HICKORY, N.C. - App State Baseball split a doubleheader with Queens Sunday, to cap off the opening weekend series of the season, winning the first game 14-9 before falling in the second game 16-11. The contests were played at Durham Field on the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne after inclement weather on Saturday made L.P. Frans Stadium unplayable.
Game 1
Leading by a run in the bottom of the sixth, the App State (1-2) offense recorded a six-run inning to pull away from Queens (2-1) en route to victory. After walks to
Charlie Evans and
Braxton Church began the inning,
Tyler Figueroa delivered an RBI single into right field to plate the first run of the frame.
John Kramer was then hit by a pitch to load the bases ahead of
Joseph Zamora, who smacked a two-run single into right field to make it 8-4 App State.
One batter later,
Dillon Moquin capped the rally with a three-run home run to right-center field, the first of his career, to push the advantage to 11-4.
Kameron Miller blasted a mammoth opposite-field two-run home run in the seventh inning to help the Mountaineers plate three in the frame and lead by as much as 14-5 in the contest.
App State finished the ballgame with 15 hits in the contest, with the first six hitters in the order (and seven overall) registering two-hit games. App State also reached on five walks and five hit batsmen while striking out just six times in the contest.
Despite the gaudy offensive numbers from App State, the early stages of the contest were highlighted on the mound. Making his first start as a Mountaineer,
Caleb Marks was dominant early, retiring the first twelve batters he faced in order, and allowing just two balls to leave the infield on only 46 pitches across his first four frames.
Queens finally broke through in the fifth inning when they plated three runs, highlighted by a Justin Hudson solo home run to begin the frame. Hudson homered again in the sixth inning.
Jake Beaty (win, 1-0) entered the game in relief with the bases loaded and was able to minimize trouble, conceding just one inherited runner, while picking up a popout and a groundout to end the inning. Beaty went on to work 1.2 innings in relief, striking out two to earn the win.
Cal Clark followed Beaty out of the bullpen, working 1.2 innings in his first appearance in a Black and Gold uniform, while
Jordan Fisher struck out three across the final 1.2 innings of the contest.
App State never trailed in the contest, jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, on a two-run single from Zamora with the bases loaded.
Game 2
App State came up on the short end of a slugfest in game two.
Everette Harris got the start in the series finale and was the victim of some well-placed Queens hits in a six-run second inning to fall behind 6-2. Of the seven hits Harris allowed in the frame, three were infield singles, and two others were ground balls that went just beyond the reach of App State fielders. Harris picked up a strikeout double play to end the inning and ended up working 3.2 innings and striking out five.
App State's two-run first inning came courtesy of a two-run single from Kramer, plating
Juan Correa and Figueroa who each walked ahead of him. The Mountaineers added two more runs in the third inning on back-to-back RBI doubles from Figueroa and Miller.
Queens responded with another crooked number in the top of the fourth, plating four runs in the inning, headlined by Hudson's third homer of the day.
Despite falling behind 11-4, App State continued to battle. Church brought home two runs on a mishandled fly ball in left field in the fourth and came around to score later in the inning on an RBI groundout. In the fifth, Church was at it again, coming through with a two-out, two-run single to cap another three-run inning.
Church finished game two going 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Kramer also tallied a three-RBI effort, capped by hitting his first home run of the season - a no-doubt blast that traveled 450 feet to center field in the eighth inning.
Queens continued to add on late, scoring five runs from the sixth through eighth innings, preventing the mountaineers from ever re-gaining the advantage.
Reyn Watson struck out two in a scoreless eighth inning out of the bullpen for the Mountaineers.
App State will return to action on Tuesday, as the team hits the road for the first time this season, traveling to face High Point at 4 p.m. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.
The 2025 App State Baseball season is presented by Chick-fil-A.
