MURFREESBORO, N.C. – The Erskine College baseball team (20-15, 11-10 CC) swept a three-game series at Chowan University (8-21, 3-15 CC) at Hawkins Field on Wednesday this weekend. Erskine survived a scare from the Hawks to win Game 1 on Friday, 13-8. Then, the Fleet pulled away for a pair of wins on Saturday, taking Game 2 by a score of 7-3 before wrapping up the sweep with an 11-3 win in the back half of the doubleheader.

THE ESSENTIALS 
Conf. Carolinas Standings | Stats | Scores
Div. II Scores | Record Book | CC Digital Network
 
THE SERIES
Erskine has won nine of the ten all-time meetings with the Hawks.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1: Erskine 13-8 Chowan (Friday)
In the series opener, Erskine wasted no time jumping out to an early lead thanks to an RBI double from Armando Becerra before he came around to score on a Christian Rivera single as the Fleet led 2-0 in the very first inning. Then, Becerra tacked on more runs in the third inning with a three-run home run. After another scoreless frame from starter Allan Saathoff in the bottom half, the Fleet kept piling it on in the fifth inning as a pair of error and another run-scoring hit from Becerra opened up a 9-0 lead at the halfway point of the game. But, Chowan battled back with a seven-run sixth inning as they cut the Erskine lead to 9-7 and put some game pressure on the Fleet in the closing frames. Erskine regained some insurance in the seventh inning on a Cal Bocchino two-run single as part of his four-hit game at the plate. In the ninth inning, Dalton Boyd and Ashby Smith tallied RBIs and the back end of the Fleet bullpen finished the job, sealing a 13-8 victory in Game 1.

Game 2: Erskine 7-3 Chowan
In Game 2 of the series, the Erskine offense again struck in the very first inning, this time on a two-run double from Dalton Boyd. Chowan cut the deficit in half with a run in the second inning, but a passed ball from the Hawks with the bases loaded allowed Kyle Marti to score and put the Fleet back in front by a pair of runs, 3-1. In the bottom half of the inning, though, Chowan scored twice to tie the game at 3. After a hectic start, the game settled into a rhythm, and Marti's speed proved beneficial again as he scored on a wild pitch in the fifth inning to put Erskine back on top, 4-3. An inning later, Kane Fisher provided some insurance with an RBI single before Dalton Boyd capped the victory with a two-run home run in the seventh as the Fleet scored the final four runs of the game and clinched the series with a 7-3 win in Game 2.

Game 3: Erskine 11-3 Chowan
The Fleet dominated the first inning in the first two games of the weekend, but Chowan flipped the script in Game 3 with a three-run first inning as this time it was the hosts who took an early 3-0 lead. Kyle Marti's sacrifice fly in the third inning got Erskine on the board and then an inning later, Tariq Bacon tied the game with a two-run home run. Zach Overholt came out of the Erskine bullpen and set down the side in order. The Fleet capitalized on the momentum as Marti ripped a one-out double and scored moments later thanks to an Armando Becerra single to give the Fleet their first lead of the game, 4-3. A few batters later, the Erskine bats struck again, this time on a Christian Rivera two-run home run to extend its lead to 6-3. Overholt retired Chowan in order in the bottom half again, continuing the Fleet's momentum. Bacon added some insurance in the seventh as he launched a solo home run, his second big fly of the game. And the Fleet put the Hawks to rest in the ninth inning as a Dalton Boyd two-run home run and a Marti RBI double was part of a four-spot for Erskine to make it 11-3. Josh Collett relieved Overholt in the sixth inning and was absolutely dominant on the mound, surrendering just two hits while recording eight strikeouts as he earned his first save of the season and sealed a sweep for Erskine with an 11-3 victory in Game 3.

THE PLAYER
Armando Becerra was 6-for-15 in the series, including a monster, four-hit day in Game 1 where Becerra scored four runs and drove in five runs, sprinkling in a three-run home run in the fourth inning. Becerra hit safely in all three games.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Erskine stays on the road for a mid-week contest against Coker University (13-22, 8-6 SAC) on Wednesday evening at 6:00 p.m. The Cobras won a mid-week game in Due West by a score of a 11-5 back on the first day of March.
 
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