The No. 2-ranked Georgia Gwinnett College baseball team reached the 40-win mark after picking up a pair of victories Friday on the opening day of the Continental Athletic Conference Showdown at the Grizzly Baseball Complex.

The Grizzlies (40-4) began the weekend action with a 25-7 victory against Carolina University (North Carolina) before collecting an 8-0 triumph against Spartanburg Methodist College (South Carolina) in the nightcap.

Along the way, senior Braxton Meguiar set the NAIA career record for runs scored during the first contest. He added two more runs to his 306th four-year GGC total. It is a NAIA record that had stood for 20 seasons.

The team scored runs in five of its six innings against Carolina. The offensive barrage started with five runs coming in the opening frame before tallying seven runs one inning later for an early 12-3 advantage.

Senior Paul Winland Jr. brought home a pair of runs with a double before senior Jon Ponder added a two-run single up the middle. Junior Alex Harrell capped the early scoring with a two-run double in the second inning.

GGC added six more runs to the scoreboard in the fourth inning and plated five runs during the fifth frame. Winland Jr. collected a two-run double before junior Grant Pohlman hit an RBI double to score the team's 18th run of the contest.

Senior Scott Seeker went 3-for-4 and scored four times, while collecting three RBI, to lead a balanced offensive attack in the opener. Harrell also scored four runs. Winland Jr. went 2-for-4 with four RBI.

In the much-closer nightcap, senior starting pitcher Anthony Patterson III scattered four hits and struck out eight batters in tossing a shutout. Offensively, GGC scored all eight of its runs with two outs against the Pioneers (18-26).

Senior Sam Seeker opened the scoring with an RBI single in the bottom of the second inning. Winland Jr. added a run-scoring double one inning later.

The hosts' lead grew to 3-0 as Meguiar scored following a wild pitch in the fifth inning. Then the gap widened even more with a five-run sixth inning. Scott Seeker brought home a pair of runs with a single to left field.

The Grizzlies used 26 hits to score 33 runs to open the CAC Showdown.

"I've got to give our position players a ton of credit for believing and applying the information presented this week about how we are successful. We stayed in character all day, so I'm not shocked that 33 runs came across in two games," said Head Coach Jeremy Sheetinger.


 
Coach's Corner
"We challenged the guys this week to get back to playing our brand of baseball and to be dominant. The second game (Spartanburg Methodist) might have been one of the best overall games we've played this season. It's really cool to see that happening at this time of the season," said Head Coach Jeremy Sheetinger.
 
Turning Point
The Grizzlies scored all eight of their runs in Friday's nightcap with two outs. Senior Sam Seeker hit an RBI single in the second inning before classmate Paul Winland Jr. collected an RBI double one inning later. Senior Braxton Meguiar scored on a wild pitch in the fifth inning to give the hosts a 3-0 advantage. GGC broke the game open behind a five-run sixth inning.
 
Key Plays
Carolina Game
Bottom of First
Jackson Cobb drew a walk with the bases loaded to give the hosts a quick 2-0 advantage
Grant Pohlman hit an RBI ground out to plate the team's third run of the contest
 
Bottom of Second
Paul Winland Jr. hit a two-run double to right-center field
Jon Ponder brought home a pair of runs with a single up the middle, giving the Grizzlies a 9-3 lead
Alex Harrell had a double to plate two runs to cap a seven-run inning
 
Bottom of Fourth
Kyle Norton hit a run-scoring single to bring home Tyler M. Martin
Paul Winland Jr. collected a two-run double to give GGC a 17-6 lead
 
Bottom of Fifth
Joe Quelch hit an RBI triple to center field
Scott Seeker lined a two-run double down the right field line for the team's 22nd run of the contest
Joe Mrowiec hit a sacrifice fly
Zayd Brannigan added a sacrifice fly to score Alex Harrell, plating the 25th run of the game
 
Spartanburg Methodist Game
Bottom of Second
Sam Seeker hit a two-out RBI single to bring home Zayd Brannigan
 
Bottom of Third
Paul Winland Jr. collected a two-out RBI double to give GGC a 2-0 lead
 
Bottom of Fifth
Braxton Meguiar scored following a wild pitch
 
Bottom of Sixth
Scott Seeker lined a two-run single, again with two outs, to extend the team's lead to 6-0
 
Inside The Numbers

• The Grizzlies registered 26 hits across Friday's two games, with 16 hits coming in the Carolina game
• Senior Paul Winland Jr. went 4-for-7 and drove in five runs on Friday
• Senior pitcher Anthony Patterson III struck out eight batters in tossing a shutout
• GGC successfully stole 19 bases on the day, highlighted by 10 steals against Spartanburg Methodist College

News & Notes

• GGC improves to 40-4 this spring; Carolina stands 8-30 on the season; Spartanburg Methodist is 18-26 in 2025
• The Grizzlies were ranked No. 2 in the latest NAIA Top 25 poll
• Senior Braxton Meguiar broke the NAIA record for runs scored (306) during his four-year GGC career; the achievement came during the Carolina contest; the NAIA record had stood for 20 seasons
• All three teams are members of the Continental Athletic Conference

Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to host the same two teams in the Continental Athletic Conference Showdown on Saturday, April 19, at the Grizzly Baseball Complex. The team will face Spartanburg Methodist College at 2 p.m. That will be followed by a contest against Carolina University at 5 p.m.