Lions sweep venom-less Cobras

Bryan Baseball team 29-11, receive votes for NAIA top 25

 

Sophomore Tyler Latham and Junior Josh Harris anticipating the hit / Triangle Photo by Josiah Newport

Josiah Newport
Triangle Reporter

 

The Bryan Lions notched their seventh sweep of the season with a hard-fought three games against Virginia Intermont College (Bristol, Va.) Cobras this past weekend with scores of 11-1, 4-1, and 3-2.

The Lions are 29-11, and 11-4 in the AAC. They are currently ranked second in the AAC. The Cobras are 11-20, with a 3-9 conference record.

The first regular season NAIA rankings came out last week with the Lions receiving votes for the top 25. The Lions are currently in the top 10 in RBIs, home runs, and stolen bases. With this sweep against the Cobras, they hope to receive more top 25 votes, if not enter the top 25.

With thunderstorms threatening to cancel the already delayed game on Friday evening, the Lions came out of the gates swinging for the fences. They took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first inning.

“After coming off a tough loss to Shorter University (Rome, Ga.) at midweek, we were ready to come out hot and get the bats rolling,” said freshman Kenny Knudsen on Friday’s game.

The Lions put up nine runs over the stretch of innings four, five, and six. Senior Shane Clawson led the team with three RBIs and four hits.

The Lions relied heavily on tough defense from the seniors Stephen Brown and Shane Clawson—both making superb throws to get runners out at first base—keeping the Cobras off the board for the rest of the game.

The game was called after the Lions held the Cobras scoreless in top of the seventh because of the 10-run mercy rule. Senior Tanner Brown pitched all seven innings. He is 7-1 on the season.

The Lions looked to sweep the Cobras but came out a little flat on Saturday.

Knudsen said, “We came out ready to coast, and because of that we did not play up to our expectations.”

Regardless, the Lions worked hard and turned out two wins.

Seniors Jason Ridenhour (6-2) and Shane Clawson pitched games one and two respectively both earning wins. Clawson recorded his third win in a row. Junior Adam Sanders earned saves in both games, giving him his 13th and 14th saves on the season.

The Lions will play a doubleheader on Tuesday against Southern Polytechnic State University (Atlanta, Ga.) and then away at Cumberland University (Lebanon, Tenn.) on Saturday—both are non-conference games. These will be the beginning of a tough April schedule.

“We’re ready to prove we’re a top 25 team,” said Knudsen.