NO HITTER

Adam Walker, a senior from Oak Ridge, Tennessee and transfer from Clemson University, threw a no-hitter against the Campbellsville Tigers, Sunday in Mid-South Conference action at the University of the Cumberlands.
It was a big win for the Patriots as the teams finished the weekend with a two-two split, allowing the University of the Cumberlands to stay in the conference lead with a 5-2 record. Campbellsville trails the Patriots by one game, 5-3.
In the shutout win, Walker allowed only one runner to reach base and that came in the top of the sixth when Walker hit Campbellsville catcher, Matt Lepage with a pitch with two outs. He got Tyler Tucker to ground out to end the inning.
Walker, who struck out three Tigers, said, “Everything was feeling great today. It was the best my arm has felt all season long.”
“We knew this was a big-time game and they are one of the best in the conference, but so are we, so we knew it was going to be a dog-fight,” said Walker.
“I just had everything working for me,” he said. “I was spotting inside and outside.”
“What can I say about our defense plus our offensive hitting in this game,” said Walker. “They came through in the clutch, squeezing those runs across, I can’t praise those guys enough for what they did out there.”
It was the first no-hitter for Walker since Little League. “It’s the first no-hitter of my career.”
The Patriots got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the fourth inning when Chris Cartas singled to centerfield to lead off the inning. One out later, Chaz Gentry hit a two-run homer to center on a 2-2 count off Campbellsville ace Andrew Koop for the 2-0 lead.
Catcher Robert Mills and Cartas led the Patriots offense, going two for three in the win.
The second game Sunday was ugly as the Tigers scored five times in the fourth and five in the sixth enroute to a 11-0 win. Christopher Short took the loss for the Patriots, going five and a thirds innings, giving up eight runs on 10 hits.
Gentry led the Patriots offense, going two for three. Cumberlands had six hits on the day.
The teams returned Monday for the second double-header of the four-game series. The first game as a nine-inning affair that saw Campbellsville win 6-3. The Tigers scored in the top of the first but Dan Guttridge singled with two outs and later scored, tying the game in the first, 1-1.
Campbellsville struck for another run in the top of the second and two in the fourth to take a 4-1 lead. The Patriots sliced the lead back to one in the bottom of the fifth when B.J. Foley and Guttridge scored.
That was the closest the Patriots would get as Campbellsville added two more runs in the top of the seventh to capture the 6-3 win.
Jonathan Silverman took the loss, pitching six innings and giving up eight hits and four runs. Brooks Morgan came on in the seventh and allowed two runs on three hits.
The Patriots answered with a series ending win to hold on to first place in the Mid-South Conference.
Cumberlands did all the damage in the bottom of the first, scoring five runs off Kyle Schwartz. Trevor Urbanick led off with a single to left field then went to second on a Jonathan Sullivan sacrifice bunt.
Gutttridge doubled in the first run of the game and later scored himself on a single by Gentry. Cartas, Gentry and Victor Wooldrige scored as the Patriots took a 5-0 lead.
Adam Blakey and Josh Cowan held off the Tigers from the mound. Blakey gave up five hits and two runs while Cowan gave up four hits and one run in the Cumberlands win.
Cumberlands will be on the road this weekend to play the Tigers of Georgetown College in conference action.
Cumberlands coach Brad Shelton said the series with Campbellsville was huge. “You hate to say the second conference weekend of the season is the biggest but it really is when you look at the past two or three years with us and Campbellsville going right down to the wire.”
“We’re not happy with the split, but it lets us come out of this weekend still in first place and we just have to build on that,” Shelton said.