Gavin Williams homered early, and Ryan Onkst drove in the winning run in the sixth inning of Game 1 of Saturday's double-header with the Banyans from NAIA New College of Florida. Three runs scored in between, and TBC Eagles Baseball took the opener 5-4. New College, though, scored twice early in Game 2 and went on to win 8-2.

Game 1: Eagles 5, NCF 4

With Brandon Hoang on first and two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Onkst drove the ball off the right-center field fence. Hoang, pinch running for Colin Sepulveda (single) took off on contact and motored all the way from first with the game-winning run. The hit for Onkst was his third of the game.

[Ryan Onkst was 4 for 8 on the day and had the game-winning RBI in Game 1.]

After relieving in the top of the sixth, Drew Billings pitched a scoreless seventh to earn his third win of the season. Billings got into a jam with a base hit to start the inning but got an unusual out when Arian Quinones's ground ball hit Matthew Merk on the base paths. A hit batsman and a wild pitch then put the tying run on third and the go-ahead run on second with one out. Unfazed, Billings struck out the next two men to end the game and secure the win.

Williams started the scoring with an opposite filed home run in the first. Williams had RBI singles in each of his next two at bats, and his third hit put the Eagles ahead 4-2 in the fourth following a two-run rally in the third that gave TBC a 3-2 lead. Williams drove in Sepulveda (single) to tie the score in that frame, and Dominic Gattinella was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded for the third TBC run.

In the fourth, Williams drove in Onskt's courtesy runner, Logan McGann (Onskt single), with a solid base hit. McGann scored twice as Onkst's courtesy runner.

[Gavin Williams: 3 for 4, HR, 3 RBI, R in Game 1 win]

New College took a 2-1 lead in the third on a bases-loaded walk and a wild pitch.

Darren Goeke, Jr. pitched the first 5+ innings, allowing three earned runs on 4 hits, 6 walks, and 8 strikeouts.

Sepulveda was 2 for 3, and David Hickey and Jack Musgrave each had a hit for TBC.

Game 2: NCF 8, Eagles 2

Jacob Burke and Jack Musgrave each drove in a run in the nightcap, but the Banyans scored multiple runs in three straight innings (2nd, 3rd, 4th) and one more in the sixth to earn the split.

Burke's line drive single in the second plated Nate Nogueras (walk), and Musgrave's pinch-hit double in the sixth brought home Gatinella (single). Onkst and Hickey also hit safely, but NCF pitcher Owen McKinley was terrific in six innings: 5 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, and 8 K.

The Eagles got solid relief pitching from Andrew Mohler, Joshua Griggs, and Michael Cardenas, who combined for 4.2 innings, allowing three runs (two earned). Cardenas made his season debut in the seventh and struck out two of the four men he faced.

Next Up:

The Eagles will spend the next two weekends participating in the annual Russ-Matt Invitational in Auburndale, Florida. TBC will play teams from the North, beginning with Valley City State College (Valley City, North Dakota) on March 1. A double-header with Lawrence Tech (Southfield, Michigan) follows on March 2.

The next weekend features the Eagles against Cornerstone University (Grand Rapids, Michigan) for two on March 8 and Aquinas College (Grand Rapids, Michigan) and Rochester University (Rochester Hills, Michigan) on March 9.