Pioneers Rally Late to Upset No. 2 Georgia Gwinnett, 9-5

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Spartanburg Methodist College baseball staged a late-inning comeback to earn a 9-5 upset victory over No. 2 Georgia Gwinnett on Tuesday night.

The Pioneers (23-21), who were outscored 61-8 in a three-game series against the Grizzlies earlier this month (April 10-11), flipped the script by scoring five runs in the eighth inning to erase a 5-4 deficit.

SMC capitalized on two Georgia Gwinnett errors in the decisive frame, highlighted by a pair of two-RBI hits. With one out, Kohen Bridges delivered a two-run single to center, followed by a two-run double down the right-field line from Blake Exizian. Exizian finished with two hits and three RBI to lead the offensive effort.

The Pioneers totaled 10 hits on the night, with Exizian, Bridges, and Eliah Franz each recording two. Equally impactful was the SMC bullpen, which allowed just one earned run over the final 5.2 innings. Michael Mapes provided 2.2 innings of relief before handing off to Miles Feldner, who tossed two scoreless innings. Luke Hartig closed the door, retiring the side in order in the ninth.

SMC opened the scoring in the second inning when Lane Schrader launched a solo home run to tie the game at 1-1. Georgia Gwinnett responded with three runs in the bottom half of the inning to reclaim the lead. The Pioneers answered with two runs in the third and evened the score again in the fifth on Tanner Martin's ground-rule double that plated Franz.

The Grizzlies regained a 5-4 advantage in the sixth but left runners stranded on second and third, keeping the deficit within reach. After a scoreless seventh, SMC seized momentum in the eighth.

Jarian Pinckney led off the inning with a single before advancing home on a pair of Georgia Gwinnett errors to tie the game. Following a sacrifice bunt by Bryce Satterwhite, Bridges delivered his go-ahead two-run single on the first pitch he saw, scoring Ty Harper and Schrader. After Brady Jeffcoat was hit by a pitch and a strikeout recorded the second out, Exizian added insurance with his two-run double to cap the rally.

SMC will conclude Appalachian Athletic Conference play this weekend on the road at Montreat. The series has been adjusted to a doubleheader on Friday beginning at noon, followed by a single game on Saturday at 1 p.m.