LAWRENCEVILLE- Despite spotting fourth-seeded St. Catharine (Ky.) a 3-0 lead in the first inning, the fourth-ranked and top-seeded Georgia Gwinnett baseball team began its defense of the NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round Lawrenceville Bracket with an 11-5 victory on Tuesday evening in Lawrenceville to advance in the winner's bracket on the first day of the double-elimination event.
Arsenio Watlington and Ernesto Vasquez combined for seven hits as the GGC attack came to life in the fifth inning, cruising late to improve to 48-12 on the year.
Reliever Andy Threatt moved to 7-0 on the year while closer Christian Turnipseed picked up his 10th save.
St. Catharine (38-16), receiving votes nationally, had defeated fifth-seeded Spring Arbor (Mich.) in Tuesday's opener to advance to the nightcap.
The Georgia Gwinnett offense was held without a hit through four-plus innings, but finished the night with 14, scoring nine times over the final three innings.
The Grizzlies advance to face third-seeded St. Thomas (Fla.) at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The Bobcats were winners over second-seeded Westmont (Calif.) in Tuesday's middle game.
The Patriots raced out to their early advantage over the Grizzlies- the designated visiting team- on Tuesday with three hits in the bottom of the first inning, including an RBI double from Dominique Guevara off GGC starter Ryan Minteer.
Minteer would settle in and scatter six hits over 5.2 innings, but the 3-0 advantage held for Patriots starter John Werner until the top of the fifth. In that frame, Watlington produced an RBI single to start the momentum.
An inning later, Michael Hodorowski added an RBI base hit to draw GGC within one at 3-2.
With Threatt holding off the St. Catharine offense, the Grizzlies raced by the Patriots in the seventh inning. Four straight hits started the inning, capped by a towering RBI double by Ty Abbott to push GGC in front after Marcus McCorkle had tied the game with an RBI single. Later, with the bases loaded, William Paschal dropped a bloop single into shallow right, Hodorowski added a sac fly and Woods followed with an RBI single to short, making it 7-3, GGC.
The Grizzlies added to the lead in the eighth as one run scored on a dropped fly ball, though two runs from St. Catharine in the bottom of the inning made it 8-5. Turnipseed entered the inning with two on and two out, inducing a ground ball to end the frame and limit the damage.
Georgia Gwinnett distanced itself once more in the top of the ninth. An RBI single by Vasquez and a bunt RBI single from Watlington made it 10-5, then one more hit by Abbott pushed it to the final 11-5 advantage.
With two RBIs on Tuesday, Abbott now stands at 90 for the season.
The Grizzlies surpassed the 200 stolen base mark on the year with seven during the victory.
