The Millsaps College baseball team split a doubleheader against Oglethorpe University on Friday at Hermance Stadium. The Majors lost the first game 6-4 but bounced back to win the second 11-6, according to team sources.
In the opening game, Millsaps took an early lead with a run in the second inning. Junior Wesley Grant drove in two RBIs and hit a double. Freshman Hudson Moberly scored twice with two hits. Senior Layne Cross also added two hits, including a double, and scored once. Senior pitcher Andrew Bradley pitched 3.2 innings of relief, allowing one run on one hit with two strikeouts and one walk.
Despite the loss, Millsaps had 10 hits and turned two double plays. The team led 1-0 after Moberly singled in the second, followed by an RBI single from senior Sam Thomas. The Majors extended their lead to 2-0 in the third when senior EJ Ousley reached on an error, setting up a run-scoring single by Wes Carr.
Oglethorpe responded in the bottom of the third with a two-RBI single to tie the game. The Stormy Petrels took the lead in the fourth with a two-run homer and a sacrifice fly, making it 5-2. Millsaps narrowed the gap in the sixth inning, with Moberly and Cross each hitting and Grant doubling to bring home two runs. Oglethorpe added an insurance run in the eighth, sealing the 6-4 victory.
The second game saw Millsaps hit three home runs and score 11 runs to secure an 11-6 win. Sophomore Cam Cressend pitched five innings, allowing three earned runs on seven hits. Fred Fields pitched four innings in relief, earning a save with two strikeouts. Carr led the offense with three hits and four RBIs, including a three-run homer. Williams scored three times, walked twice, and had two hits. Cross hit a two-run homer, and Grant added three hits, two RBIs, and a run scored. Thomas contributed two hits, including a homer, and scored twice.
The Majors opened the scoring in the first inning on a single by senior Mason Morgan that scored Williams. In the second, Thomas hit a solo home run, giving Millsaps a 2-1 lead. The team extended its advantage in the third with a two-run homer from Cross. Millsaps added to its lead with a three-run homer by Carr in the sixth and a two-run single by Grant in the seventh, which made it 11-6. Both teams played scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth, finalizing the victory and tying the series at one game each.
The teams are scheduled to play the decisive third game Saturday at 11 a.m. CT. Live video and stats will be available at gomajors.com. Millsaps College, founded in 1890 in Jackson, Mississippi, is a nationally recognized liberal arts college committed to academic excellence and social progress, according to college officials. The college has been ranked among the best values in higher education by several publications.
