MOUNT BERRY, Ga. - With the regular season winding down, Viking baseball is heating up, as they demolished Hendrix 19-6 in seven innings to seal the series sweep.
As a collective, the Vikings lit up the Warriors pitching staff for 16 total hits, compared to just six from Hendrix. Leading the charge in the batter's box was junior Charles Pulaski, who had a huge home run to go along with his three hits, three runs scored, and 4 RBI. He was joined by senior Nick Brunswick, who poured in 3 hits, 4 RBI, and 2 runs scored.
Senior Joey Garcia also eclipsed 200 career hits with a base hit in the bottom of the first as he solidified himself as a cornerstone of the program.
The imminent fireworks halted early on with both teams going scoreless in the first inning. CJ Whaley retired three out of four Hendrix batters to begin the ballgame.
Whaley would make quick work of the Hendrix bats in the top of the second, setting up an eager Berry offense. Back-to-back hits from designated hitter Caleb Spikes and third baseman Aiden Cloud began the onslaught from the Vikings. An RBI single to center field from Garrett Lang scored Spikes and placed Cloud at third base. Lead-off man Alex Knapp took full advantage of his second time in the batter's box. He launched a ball into center field that scored both Cloud and Lang off the RBI double. Just when Hendrix thought the Vikings had conceited the inning, Brunswick showed his power with a double that scored Knapp and handed the Vikings an early 4-0 lead.
Jackson Collett entered the game in the top of the third to take control of the mound for the Vikings. Hendrix was able to drive in two runs to cut the Viking lead to two before Brady Greene entered the ballgame and punched out a Warrior to end the inning, leaving the score at 4-2.
The bottom of the third is where the Vikings flexed their muscles in the batter's box. With Pendleton on base due to a walk, Charles Pulaski waited out his favorite pitch from the Hendrix dealer and unleashed a bomb of a home run to push the Viking lead to 6-2. With two outs and the bases loaded, the Vikings did not waiver, as Brunswick drilled double into center field to score all three base runners and bring the commanding Berry lead to 9-2. Unable to stop the bleeding, Hendrix allowed four more runs, courtesy of a Pulaski single and a passed ball, leaving the tab at 13-2.
With Jon Strydom now on the mound after the Vikings surrendered a 3-run home run, Strydom got the three outs needed to send the game into the bottom of the fourth inning.
No runs were administered by either team in the fourth inning, which maintained the Viking 13-2 lead.
After another fruitless half-inning for the Warriors at the top of the fifth, the Vikings produced a dagger of an inning. An error off of Riley Uhls' contact led to Pulaski and Pendleton scoring. On the next at-bat, Cloud continued to impress with a triple that bought Uhls home. Lang then returned the favor to Cloud as he grounded out to sacrifice himself for Cloud to reach home. Later in the inning, the Vikings drove through two more runs to crush the Warriors defense, 19-6.
The offenses went away quietly in the sixth and seventh innings, resulting in Berry earning a much-needed three-game sweep of the Warriors, moving to 17-15 overall and 6-6 in the SAA.
The Vikings will be in action for a huge series against Millsaps College at home, beginning with a doubleheader on April 18 at 3 PM and 6 PM ET.
