Fire Grit Out Series Win Over Grizzlies in Spectacular Fashion

No. 1 Southeastern Tops No.3 Georgia Gwinnett in Colossal Weekend Series
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga.- The conclusion of one of the most highly anticipated non-conference NAIA baseball series did not disappoint. The No. 3 Georgia Gwinnett Grizzlies took game two of the series 6-4. However, it was the Fire who had the final word, gritting out an 8-5 11-inning win in the second game of the doubleheader to claim the series victory.
The Fire found themselves in an early 5-0 hole to the Grizzlies in the first game of the doubleheader through four innings of play. GGC tacked on another in the bottom of the seventh to make it a 7-0 lead.
Southeastern struggled in clutch hitting situations in the first contest, leaving five runners stranded in scoring position through the first seven innings.
The Fire made some noise in the top of the eighth, plating three runs on three hits and an error. An RBI double by Abdel Guadalupe, RBI single by junior third baseman Ivan Nunez, and a misplayed grounder scored the runs.
Another single off the bat of Nunez in the top of the ninth trimmed the Georgia Gwinnett lead to 6-4. However, the Fire left the bases loaded to conclude the contest.
The second game of the doubleheader was a remarkable back-and-forth affair.
The plate discipline of the Fire batters was a stand-out for SEU. The Fire drew 14 walks in the game and led off five of the 11 frames played with a base on balls.
Southeastern struck first in the fourth, as Guadalupe crossed on a fielder’s choice. GGC quickly answered in the bottom half of the frame, tying things up 1-1.
Junior catcher Willie Estrada exerted himself as a key player in the top of the fifth, launching a two-run homer over the left field fence on an 0-1 count, his first long ball of the season.
Once again, the Grizzlies answered with a two-run fifth of their own to tie up the game 3-3.
Georgia Gwinnett pulled ahead in the bottom of the sixth with another two-run frame to go up 5-3.
It was Southeastern’s turn to answer in the top of the seventh. Senior shortstop Adam De La Cruz and senior second baseman Dominic Anagnos crossed home on one of The Grizzlies’ four errors they committed in the contest to tie the game 5-5.
Junior right-handed pitcher Kyle Wilson was a tremendous asset to the Fire victory with his performance on the mound. After relieving Bryce Frasier to start the sixth inning, Wilson proceeded to toss six innings, allowing two runs and striking out six.
“I just went out there and tried to have fun. I tried to keep everyone lighthearted out there and enjoy themselves,” commented Wilson. “I had no concerns throwing any kind of pitch because I had confidence in my guys on defense backing me up”.
The Arkansas Tech transfer retired nine of the 11 Grizzlies he faced through the seventh and 10th innings. With the winning decision, Wilson improved to 2-0 through the first week of the regular season.
After going down in order in the order in the top of the 10th, the Fire offense capitalized on more Georgia Gwinnett miscues to secure the victory. After a De La Cruz double to lead off the top of the 11th, SEU was able to plate three runs off a pair of GGC misplayed ground balls.
“We are thrilled come to a place like this and take the series, but it’s early and we still have a lot to learn and grow in on both sides of the ball,” shared head coach Adrian Dinkel.
The Fire look to carry momentum into Sun Conference play, as they host the No. 18 Webber International University Warriors next weekend for a three game series. Game one is scheduled for Friday at 6:30 p.m.