Clarksville, Ark.-Millsaps College took a three-game set over the weekend to spoil the start of Ozarks 2010 season in Jackson, Mississippi.
The Majors (3-0) won the opener 16-2 on Friday night, and then took a double-header Saturday with a 11-1 win in game one and a 15-9 win in the night cap.
On Friday, Ozarks (0-3) held a 2-1 lead in the top of the third behind a Jeremy Hogan RBI single in the first and a Cory Briggs’ run-scoring single to left field in the third. Millsaps, however, took the lead for good in the bottom of the third by answering with a pair of runs. Millsaps increased its lead to 8-2 after seven. The Majors then tagged the Eagles’ pitching staff with eight runs in the eighth to put the non-conference game away.
Ozarks did collect nine hits in the game, while Millsaps pounded out 11.
Chris Driedric and Hogan each collected two hits apiece.
Travis Conner (0-1) tossed 3.0 innings as the starter and received the loss.
In Saturday’s game one, the Majors exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the second to take momentum early on. Millsaps would add a pair of runs in the fourth to go up 9-0. Briggs singled in Driedric in the fifth for Ozarks only run of the game.
Jonathan Cox (0-1) started and went 4.0 innings to take the loss.
Briggs had a team-best two hits.
In game two on Saturday, Ozarks out hit the Majors 14-11, but it didn’t matter as Millsaps broke open a tight game in the seventh inning by scoring six runs. The near four-hour game also saw a combined 11 errors. The Eagles opened the game with three runs in the first inning behind RBI by Jacob Robbins, Mitchell Powers and Zac Mitchell. Millsaps tied the game in the bottom of the second and then went ahead 4-3 in the third. Ozarks fought back to take a 5-4 lead in the top of the fourth when Jonathan Cox crossed the plate on a wild pitch and Andrew Pelkey scored on a Briggs’ ground out. With Millsaps leading 9-5 after six, the Majors plated six runs in the seventh. Mike Schmeck smashed a two-run double to left center in the ninth inning to make it 15-9.
Bobby Osburn (0-1) suffered the loss after tossing 3.2 innings as the starter. Osburn fanned five.
Powers paced the team with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate.
Ozarks will host Hendrix College February 10 at 1:30 p.m.
Topics: Athletics