MONTEVALLO, Ala. – University of Montevallo senior Will Fulmer had a perfect day at the plate to help the Falcons clinch a Peach Belt Conference series against the University of North Georgia with a 7-4 win over the Nighthawks in the second game of the series April 19 at Kermit A. Johnson Field.
The Falcons will look to sweep the Nighthawks with a win in the final game of the series Sunday, April 20. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.
Fulmer paced Montevallo (26-17 overall, 12-13 in Peach Belt Conference) offensively as he finished 4-for-4 with a double, his eighth of the season. Fulmer drove in one run and scored two runs in the victory.
Freshman Alex Jones went 2-for-3 at the plate and drove in two runs. Junior Matthew Haskins, who drove in one run and scored two runs, finished 1-for-4 at the plate with a double.
Sophomore Jeremy Hyde went 1-for-4 at the plate with a double and drove in two runs. Freshman Dane Hutcheon finished 1-for-4 at the plate and scored one run. Senior Jackson Slaid drove in one run and scored one run, while junior Vinny Rodriguez scored one run in the win.
Freshman Alex Pondick (5-3) earned the win after allowing just two earned runs on eight hits with one walk in five innings on the mound. Sophomore closer Aron McRee recorded his sixth save of the season after pitching the final 1 2/3 scoreless innings in the game without allowing a hit while striking out two.
Freshman reliever Joey Hume allowed two earned runs on three hits with one strikeout in one inning. Junior Jeremy Bagnall allowed just one hit in 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief and Taylor Burr allowed one hit without recording an out before handing the ball over to McRee.
North Georgia took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning when Cameron Crawford led off the inning with a double and scored on a RBI single to left field by Joey Cecere.
The Falcons responded with three runs in the bottom half of the inning to take a 3-1 lead.
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Fulmer doubled down the left-field line in the frame before North Georgia starter Clint Spratlin issued five consecutive walks.
Fulmer, Haskins and Rodriguez each came around to score on a bases-loaded walk in the inning.
The Nighthawks trimmed the deficit to 3-2 with a run in the top of the fifth inning. Crawford reached on an infield single and advanced to second on a wild pitch by Pondick before scoring on a RBI single up the middle by Cecere.
Montevallo pushed its lead to 4-2 with one run in the bottom half of the frame. Slaid, who reached on a walk, advanced to second base on a single up the middle by Jones before scoring on a RBI double to right-center field by Hyde.
The Falcons extended their lead to 6-2 with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Fulmer led off the frame with an infield single before scoring on a RBI double to center field by Haskins. Haskins advanced to third base when Slaid reached on an error by the Nighthawks before scoring on a RBI sacrifice fly to left field by Jones.
North Georgia cut the deficit to 6-4 with two runs in the top of the seventh inning. Crawford led off the frame with a double to left-center field before scoring on a throwing error by the Falcons. Nick Vinson, who reached on an infield single and advanced to second base on the error, scored on a RBI single to center field by Cecere.
Montevallo plated the final run in the game in the bottom half of the frame, pushing its lead to 7-4. Hutcheon, who singled to left-center field in the frame, advanced to second base on an error by the Nighthawks on a failed pick-off attempt and scored on a RBI infield single by Fulmer.
