BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – Trailing 7-2, App State Baseball scored three runs in the eighth and two in the ninth to force extras but ultimately fell 8-7 to Gardner-Webb in 11 innings, Sunday.
The Mountaineers (7-4) four losses this season have come by just eight combined runs, including three consecutive one-run walk-off defeats.
Ethan Puig opened the eighth inning with a double down the right field line, and
Jonathan Xuereb walked and
Steven Smith singled to load the bases.
Drew DuPont plated a run with an RBI groundout, and a second run scored on the play due to an error.
Colton Denton followed with a two-out RBI single to make it a 7-5 ballgame.
Then in the ninth,
Joseph Zamora was hit by a pitch to put the leadoff batter aboard. Pug singled to put two runners on, and the pair advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch. Xuereb then ripped a game-tying RBI single back up the middle to level the score at 7-7.
After neither team scored in the 10th, the Runnin' Bulldogs were able to get the winning run to third base with two outs in the bottom of the 11th and Kelvin Agosto came through with the game-winning single.
The Mountaineers finished the game with 12 hits, highlighted by two-hit games from Puig, Xuereb, Smith, DuPont and Denton. Smith Also pitched two scoreless innings in relief, striking out a pair, without conceding a hit.
Nico Soul came off the bench to deliver a pinch-hit RBI double in the seventh inning, one of five doubles for the Mountaineers as a team.
App State pitching finished the afternoon with 11 strikeouts, led by three from
Everette Harris.
Reyn Watson and
Ethan Wilson also collected two apiece.
App State will return home on Tuesday to host No. 16 Wake Forest at 3 p.m. The Demon Deacons entered Sunday 10-1 on the season and riding a 10-game winning streak. Tuesday's contest will be broadcast on ESPN+ and the first 150 fans in attendance will receive an App State bucket hat.
The 2026 App State Baseball season is presented by Chick-fil-A.
