BOONE, N.C. — The bases were loaded when
Tyler Leek drilled a ball to deep center field, leading to a rare two-run sacrifice fly.
Just like that, Appalachian State was off and running in a Sun Belt Conference win against Georgia State.
The Mountaineers tied their league-opening series thanks to a 9-3 home victory Saturday afternoon, and the series finale is scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. in Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium.
Runs by
Dalton Williams and
Robbie Young on Leek's flyout gave App State (7-10, 1-1) a second-inning lead, and a three-run fifth stretched the advantage to 6-1 in support to freshman left-hander
Tyler Tuthill, who improved to 4-1 by allowing two runs over seven innings.
Batting eighth and ninth, respectively,
Andrew Terrell (2-for-3, two-run double) and Leek had three RBIs apiece and combined for three hits. Williams (2-for-2) tied Terrell for the team lead in hits while matching
Riley Smith and Young for the team lead with two runs scored.
Terrell also totaled six assists at third base and initiated a 5-3 double play in an error-free game from the Mountaineers, who benefited from
Luke Allison's diving stop at second base, Leek's ability to quickly track down balls in left field and Young's clean catch of a bounced throw to first.
Williams' leadoff single in the second inning, followed by one-out walks to Young and Terrell, set the stage for Leek. With Williams and Young tagging up, the center fielder for Georgia State (6-13, 1-1) made a running catch near the wall before brushing against it and delivering a long throw to his shortstop. Surprised by Young's push toward home, the shortstop threw home, which enabled Terrell to move from first to second.
Young's bases-loaded walk in the third inning allowed Smith to score for a 3-1 lead, and the first three App State batters reached in a three-run fifth.
Bailey Welch's single and Smith's walk preceded an RBI single from Williams, and
Phillip Cole picked up an RBI on an infield error. The lead grew to five runs on Terrell's RBI single to left.
Georgia State's Elian Merejo hit a solo homer in the top of the sixth, but the Mountaineers added three more runs in the seventh. Williams was hit by a pitch to begin the frame, and
CJ Brown came on as a pinch-runner after Cole drew a walk. Young's one-out single put runners on first and second for Terrell, who drove in both teammates with a double in which a fielding error allowed him to reach third. He raced home on Leek's infield hit to Georgia State's diving third baseman.
With a 9-2 lead, App State turned to
Jack Hartman, who struck out the first two batters he faced in a clean eighth and added two more strikeouts in the ninth.
App State's
Cameron Kepley and Georgia State's Trey Horton are the probable starting pitchers Sunday, and single-game tickets can be purchased online by
clicking HERE.
App State Baseball would like to thank AutoStar Nissan of Boone for serving as the presenting sponsor of the 2019 season.
