ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. — Behind another solid Friday start from Sam Carpenter, the Piedmont College baseball team won 7-4 in the series opener against North Carolina Wesleyan College.
Carpenter held the Battling Bishops to four runs over seven innings while the offense tacked on runs in six straight innings to control the contest. The moved Carpenter to 7-0 on the mound this season pitching seven innings striking out five.
The Lions started hot with three singles and a walk in the first inning driving in a pair of runs to lead 2-0. The lead was short-lived as N.C. Wesleyan tied the contest in the bottom of the first at two all. A 2-run home run evened the score off the bat of N.C. Wesleyan's Croom.
Piedmont continued to work offensively as Kyle Dejesus singled to begin the second and was driven in later in the inning to take the lead. The Lions would score in each of the first six innings with one run in each inning after the first.
Carpenter worked a 1-2-3 inning in the second and allowed just three more hits until the bottom of the seventh. In the seventh, the Battling Bishops added two runs on two hits as Croom accounted for all four runs with his second 2-run home run of the game off Carpenter.
David Craft pitched the eighth while Matt Vonderschmidt closed out the ninth with Craft going three up, three down and Vonderschmidt allowing just one hit.
Cameron Johnson led Piedmont with his three hits while Brady Ballstadt, Tyler Burdette and Evan Meade all had two-hit performances.
Up next, game two of the series is set for Saturday at 1 p.m. in Rocky Mount.
