LIVINGSTON, Ala. - The No. 12 Columbus State University baseball team capped off a three-game series sweep of the University of West Alabama by defeating the Tigers 10-6 Sunday afternoon at Tartt Field.

Down 6-4 after four innings, the Cougars (3-0) scored runs in the fifth and sixth before platting four in the seventh to grab the come from behind victory.

"We continued to hit the ball well today," commented head coach Greg Appleton. "These guys have a lot of experience in the lineup, and they know to be patient and let things come to them."

It was shaping up to be another Cougar route as CSU jumped out to a 4-0 lead. Derek Wylie put the Cougars on the board with a two-run homer in the second before Robert Brooks hit a solo jack in the third. Three more singles in the inning, including one by Matthew McDade, gave Columbus State a 4-0 lead.

West Alabama (0-4) fought back though, scoring two in the third and four in the fourth to go up 6-4. Jake Nemith was the one to put the Tigers on top after hitting a three-run homer off of CSU starter Colton Joyner. 

The Cougar bullpen was able to come in and limit the damage, thanks to great work from Chandler Ring. Ring tossed 3.2 scoreless innings in his CSU debut to pick up the win. He allowed just two hits in the appearance.

CSU's offense came back in the fifth. Three more hits plated a run, while a UWA error in the sixth extended the frame for Colby Brabston, who tied the game on an RBI single. 

The seventh inning was the difference though as the Cougars batted around. With two-one and one-out, David Meadows chopped a grounder to the line at third that Connor Christian couldn't corral after a diving chance. McDade and Connor Kirley scored on the play after the ball rolled away from Christian to give CSU the lead. The Cougars added two insurance runs on wild pitches later in the inning.

Peyton Burton (1 IP, 1 K) and Zach Brockman (1 IP) would shut down the Tigers in the eighth and ninth to secure the victory. 

Joyner tossed 3.1 innings in his first start of the year. He allowed six runs on eight hits in the no-decision.

Five Cougars had at two hits with Meadows (2-for-6) and Wylie (2-for-5, 2-run HR) both driving in two. 

Josh Bower had a 3-for-5 day for the Tigers. Gates Pee (0-1) took the loss after allowing five runs (one earned) in 1.1 innings.

UP NEXT
Columbus State will begin a five-game homestand on Tuesday, Feb. 8, with its home opener against Albany State University. First pitch is at 4 p.m. at Burger King Stadium, with tickets available here. 

GAME NOTES
• CSU scored 50 runs in the three games with six homers and nine doubles
• The Cougars improve to 29-3 in regular-season non-conference games since Feb. 16, 2019
• Brooks was 6-for-12 in the series with two homers and 10 RBIs. He also scored seven times
• Columbus State defense shined over the weekend. The Cougars made one error compared to 12 from UWA
• CSU improves to 51-33 all-time against West Alabama and sweeps the Tigers for the first time in a series since 2015