A five-run inning in each contest led the No. 7-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College baseball team earn a doubleheader sweep against No. 24 Taylor University (Indiana) 9-4 and 8-1 Friday afternoon to begin a three-game weekend series at the Grizzly Baseball Complex.

The Grizzlies (4-1) pushed five runs across in the fifth inning of the opener to rally from a 4-0 deficit. Then, the hosts used a five-run seventh inning to pull away late in the second contest.

Junior Jesus Pacheco began the comeback in the early contest with a two-run single that brought home sophomore Kyle Norton and senior Blaze O'Saben. A few batters later, junior Caden Smith hit a two-run single to right field that tied the contest at 4-4. Junior Jon Ponder gave the Grizzlies their first lead of the game, 5-4, with a run-scoring single.

Two runs were added in the sixth and eighth innings as the team finished with nine runs on nine hits in the opener.

In the second contest, junior Ajay Sczepkowski hit a pair of home runs as GGC led wire-to-wire. His first round tripper as a Grizzly was a solo blast in the first inning. He followed with a two-run home run that was part of the productive five-run seventh inning.

Junior Cohen Wilbanks hit his first career home run earlier in the seventh inning.

Friday's games also featured strong pitching performances from relievers.

Sophomore left hander Gabe White got a strikeout and a groundout with the bases loaded in the sixth inning of Friday's first game. He scattered two hits and struck out six batters across 4.1 innings in picking up the victory.

In the nightcap, senior Jonathan Haab struck out Kade Vander Molen on three pitches in another bases-loaded jam to keep GGC ahead 2-1 at the top of the seventh inning. The right hander recorded his second save of the young season by striking out five batters in a 2.1-inning relief performance.


  "I challenged the guys this week to measure up to our standard of toughness. I'm most proud that this group continues to show up when they're challenged. It speaks a lot to their maturity, mentality, and trust within our dugout right now," said Head Coach Jeremy Sheetinger.
  The No. 7 Grizzlies were holding onto a one-run lead late when facing a bases-loaded jam with two outs in the seventh inning of the nightcap. Senior right-handed reliever Jonathan Haab needed only three pitches to strike out Kade Vander Molen to keep the Trojans off the scoreboard. Conversely, GGC juniors Cohen Wilbanks and Ajay Sczepkowski connected on two-run home runs in the bottom half of that inning to secure the doubleheader sweep.
  First Game
Top of Third
Kaleb Kolpien hit a two-run home run over the right field fence to open the scoring
 
Top of Fifth
Brayden Manning gave the Trojans a 4-0 lead with an RBI single
 
Bottom of Fifth
Jesus Pacheco put the Grizzlies on the scoreboard with a two-run single
Caden Smith tied the game, 4-4, with a two-run single to right field
Jon Ponder added a run-scoring single to cap a five-run inning and give the hosts its first lead of the game
 
Bottom of Sixth
Jesus Pacheco brought home Ryan Hunt with an infield single
Braxton Meguiar hit a sacrifice fly to extend the lead to three runs, 7-4
 
Bottom of Eighth
Ajay Sczepkowski hit an RBI double to center field to score GGC's ninth run
 
Second Game
Bottom of First
Ajay Sczepkowski connected on a solo home run to left field
 
Top of Sixth
Ben Kalbaugh cut GGC's lead to 2-1 with an RBI ground out to third base
 
Top of Seventh
Jonathan Haab struck out Kade Vander Molen on three pitches with the bases loaded to keep the Grizzlies ahead by a one-run margin, 2-1
 
Bottom of Seventh
Cohen Wilbanks hit a two-run home run over the right field fence
Ajay Sczepkowski hit his second home run of the game, this time a two-run blast to deep center field
 

• The Grizzlies tallied 17 hits across Friday's doubleheader sweep
• Junior Jesus Pacheco went 3-for-4 with three RBI in the opener
• Three GGC pitchers combined for 16 strikeouts in the nightcap
• Senior Jonathan Haab has struck out 11 of the 17 batters he has faced in three relief appearances this season

• GGC improves to 4-1 on the season; Taylor drops to 1-4 this spring
• The Grizzlies were ranked No. 7 in the NAIA Preseason Top 25 poll; Taylor stood No. 24 in the same poll
• Friday's doubleheader marked the first meeting between the two colleges
• GGC's pitching staff is averaging 14.4 strikeouts per game

Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to conclude the three-game series with a single nine-inning contest on Saturday, February 11, from the Grizzly Baseball Complex, starting at 10 a.m.