AU wins wild HCAC baseball opener at Transylvania

The Anderson University baseball team defeated defending Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference champion Transylvania 13-11 in the loop opener on Friday at Marquard Field in Lexington, Ky.
Eric Smith earned his third consecutive victory in a row on the mound, allowing 11 hits and 10 earned runs while striking out four and walking four in eight innings. Smith also had a home run at the plate in a wild game that featured 25 hits.

Daniel Hiatt led the Raven offense with four hits, three runs and two RBI, including a pair of doubles. Chris Jarrett had two doubles, two RBI and Stephen Jones added two hits, including a double. In addition to Smith, Cody Young and Brad Lantz also had home runs for Anderson.

The Ravens trailed 4-1 after four innings, but scored at least one run in each of their last five at-bats, including five in the fifth and three in the ninth. Transy finished with three runs in the eighth and four in the ninth, including a grand slam, but Jake Donnelly got the Pioneers to strikeout and pop out to end the rally.

AU (8-5, 1-0 HCAC) plays Transy (10-2, 0-1 HCAC) in a doubleheader on Saturday. The games will be carried live on the internet at noon from Marquard Field in Lexington, Ky.