Box Score by Benny Benton
WILSON, N.C. – Barton College pitcher Ricky Jernigan scattered five hits over seven innings and gave up just two earned runs to a powerful Francis Marion University offense on Tuesday, but his quest for a victory was denied by a shaky Bulldog defense and a continued lack of run support.
The Patriots scored three unearned runs – two charged to Jernigan – on five Barton errors, and Francis Marion's pitching staff held the Bulldogs scoreless until the ninth inning in claiming a 9-3 non-conference victory at Nixon Field.
With the win, Francis Marion improves to 11-9 on the year, while the Bulldogs slipped to 7-15.
Jernigan, now 0-3 despite a 2.20 ERA, fell behind 1-0 in the second inning when Dalton Gress led off the frame with a double to right-center and scored on a one-out double to left-center by David DeWolfe.
Barton had its best chance to score early in the game in the bottom of the second when Ben Williams singled, Phillip Cotten was hit by a pitch and Ben Youngblood walked to load the bases with one out. However, FMU starter Gordon Owens got a double-play grounder to second to end the inning undamaged.
Owen went four innings, allowing three hits, walking two and striking out four.
The Patriots took advantage of two Barton errors at second base in the third inning to score a pair of unearned runs. Zac Lenns reached on a booted grounder, stole second and scored on Michael Wilson's double to right-center. Marquis Curry reached second base on a dropped pop-up and came home on a single up the middle by Gress to put Francis Marion up 3-0.
The score remained that way until the seventh, when FMU's Nicholas McGee, a Charles B. Aycock High School product returning home, laced a double down the left field line, moved to third on Cole Morris' sacrifice bunt and scored on a sacrifice fly by Lenns.
When Jernigan left following the seventh, Barton had just five hits off Owens and reliever Austin Cox (1-0), who gave up two of the hits in three shutout innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out two. In Jernigan's four starts this year, Barton has scored a total of just two runs during his time on the mound.
The Patriots tacked on a single run off Barton reliever Benjamin Brann in the eighth, then erupted for four runs on three hits and a Bulldog error in the ninth. Lenns had an RBI single and pinch-hitter Casey Gebhardt delivered a two-run single in the big inning.
The Bulldogs finally got on the board with three runs in a wild ninth inning that began with Wilson being charged with an error at short for not holding on to the ball long enough following what appeared to be a routine pop-up.
Francis Marion brought in little-used reliever Ben Keane with two outs in the inning and the game still scoreless, but Keane hit consecutive batters to load the bases , then served up a two-run single to Barton's RBI leader, Dillon Rudio, and balked home a third run.
Mitchell Wheeler had three of Barton's seven hits on the day, and freshman Andrew Webster singled in the first inning, giving him hits in 13 of his last 14 games.
Gress had two of FMU's nine hits, with Lenns, Wilson and Gebhardt each collecting two RBI.
Barton will return to action on Friday with the first contest in a three-game series at Conference Carolinas co-leader Erskine College. The Bulldogs will play their next home game on Tuesday, March 18, against Kutztown University.
