BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University baseball strung together three-straight RBI hits in the bottom of the ninth inning to erase a two-run deficit and extend its winning streak at Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium to 17 games with a 10-9 win over Columbia on Tuesday afternoon.

Freshman Tyler Zupcic ended the wild affair with an RBI double to the right center field warning track that brought home Chris Alessandria with the game-winning run. Two batters earlier, Alessandria had sliced Appalachian's 9-7 ninth-inning deficit in half with an RBI single through the left side of the infield. Pinch-hitter Chris Trappy followed with an RBI double that fell in nearly the same spot as Zupcic's game-winner and tied the game at 9-9.

During the subsequent at-bat, Zupcic fell behind 0-2 to Columbia's Alex Black (0-1) before driving a 1-2 pitch deep into the right center field gap and well over the heads of the Lions' drawn-in outfielders. As the ball caromed off the wall on one hop, the Mountaineers poured out of their dugout to mob Zupcic in between second and third base in appreciation of the rookie's first-career walk-off hit.

The final at-bat heroics were necessary only because Appalachian (12-2) suffered a late-inning collapse. ASU took a 6-3 lead into the top of the eighth inning but Columbia (2-6) used a walk, sacrifice fly, three singles and a two-out, two-run double off the bat of Billy Rumpke to score four runs and take a 7-6 lead.

In the bottom of the eighth, freshman Hector Crespo lined a one-out triple down the right field line and scored on Jerod Faggart's  sacrifice fly to center field to knot the game at 7-7.

The Mountaineers turned to senior Matt Andress, the club's No. 1 starter who was available due to Tuesday being his designated day to throw in the bullpen, in the ninth inning. Making only his seventh relief appearance in 52 career outings, the right-handed senior surrendered a two-out, two-run double to Nick Ferraresi that put the Apps in the 9-7 hole.

Appalachian's five hits in the ninth inning capped a season-best 19-hit effort for the team. Alessandria and David Towarnicky led the outburst with three hits apiece while Alessandria and Faggart each drove in two runs. Ten different Mountaineers recorded a hit with seven of the nine Apps in the starting lineup registering multiple hits.

On the other side of the diamond, Columbia's high-powered offense banged out 10 hits, six of which came over the final two innings. The Lions also benefitted from ASU's season-high four errors, three of which came in Columbia's two-run fifth inning.

Despite allowing two runs in his only inning of work, Andress was credited with the win to move to 4-1 on the season and into a tie for third on ASU's all-time victories list with 21 for his career.

After playing its first 13 games of the year on the road, the triumph in Tuesday's opener at Smith Stadium stretches the nation's longest home winning streak to 17 in a row (20 when including a three-game home series versus Rider that was played in Hickory, N.C. due to snow in Boone). Appalachian has not dropped a home affair since a 10-7 setback to Georgia Southern on March 21 of last year. ASU's 3-1 victory over GSU the next day started the run of home dominance.

The Mountaineers look to continue their winning ways at Smith Stadium on Wednesday when it wraps up the two-game series with Columbia beginning at 3 p.m.