out of the gate, scoring five runs in the bottom of the first against BMCU starter
Jesse Hancock.
The Toppers didn't let it rattle them, as they put together a six-run inning in the second against Mobile's Tyler Cruse.
The inning was highlighted by a two-run double by
Hayden Redding and an RBI double by
Josiah Rivera.
Blue Mountain piled on in the third, as
Arderrius Townsend blasted a two-run home to right-center, his ninth of the season to make it 8-5 Toppers.
Cole Giordano (1-1) would come on in relief and toss 4.2 innings for the victory. Giordano would allow only one hit and strike out three.
Mobile would only manage one more run, a score on a Topper error, and Blue Mountain would get a sac-fly in the sixth by Redding to finish off the Rams in the opener.
Matthew Koch (1) would come on for BMCU and pitch two innings in relief to earn his first save of the season, giving up two hits and no runs with two Ks.
Topper speedster
Bryland Skinner swiped three bases in the game, while Townsend had two RBI and two runs scored. Skinner is 12
th in the nation in stolen bases with 14.
GAME 2
Blue Mountain would secure the series in Game 2, its first SSAC series win of the season and first against Mobile since 2019, taking it by a score of 12-5.
Hayden Redding started the Toppers out on the right foot again in the very first inning of the nightcap, as he roped an RBI triple down the leftfield line to score
Gavin Coles.
Arderrius "Peeko" Townsend struck again in second game, drilling another homer. This time it was a three-run blast to center off Mobile's Tyler Watson, his 10
th of the season, to give BMCU a 5-2 lead.
Will Crawford would also have an RBI single in the inning for the Toppers.
Mobile would chip away at the Topper lead, eventually tying it in the fourth at 5-5 thanks to a sac-fly and an RBI triple by J.T. Lastorka.
Blue Mountain would take an 8-5 lead in the seventh, as
Josiah Rivera singled in a run, Redding was plunked by a pitch to score a run with the bases loaded and
Austin Garrison would double in a run.
The Toppers added insurance in the ninth with a two-run single to right by Ty Roberson and a two-run double by Redding to left.
Ammon Murphy (3-0) picked up the win in relief for BMCU, tossing 3.2 innings of two-hit ball with an earned run three Ks.
Rey Castaneda (1) picked up the save with 2.2 innings of work, not allowing a hit with three Ks.
Redding finished with two hits, four RBI and three stolen bases, while Roberson, Rivera, Garrison and
Carson Gault all had two hits each. Townsend finished with three RBI and is currently in the top 10 in home runs in the nation.
BMCU (15-5, 4-4 SSAC) and Mobile will close the series Sunday in Alabama with Game 3 starting at 1 p.m. CT.
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