UNC Asheville Baseball suffered a 9-6 loss to Radford on Sunday, April 27, in the final game of their Big South Conference series.
Radford struck first with two runs in the top of the first inning and added three more in the third to take a 5-0 lead. Asheville responded with a solo home run from Jake Pereira in the bottom of the third, his first career home run, cutting the lead to 5-1. Radford extended their lead with a run in the fourth, but Asheville mounted a comeback with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Patrick Gillen started things off with a solo home run, his fifth of the season, and after Jake Minarik singled and Brock Mercado followed with a single of his own, Pereira brought in another run with an infield single, narrowing the gap to 6-3.
Radford added two more runs in the fifth, but Asheville fought back again in the bottom of the fifth with a double from Gillen to score Rylen Stockton, bringing the score to 8-4. Radford added an insurance run in the top of the seventh, while Asheville managed one run in the seventh and another in the eighth, but they couldn’t complete the comeback, falling 9-6.
Despite the loss, Asheville outhit Radford 12-11 in the game. Minarik and Gillen each had three hits, with Mercado and Pereira contributing two hits apiece. Gillen and Pereira each drove in two runs, while Minarik added one RBI. Minarik also had a strong day on the base paths, stealing a base and scoring twice. Stockton had one hit and threw out a baserunner from behind the plate.
On the mound, Daylinh Nguyen-Brown (0-4) took the loss, allowing five runs on six hits in three innings of work. Matthew Hall relieved him, pitching 2.2 innings and allowing three runs, one earned, while Branden Barna added 1.2 innings of relief, giving up one run on three hits. Ryland Howell pitched the final 1.2 innings, allowing just one hit and striking out one.
The Bulldogs will look to bounce back on Tuesday, April 29, when they travel to East Tennessee State for a non-conference matchup. First pitch is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
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