Pirates Split With No. 1 Mount Olive To Open Baseball Season

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Junior righthander Thomas Gray hurled seven shutout innings, striking out 10, to give Armstrong Atlantic State an 8-1 win in game two of its season-opening doubleheader with top-ranked and defending DII national champion Mount Olive on Sunday afternoon at Pirate Field. The Trojans won game one, 6-2, behind a grand slam home run by Dylan Holton in the top of the ninth.

The Pirates (1-1) and the Trojans (1-1) will conclude their three-game series with a single game at 2:00 p.m. on Monday afternoon.

Game one was a tight affair as the Pirates took an early lead on Carlos Cardoza-Oquendo's two-run single in the bottom of the second inning, but Mount Olive struck back to tie things in the top of the third on Kyle Hinrichs' two-run triple. The score would remain 2-2 as Cody Walden and Trojan reliever Brent Haynes would keep both offenses in check - Haynes would set down 15 in a row at one point.

In the top of the ninth, AASU reliever Brandon McCreery loaded the bases with nobody out, setting the stage for Holton, who launched a grand slam to give the Trojans the game-one win. Haynes (1-0) hurled seven innings of shutout ball, giving up just two hits while striking out four to get the win. McCreery (0-1) gave up all four runs in one inning of work to take the loss.

Game two saw the Pirates strike quickly with two runs in the bottom of the first inning on a sacrifice fly by John Roberts and an RBI single by Alex Wyche. AASU would stretch the lead to 3-0 with Juan Dorado's RBI single, but the Pirates would break the game open in the bottom of the sixth, sending 10 men to the plate in a five-run inning, highlighted by Dorado's two-run triple.

Meanwhile, Gray (1-0) was in command against the Trojans, giving up just five hits and three walks while striking out 10 in seven innings of work. Patrick Ball (0-1) took the loss for the Trojans, pitching four innings of four-hit ball, giving up two unearned runs.

Dorado finished the doubleheader 4-for-7 with three RBIs, while Wyche and Cory Thacker each collected three hits in the doubleheader. Montoya Young led the Trojans at the plate with four hits in the doubleheader, while Will Rodriguez added three hits.