Averett Sneaks Past Endicott, 4-2
March 21, 2007
DANVILLE, VA - Averett University scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, as the Cougars rallied past Endicott, 4-2, at Owen-Fulton Field on Wednesday afternoon in Danville, VA.
Averett broke the scoreless tie in the fourth inning as Ahmed Shelton (Lynchburg, VA/ Heritage) scored on a wild pitch to put the Cougars up 1-0. The Gulls responded in the fifth inning when Aaron Santos (Cambridge, MA/Cushing Academy) reached on an error to the right side of the Cougars infield to score Blake Wessel (Blue Hill, ME/George Stevens Academy), evening the game at 1-all.
The pitching duel between Endicott's Nick Kelley (Malden, MA/Malden Catholic) and Averett's Jon Walker (Danville, VA/George Washington) would last until the seventh inning when the Gulls grabbed their first lead of the game. A pinch-hitting Andrew Betts (Bristol, CT/Suffield Academy) reached on an RBI fielder's choice, driving in Tom Warner (Contoocook, NH/Hopkinton) to put the Gulls up 2-1.
The Cougars made the most of their opportunities in the bottom of the eighth as they put runners on first second to open the inning. John Lesueur (Eden, NC/Rockingham) drew a walk and Ahmed Shelton followed with a single. A double down the right field line from T.J. Bray (Chesapeake, VA/Great Bridge) scored Lesueur to retie the game at 2-2. Justin Brown (Hurt, VA/Gretna) grounded out to short to score Shelton, giving Averett their first lead of the day. Ken Kellum (Chesapeake, VA/Great Bridge) delivered on a pinch hit RBI insurance single to score Bray, giving Averett the 4-2 win.
The Cougars' Jon Walker earned the victory for Averett despite five errors by his defense. The sophomore lefty when eight and one-third innings, allowing two runs on six hits while striking out five. Travis Reynolds (Danville, VA/George Washington) registered the save by notching the final two outs of the contest.
Offensively the Gulls were paced by Tom Warner's 2-for-2 afternoon. Nick Kelley had a strong day on the hill, as the freshman pitcher went seven innings allowing one run on five hits. Andy Skelton (Sudbury, MA/Lincoln Sudbury) suffered the loss in his one inning of work.
With the win, Averett improves to 27-5 while Endicott falls to 2-2. The Gulls return to work tomorrow as they continue on with their spring break road trip. Next up for Endicott is a 6:00 PM contest with Greensboro College.