Like Columbus State Athletics on Facebook!
Tweet #GoCSU

COLUMBUS – The fifth-ranked Columbus State University baseball team fought back from a three-run deficit to score a 6-5 victory over No. 12 Georgia College on Saturday. The Peach Belt Conference series is being played at Burger King Stadium at Ragsdale Field.
 
Columbus State (36-9, 18-7 PBC) evened the series with the victory with the rubber game to come on Sunday.
 
"I liked the way that we bounced back today," head coach Greg Appleton said. "We were stuck in a bit of an offensive rut, but our bats broke out late in the game and now we're back in the series with a chance to win it tomorrow."
 
For the second straight day, it was Georgia College (35-10, 25-4) that plated the game's first run. The Bobcats got a solo home run in the fourth before an error brought another run across later in the inning.
 
Austin Pharr cut the deficit in half with his 12^th home run of the season in the fifth, but the Bobcats responded with two more runs in the sixth to make it a 4-1 game.
 
The Cougars then started to chip away at the lead, starting with a RBI double from Frank Wager in the sixth.
 
Grant Berry made it a one-run game leading off the seventh with a long solo home run. Pharr doubled and Chase Brown singled following the homer to put runners on the corners with nobody out. Gunar Drinnen knotted the contest at four-all with a groundball to shortstop that he beat out.
 
After a Garrett Kirkwood single, Mason McClellan put the Cougars in front with a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded.
 
CSU picked up an insurance run in the eighth as Wager, Berry and Pharr all singled, the last of which pushed a run across to make it 6-4.
 
Things got tight in the ninth with runners on the corners and only one out. A passed ball brought a run home and moved the tying run into scoring position and a walk put the potential go-ahead run on base.
 
Robert Brooks helped the cause behind the plate, gunning down the lead runner at third on a double steal attempt, and a fielder's choice ended the contest.
 
Justin Evans grabbed the win with 3.1 innings of relief work. The junior allowed just one run in relief of Perez Knowles. Knowles gave up three earned in five innings. Payton Phillips picked up the final two outs for his second save of the season.
 
All nine Cougars had at least one hit in the contest, led by a 3-for-4 showing from Pharr. Kirkwood, Wager and Drinnen each had a pair of hits.
 
The series wraps up on Sunday at 1 p.m. Senior Day activities will take place prior to first pitch.