Staff report
SALISBURY — The Easter weekend started shakily for Catawba’s baseball team, but by Saturday night the Indians were in great shape to win another South Atlantic Conference championship.
Catawba won two out of three from contender Carson-Newman at Newman Park, rebounding from a 10-5 thrashing on Friday to beat the Eagles 4-0 and 4-2 in a Saturday doubleheader.
After Carson-Newman scored nine earned runs against Catawba ace Payne Stolsworth (9-2) in the series opener, the Indians’ lead in the SAC standings was reduced to a single game over the Eagles. So there was some pressure.
Catawba responded on Saturday behind solid starts on the mound by Casey Gouge and Austin Fine. Those two low-scoring victories bumped Catawba’s lead over Carson-Newman back up to three games with three left to play. Lenoir-Rhyne posted a weekend sweep of Tusculum and moved into second place, two games behind the Indians.
Cole Hales homered in Friday’s game for Catawba. Nathan Chrismon had two doubles.
In the 4-0 win, Gouge allowed only two hits in six innings, and relievers Seth Sharpe and Brandon Rodgers finished the shutout. Matthew Connolly’s two-run triple in the fourth inning was the key hit.
In the 4-2 win in a seven-inning game, Austin Fine (6-2) gave the Indians five strong innings and Hayden Simmerson was in control for the last two for his 11th save. Dylan Driver, James Dunlap, Sam Hunter and Connolly drove in a run apiece.
Eleventh-ranked Catawba is 32-12 overall and 22-5 in the SAC. Lenoir-Rhyne, ranked 20th, is 36-9 and 20-7. Carson-Newman is 32-14 and 19-8.
Catawba has five games left in the regular season, including a three-game SAC series at Lincoln Memorial
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