Williamsburg, Kentucky - The Columbia College baseball team survived elimination tonight as they defeated the Eagles of Reinhardt University 9-6 to stay alive in the NAIA Opening Round.
Columbia scored first as
Braden DeSonia hit a home run to right field in the bottom of the first. Reinhardt found the scoreboard in the third and took a 3-1 lead. In a scoring position in the third,
Braden DeSonia scored on a wild pitch to cut the Eagles' lead to one, 2-3.
In the fourth, Columbia found its stride as
Riley Poulton,
Indy Stanley, and
Tyler Renn all hit back-to-back-to-back home runs to put the Cougars ahead 7-3. Then, in the sixth,
Braden DeSonia added to his count with another home run, making the Cougars' lead 8-3.
Reinhardt looked to make a come back as they would score three runs in the eighth to trail 6-8.
Tyler Renn hit a single for an RBI in the eighth, extending the lead to 9-6.
Jake Deakins went to work in the top of the ninth as the first recorded out was a ground out. With two runners on base, Deakins struck out the final two batters to end the game.
With the win, the Cougars have reached the 40-win mark for the first time in program history. They advance to take on #6 Cumberlands tomorrow in the bracket championship game where they will need to win against Cumberlands twice to claim the title. First pitch is set for 11:00AM (CST).
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