COLUMBUS - The No. 23 Columbus State University baseball team capped off its second straight Peach Belt Conference series sweep on Sunday by defeating Lander 8-3. The game took place at Ragsdale Field at Burger King Stadium in Columbus.

The win is the seventh in the row for the Cougars (14-3, 8-1 PBC) and the 11^th in their last 13 games. 

"This is a great way to close out a long homestand," commented head coach Greg Appleton. "We got our bats going today, and that was good to see after the last two games. Like I keep saying, it's nice to get an early lead and with the way our pitching has been lately that's a good combination to grab some wins."

"We get our first taste of how tough it is on the road next weekend against Augusta. The staff will be expressing to the team about bringing the same type of intensity as we have been playing with here at home."

After Jamie Boatright stranded a leadoff double in the top of the first, the first three Cougar hitters reached to quickly load the bases. Bryson Horne started a great day at the plate by singling to right to put CSU on the board. Drew Webb followed with a sacrifice fly to score Isaac Bouton to give the Cougars a two-run lead.

Boatright kept Lander (10-7, 4-4) off-balance all day, working both sides of the plate. The lefty allowed two hits following the leadoff double until the fifth allowing the Cougar offense to continue adding on. In the fourth, Columbus State nearly ran itself out of a run after a fielder's choice cut down David Meadows at the plate for the second out of the inning. However, Robert Brooks had different plans. The junior hit a high flyball to left-centerfield that just had enough distance for a two-run homer.

Lander got back in the game by scoring single runs in both the fifth and sixth. Back-to-back two-out hits, including an RBI double from Josh Gregory, in the fifth made it a 4-1 game before the Bearcats knocked Boatright out of the game in the sixth after two walks began the frame. Noah Windhorst would do a good job limiting the damage as LU was only able to push across one while stranding the tying runs on base.

Columbus State got the runs back and then more with one swing of the bat in its half of the sixth. With Connor Kirley and Brooks on base via walks, Horne cranked a three-run blast to straightaway centerfield to give the Cougars a 7-2 lead.

Both teams scored a run in the eighth. Miles Dutton helped Windhorst out of a jam by retiring the only two batters he faced. Brady Kais threw a scoreless ninth for the third straight day.

Boatright (3-0) registered the win for the Cougars tossing five innings. The sophomore allowed two runs on five hits while striking out a career-high seven. Windhorst threw 2.1 innings in relief surrendering one run. 

Horne (3-for-4, run, HR) drove in four with Meadows (2-for-4, run, 2 SBs) and Dane Bullock (2-for-5, 2 2Bs) both having two hits on Sunday. Brooks (1-for-2, HR) picked up two RBIs while scoring three times.

Up Next

After a quiet work week, Columbus State will head to Augusta, Ga. for a three-game set against Augusta. The Jaguars (4-12, 2-7) will host Saint Rose on Wednesday before the Cougars arrive in town. The series will begin on Friday, March 6 at 2 p.m. 

Cougar Notes & Trends

• Columbus State's seven-game winning streak is the longest since the Cougars won 10 in a row over mid-Feb. and early March of last season.
• Both Brooks and Meadows were 4-for-8 in the series. Brooks had two extra-base hits and drove in three.
• Horne continues to impress in his first season with CSU. Against Lander, the first baseman hit two homers with seven RBIs in the three-games to climb up the PBC leaderboard in numerous categories. The junior ranks in the top-10 in total bases (6th), home runs (7th), slugging percentage (7th), batting average (8th), RBIs (9th), doubles (9th), and extra-base hits (9th). 
• It was Horne's second four-RBI game of the year. He has also reached base in 10 straight games. 
• It was the first time the Cougars allowed more than two runs in a game since Feb. 16, a span of six games. In CSU's winning streak, the pitching staff has posted a 1.29 ERA while holding their opponents to a .226 batting average.
• Boatright has allowed two or fewer runs in four of his five starts. He has won his last two decisions.
• Columbus State has won 10 of the last 11 games against Lander. After the sweep, CSU leads the all-time series 37-27.