MONTEVALLO, Ala. – University of Montevallo junior Steven Knudson provided a pair of three-run homers and senior Vinny Rodriguez followed with a grand slam to lift the Falcons to a 14-10 win over visiting USC Aiken in the final game of a Peach Belt Conference series March 29 at Kermit A. Johnson Field.
Knudson's two blasts in the game give him 16 on the season, which puts him two home runs behind NCAA Division II national leader Collins Cuthrell of UNC Pembroke. Rodriguez' grand slam marked his second home run of the season.
Knudson finished 2-for-2 with the pair of homers, driving in a season-high seven runs and scoring three runs. Rodriguez went 2-for-4 at the plate with the grand slam, driving in a season-best five runs and scoring one run.
Senior Matthew Haskins led the Falcons (15-15 overall, 9-9 in Peach Belt Conference) as he finished 3-for-5 at the plate with a double and scored four runs. Haskins is now batting .446 this season, which ranks him third in the Peach Belt Conference.
Senior Cody White went 2-for-5 at the plate with a double and drove in one run. Sophomore Dane Hutcheon finished 2-for-6 at the plate and scored four runs.
Freshman Collin Dupree, who scored one run and drove in one run, went 1-for-4 at the plate. Sophomore Alex Jones finished 1-for-5 at the plate and scored one run. Junior Thomas Bradey went 1-for-4 at the plate.
Freshman Trent Higginbotham pitched a solid seven innings in his first start of the season after moving into the weekend rotation. Higginbotham allowed seven runs, including only one earned run, on eight hits with three strikeouts and two walks.
Junior Taylor Burr allowed one unearned run on two hits with one strikeout in one inning in relief, while fellow junior Aron McRee gave up two earned runs on two hits with one walk in one inning on the mound.
Knudson blasted the first of his two three-run bombs in the bottom of the first inning to put the Falcons on top early, 3-0. Another three-run blast by Knudson gave Montevallo a 6-2 advantage in the bottom of the third inning.
Rodriguez' grand slam in the bottom of the fourth inning and a sacrifice fly by Dupree in the frame gave the Falcons a 11-5 lead.
A sacrifice fly by Knudson in the bottom of the fifth, a RBI single by Rodriguez in the bottom of the seventh and a RBI double by White in the bottom of the eighth inning accounted for the Falcons' final three runs in the victory.
Montevallo will return to action with a pair of non-conference games on the road at Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee this week.
First pitch in the first game against the Trojans is set for Tuesday, March 31 at 6 p.m. The second game is scheduled for Wednesday, April 1 at 5 p.m.
