CHARLESTON, SC After the first pitch of the 2008 Southern Conference Baseball Tournament's game four was pushed back two hours and fifteen minutes, UNC Greensboro dropped their first game of the tournament to Georgia Southern. UNCG's tie-breaking, one-run lead was lost in the sixth as the Eagles scored 14 runs in three innings to take a 21-9, game four victory on Wednesday evening/Thursday morning at Joseph P. Riley Park. The three hour and 51 minute game lasted until shortly after 2am.

After trailing 6-0 heading into the fourth inning, the Spartans (31-26) cut the lead with four runs three of which came off of a three-run homer by Sean Snell. After allowing just one more Georgia Southern (33-23) run in the bottom half of the inning, UNC G tied the game at 7-7 with an RBI single.

The blue and gold are now 4-7 when playing their first game of the tournament.

Georgia Southern's Aaron Eubanks (6-1) took the win after coming in for relief in the fifth inning. GSU starter Kyle Kamppi (5-4) pitched 4.1 innings with four strikeouts. The Spartans' Wes McCall (1-8) took the loss after coming in for relief in the fifth.

At the plate for UNCG, Snell was 2-for-4 with a three-run home run and two runs scored. Georgia Southern's Jeremiah Parker went 4-for-5 with five RBI, five runs, and two home runs.

UNCG put the first runner on the bags in the first as senior Matt Gaski took a four pitch walk. He was moved into scoring position on a routine groundout to shortstop, but was left stranded as the inning was closed out due to a call of coach interference. The call was prompted when the Georgia Southern first baseman ran into the UNCG first base coach while trying to field a fouled popup.

Between the first two innings, the Eagles left five stranded. Two were left in the first after reaching on back-to-back walks and a caught foul ball by senior Sean Snell just feet shy of the right field line closed out the second with the bases loaded.

Senior catcher Adam Deleo led off the third with a chopper towards second base for UNCG's first hit of the evening. Jeremy Beckham had a good line on the ball, but a hop in front of his glove sent the ball in to the outfield and left Deleo safe at one. He would remain stranded as a pair of groundouts retired the top half of the inning.

Chris Shehan bounced a triple off of the left field scoreboard to lead off the home half of the third inning. After a walked batter put runners on the corners, Jeremiah Parker gave the Eagles their first lead of the game with a three-run shot off of the video board in right center. Two more were plated off of a single up the middle by Jeremy Beckham to give Georgia Southern the 6-0 lead.

A four-run rally in the fourth sparked by a Sean Snell home run pulled the Spartans within two of the Eagles. With seniors Ricky Orton and Tim Carrier reaching on a pair of singles to right center, the senior from Charlotte, NC belted a 1-0 pitch over the left center wall to put the score at 6-3. Sophomore Corey Overholtzer was given first after being hit by a pitch and then moved into scoring position with a stolen base his 10th of the season. The nine-hole hitter, freshman Ray Quinones, drove Overholtzer in from second with a hard-hit, fly ball just feet off of the left field line to bring the score to 6-4.

Parker drove a solo out of the right side his second of the game to put the Eagles up 7-4, but in their next at-bat, UNCG made it a tie game.

Gaski led off the inning with a single up the middle, but he didn't remain long as senior Greg Feltes launched a towering ball over the left center wall and past the lining palm trees. The two-run shot was Feltes' 13th of the season and gave the team their 61st to tie the season record set in 2000. The tying run was put on base in the next at-bat as Carrier was walked on five pitches. After another walked batter shifted him to second, Overholtzer ripped a single through the right side to bring him in for the 7-7 run.

In the top of the sixth, the blue and gold took a one-run lead as junior Pedro Leon was plated off of a fielder's choice to the pitcher, but the Eagles answered back with four runs of their own to regain the lead.  Back-to-back singles by Phillip Porter and Shehan put runners on the bags for Griffin Benedict to hit a two-run double into left center. Benedict and Parker were then plated as David Richardson singled through the left side to give the Eagles the 11-8 lead.

UNCG chipped one away in the seventh as Snell scored off of another left field single by Quinones, but Georgia Southern scored seven to extend their lead to 18-9 heading into the eighth. With two away Benedict, A.J. Wirnsberger, Brian Pierce, and Beckham each scattered a single to bring in at least one run. 

Tonight marked the fourth time since the tournament began in 1984 that a team has scored over 20 runs. The third time came earlier in the day when Elon defeated Wofford, 21-12.

The blue and gold return to the field Thursday afternoon to take on the Wofford Terriers. Game six is slated for 1pm.

For more news on UNCG baseball, ticket prices, a complete season schedule, and all other Spartan athletic information log onto www.UNCGSpartans.com

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Georgia Southern 21, UNC Greensboro 9 (May 21, 2008 at Charleston, S.C.)

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UNC Greensboro...... 000 431 100  -  9 11  1      (31-26)

Georgia Southern..... 006 104 73X  - 21 21  1      (33-23)

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Pitchers: UNC Greensboro - Greg Martin; James White(3); Wes McCall(5); Greg Smith(6); Matt Bjorkstrom(7).

Georgia Southern - Kyle Kamppi; Trent Franzago(5); Aaron Eubanks(5); Tony Chisman(8); Burt Barto(9).

Win-Aaron Eubanks(6-1)

 Loss-Wes McCall(1-8)

HR UNCG - Greg Feltes (13); Sean Snell (5).

HR GSU - Jeremiah Parker 2 (14).

Franzago faced 2 batters in the 5th.