“This was a great win against a good baseball team.” Head Coach Link Jarrett said,  “Hunter (Smith) didn't have his A-game but he kept us in it, (Andrew) Wantz came in and got us out of a jam and then (Zach) Kuchmaner really settled things down.  That was a good starting pitcher that they had.  He had a good feel for his breaking ball added with some velocity.  Offensively, once we figured it out, (Collin) Woody hammered a full-count base hit, a base-hit bunt mixed in and then (Andrew) Moritz with two doubles, and the bases-clearing double was the momentum shift we needed to finish off the comeback.”

UNCG had five players earn multiple hits, as the Spartans had 12 hits on the evening.  This is the fifth-straight game that UNCG has had multiple hits, and the longest such streak to open a season on record. 

Tripp Shelton (Winston-Salem, N.C./West Forsyth), Collin Woody (Tampa, Fla./College of Central Florida), Jake Kusz (Durham, N.C./Riverside), Ben Spitznagel (Cincinnati, Ohio/Wabash Valley CC) and Andrew Moritz (Charlotte, N.C./Providence) all notched a pair of hits.  Woody and Kusz drove in two, while Moritz led the Spartans with three RBI. 

Hunter Smith (Whiteville, N.C./Gardner-Webb) got the start for the Spartans and threw 4.2 innings.  Andrew Wantz (Holly Springs, N.C./Holly Springs) made his third relief appearance of the season, going a third of an inning.  Zach Kuchmaner (Charlotte, N.C./Marvin Ridge) (1-0) earned his first collegiate victory, going 2.0 innings without allowing a hit and striking out two hitters.  Chad Sykes (Creedmoor, N.C./Voyager Academy) closed out the game, giving up a run in the final two innings en route to the first save of the 2016 season. 

The Spartans took an early lead, plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the first frame.  Shelton hit his fifth double of the season to start the rally.  Michael Goss (Cartersville, Ga.) followed by drawing a walk before the pair executed a double steal to put runners in scoring position.  Kusz stepped in and drove a single to right to put the Navy and Gold up early.

Binghamton cut the Spartan lead in half in the next half inning, using a Brendan Skidmore RBI single to plate the run.

The Bearcats then took a commanding lead in the top of the fifth frame, scoring seven runs.  Binghamton benefitted from three walks, a bunt single and a well-executed hit and run to give them a commanding 8-2 lead. 

UNCG responded in the bottom of the sixth inning, scoring a touchdown of their own.  Woody got the inning going, connecting for a one-out double.  Spitznagel followed a Ryne Sigmon (Danville, Va./Danville CC) walk and knocked an RBI single up the middle.  After Dillon Stewart (Dunn, N.C/Brunswick CC) was hit by a pitch to load the bases, the freshman Moritz delivered with a bases clearing double to cut the lead to 8-7 Bearcats.  A pair of walks and a single from Kalawaia loaded the bases for Woody who earned his second hit of the inning, muscling a single off the end of the bat past a diving shortstop to bring in two more and put the Spartans ahead for good.

UNCG added an insurance run in the seventh inning.  Sigmon doubled to start the inning and came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Stewart. 

Sykes came in and earned the two-inning save, pitching in the eighth and ninth innings.  It is the first save of the 2016 season for the sophomore right-hander.

UNCG returns to action tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. as they will again host the Binghamton Bearcats at the UNCG Baseball Stadium. 

-UNCG-