DAYTON, Tenn. - CIU baseball notched the second win of their three games series with No. 14 Bryan College on Saturday as CIU defeated the Lions 10-8 in game two of the series. Despite falling in game three and splitting the Saturday doubleheader with Bryan, the game two win is crucial to helping CIU hold their spot in the Appalachian Athletic Conference. With the conference tournament looming, every win in the conference is critically important. The win and loss move CIU to 12-12 in the AAC and 22-22 overall. 

Game One: CIU 10 BC 8: After a relatively quiet first four innings, CIU would explode in the 5th inning. With the Rams leading 3-2 in the top of the inning and two outs on the board, a ground ball from Price Alexander got things humming as Kody Trujillo scored off an error from Bryan's shortstop. In the next at-bat, Carter Willis notched a two-RBI single, scoring both Alex Miller and Buddy Bleasdale, pushing the Ram's advantage to 6-2. Willis then stole second as Price Alexander scored on defensive indifference. Rafael Gonzales added a single, and Willis himself got across home plate off a single from Joshua Hernandez as Gonzales scored on the throw. With a 9-2 lead, CIU appeared to have a sizable advantage, but Bryan responded with a six-run bottom of the 5th to bring the score to 9-8. The Rams pitching staff held the Lions scoreless through the rest of the game, and Trujillo added an RBI single in the top of the 8th to help CIU to the 10-8 win. 

Game Three: BC 7 CIU 6 - 7 innings: The only score for CIU through five innings was a Kody Trujillo RBI-single in the top of the 4th inning. Trailing 7-1 in the top of the 6th, Rafeal Gonzales would lead off with a home run over the left-field wall. Then a double from Gabe Austin brought home yet another run as the Rams trailed only 7-3. A Corely Cheeks score on a passed ball and a Grant Bodison walk with the bases loaded made it a 7-5 game. A sac fly from Carter Willis brought the Rams within one run; however, CIU was unable to score for the remainder of the inning or in the top of the 7th. 

Doubleheader Notes:

• Freshman Price Alexander stepped up in game two with two RBI's and a double in three at-bats. 
• Kody Trujillo battled the entirety of game two going 4-5 at the plate with an RBI.
• Carter Willis had two RBI's on his lone hit in game two, while Willis added another RBI in game three. 
• Rafeal Gonzales continues to prove himself as one of the best freshmen in the AAC as the South Carolina native picked up his second home run of the year in game three. Gonzales also went 1-3 with an RBI in game two while being walked twice. 
• The Rams had four different pitchers in game two as Brett Collins notched the win while Joshua Hernandez led the staff in strikeouts with four. 
• Trent Polly pitched all of game three, picking up one strikeout and the loss. 
• CIU now has five wins over ranked opponents and two series wins over NAIA's top 15 teams.

What Coach Jonathan Johnson is saying: "We did exactly what we needed to do this weekend. Winning 2 of 3 on the road against a top-ranked team was another step forward in CIU establishing itself as one of the top programs in the nation. We need to finish strong and see what happens in the conference tournament."

Up Next: CIU will host Bob Jones in a doubleheader on Tuesday, April 20th at 1 PM.