Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 JACKSON, Tenn. (Feb. 26, 2018) – The Salem University Tigers baseball team swept its three-game series against the Lane College Dragons with two victories on Monday.

Noah Suarez and Josh LaPrest continued their offensive tear, helping to propel the Tigers to 8-5 and 12-7 victories.

Game 1

LaPrest hit his second home run in as many days, and his fourth of the season, going yard off Dragons' starting pitcher Terrell Walker with a two-run shot in the second inning, knocking in Najay King for the first two runs of the game.

Hitting in the fifth spot, LaPrest was 2-for-3 with three runs scored and two RBIs.

Carson Ellis (2-1) started on the mound for Salem, pitching a seven-inning complete game, surrendering 10 hits and four earned runs while striking out six to get the win.

The Tigers got in trouble in the bottom of the third inning when Lane's Mari Alston reached on an error with one out. Lane then got back-to-back doubles from Courtney Joyner and Treviz Brown, with Brown picking up two RBIs. Keishaun Clark then hit a RBI single to put Lane up 3-2.

After Lane picked up another run to go up 4-2 in the fourth inning, Salem scored three in the fifth, getting a sacrifice fly from Andrew Suarez to score Andrew Beam. The Tigers then caught a break when Tyler D'Alessandro singled to center field and Tyler Ault scored on an error. Cramer then knocked in D'Alessandro with a single to right field to put the Tigers back up 5-4.

Salem picked up another run in the sixth inning, scoring on a walk with bases loaded.

The Tigers picked up two more runs on a wild pitch, hitting Beam and scoring LaPrest and King. Ellis closed the game out with a one-run seventh, retiring three of five batters faced.

Game 2

In the final game of the series, Salem got solid production up and down the lineup, getting five hits and five RBIs from its eight and nine spots in a 12-7 win.

Salem hit 12-for-37 (.387) as a team and took advantage of four Lane errors, scoring five unearned runs.

Hitting in the leadoff spot, Tyler Ault led Salem in RBIs with three, scoring Suarez for each one: reaching on an error in the second inning, tripling to right in the fifth for his lone his, and grounding out to third; showing the value of simply putting the ball in play.

The Tigers pick up an unearned run in the first with Ault reaching on an error and Jimmy Cramer hitting a sacrifice fly to score him.

Salem scored three runs in the second after picking up two outs with its first two batters; taking advantage of a walk, an RBI single from Remmington Boyce, followed by a Suarez RBI triple. Ault reached on another error, scoring Suarez.

After the Tigers scored three runs on three hits in the fourth, Salem's starting pitcher Dillon Champagne got in trouble in the bottom of the inning, walking the first two batters, giving up a fielder's choice to put runners on first and third, then walking the bases loaded.

Champagne pitched 3.1 innings, giving up four earned runs and walking five while striking out five.
Kyle Sears relieved Champagne, though Lane managed to clear the bases before Sears ended the inning to bring the Dragons back within two at 7-5.

The Tigers put together their biggest inning of the game in the fifth, punctuated by a three-RBI double from Suarez, batting out of the ninth spot.

After Lane picked up two runs in the sixth, the Tigers picked up an insurance run in the seventh, turning the game over to Nick Taylor, who closed the game with a single, two strikeouts, a walk and a pop fly. 

With their fourth consecutive win, the Tigers improve to 4-3-1 on the season. Salem will return to action with a series against Kentucky State University on March 3.