Like Columbus State Athletics on Facebook!
Tweet #GoCSU

COLUMBUS – The 11^th-ranked Columbus State University baseball team needed just seven innings to pick up a 16-1 win over Tuskegee on Wednesday afternoon. The nonconference game was played at Burger King Stadium at Ragsdale Field.
 
Columbus State (24-5) scored all 16 runs in the third and fourth innings to tally its second win in as many days.
 
"We did a good job of being patient at the plate," head coach Greg Appleton said. "Sometimes you have to be willing to take the walks and we got the big hits when we needed them."
 
Despite the blowout victory, the Cougars fell behind in the opening inning. Tuskegee plated a run in the top of the first and led 1-0 heading into the bottom of the third inning.
 
The Cougar bats broke out in the third with 15 hitters coming to the plate and 10 runs on the scoreboard.
 
Justin Evans started the inning with a triple into the right field corner and scored on Mason McClellan's groundout. A strikeout then gave the Cougars two outs with just one run already across.
 
Grant Berry gave the Cougars the lead with a single to right and a throwing error allowed Robert Brooks to score to make it a 3-1 contest. Austin Collins walked with the bases loaded to plate another run and Evans unloaded them with a three-run double off the bases of the centerfield wall.
 
The Cougars kept pouring runs across, getting another bases loaded walk from Frank Wager and Brooks bringing two across with a single the other way.
 
The runs continued to come in the bottom of the fourth with Evans picking up his fourth hit of the day to score a run and McClellan drawing another bases loaded free pass.
 
Brooks had the biggest swing of the day though, clearing the wall in left for a grand slam and an exclamation point on the CSU offensive output. The homer was his seventh of the season.


T.J. Clark (4-3) worked six of the seven innings for the Cougars, allowing just the one run on three hits. The right-hander struck out seven. Sam Sowerbrower worked a perfect seventh to close out the victory.
 
Columbus State will host Flagler for a three-game conference series starting on Thursday. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at Burger King Stadium.