Defiance bounces back to sweep Saturday twinbill

TOCCOA FALLS, Ga. - After losing their first two games on Friday, the Defiance Yellow Jackets rebounded with a pair of wins on Saturday by defeating the Mid-Atlantic Christian Mustangs 4-3 and the Toccoa Falls Screaming Eagles 6-4.

The Yellow Jackets (5-10) picked up consecutive wins for the second time this season as they've now completed three wins by two runs or less. 

Facing Mid-Atlantic Christian with a noon start at Toccoa Falls, the Yellow Jackets came from behind twice while riding a strong start by Gunner Gregg, who went the first 5.1 innings. He was relieved by freshman Andy Yoder and earned his second win of the campaign. Mitchell Roever erased a 1-0 deficit with a fourth-inning, two-run double while Connor Gephart evened the score at 3-3 in the sixth frame on a sacrifice fly. The Jackets, who were playing as the home team in the neutral-site affair, loaded the bases in the last of the seventh on a single and two hit-by-pitch to set the stage for a walk-off walk by Jacob Hild. 

The second game was competitive throughout as well with DC outlasting Toccoa Falls by two runs. Keyon Collier got DC on the board with an RBI knock in the second followed by a second Jackets run on an error. The Eagles got those runs back on a two-run homer in the third, but starting pitcher Josh Gase held Toccoa Falls in check through four innings of work thanks to four strikeouts. Blake Bowman relieved Gase from a jam in the fifth and went on to toss a scoreless frame. After the junior lefty preserved a 3-3 tie, the Yellow Jackets stung the Eagles in the sixth with a pair of runs in the sixth followed by another in the seventh. Yoder was called upon to lock down the final six outs and earned career save No. 1.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Andy Yoder pitched in both games for 3.2 total innings on the day with a winning decision and a save, giving up just one run.
• Blake Bowman earned the Game 2 win for his first victory of the campaign, which is the second of his career at Defiance.
• Josh Gase made his fourth start of the year as DC improved to 3-1 in those contests.
• On the hitting side, seniors Mitchell Roever, Gunner Gregg, and Tyler Dehan all finished with three hits for the day with at least one two-hit game. Roever and Gregg also has a two-RBI game as well. 
• Tyler Dehan ended the series on a six-game hitting streak and went 5-for-11 with an RBI, two walks and two extra-base hits for the four-game stint at Toccoa Falls. Dehan is now tied for the team lead in hits with 13 alongside Gunner Gregg.
• Connor Gephart recorded RBIs in each game but his seven-game hitting streak was snapped in the first game. He started a new one with an RBI single in Game 2 vs. Toccoa Falls. 
• Roever, Alex Rodriguez III and Brady Fallon all led Defiance in RBIs for the series with three apiece.
• Toccoa Falls outhit Defiance 10-8 in Game 2 but committed five errors that occurred on three different scoring plays for the Jackets.

UP NEXT
Defiance travels to South Carolina next for a doubleheader against the Bob Jones University Bruins on Tuesday. First pitch of the first contest is scheduled for 3 p.m.

-JACKETS-