The Georgia Gwinnett College baseball team recorded its 20th win of the 2020 season behind a 4-3 victory against Talladega College (Ala.) on Saturday evening at the Grizzly Baseball Complex.

The Grizzlies (20-2) rallied from an early 3-0 to defeat the Tornadoes for the team's 19th straight victory.

A two-run home run by junior Gabe Howell was the deciding offensive factor. The fifth-inning blast provided the winning 4-3 edge.

GGC pushed across two runs in the third inning to start the comeback. Junior Myles Smith scored from third base after a throwing error by Talladega came on a stolen base attempt of second base. Senior Gabe Austin hit a sacrifice fly to bring home junior Cord Johnson with another run to trim the deficit to 3-2.

Senior starting pitcher Hunter Dollander started slowly but ended up scattering six hits and struck out 11 batters across seven innings to improve to 3-0 on the season. Freshman left hander Tyler Clayton tossed a scoreless eighth inning before freshman Alex Cook recorded his eighth save of the season, retiring all three batters he faced in the ninth inning.

Georgia Gwinnett College and Talladega are members of the Association of Independent Institutions.

GGC's pitching staff has recorded 32 strikeouts over the first two games of the weekend.


  Junior Gabe Howell's two-run home run into the GGC bullpen over the left field fence in the fifth inning gave the Grizzlies the lead for good, 4-3. The team only allowed two base runners over the last four innings to secure the one-run victory.
  "I was really proud of our competiveness tonight. This was a great test for us as we faced a good arm on the opposing mound. Our guys responded and answered the bell. Big-time players show up in big-time moments and that's what Gabe did for us. We had the right player at the plate at the right time. He did exactly what he is supposed to do in the (batter's) box in that situation," said Head Coach Jeremy Sheetinger.
  Top of First
Johnathon McKnight drew a bases-loaded walk to bring home Alexis Venture
Kurston Gary followed with another walk to give the Tornadoes a 2-0 lead
 
Bottom of Third
Myles Smith scored from third base following a throw on a stolen base attempt at second base
Gabe Austin hit a sacrifice fly to left field to cut the deficit to 3-2
 
Bottom of Fifth
Gabe Howell connected on a two-run home run over the left field fence to give the Grizzlies a 4-3 lead
 

• GGC outhit Talladega by a 7-6 margin
• Seven different players collected a hit for the Grizzlies
• GGC's pitching staff has recorded 32 strikeouts over the last two games
• Junior Myles Smith recorded two stolen bases in the game

• GGC improves to 20-2 on the season; Talladega is 11-12 this spring
• The Grizzlies were ranked No. 5 in the NAIA Top 25 preseason poll
• GGC has won 19 straight games and is 17-0 at the Grizzly Baseball Complex this season
• Talladega defeated Lourdes 8-5 earlier in the day
• GGC and Talladega are members of the Association of Independent Institutions; the teams have played in the championship game of the A.I.I. championship tournament during the past three seasons

Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to host Lourdes University (Ohio) on Saturday, March 8, at 2 p.m. from the Grizzly Baseball Complex.