NAIA

[Baseball] #2 Science & Arts Drops First Game of Opening Round Against #3 Lyon

SHREVEPORT, La. – Monday afternoon, the No. 2 seed University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (35-14, 17-7 SAC) began the NAIA Baseball National Championship Opening Round with a disappointing 10-4 loss against No. 3 Lyon College (36-19, 16-5 AMC).After two scoreless innings began the contest, Lyon College struck first with a perfectly placed ball that soared into the left field gap.The Scotts then added more cushion with another run in the top of the fourth inning, to extend their lead 2-0.Lyon wasted no time picking up where they left off opening the fifth inning, tallying three more runs to push their lead to 5-0.In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Drovers made their first offensive noise, created by the bat of Gage Gaunt (SO/Clinton, OK). A drive to the right field fence landed Gaunt at second base, the first Drover in scoring position, prior to being driven in by Brandon Shumway (SR/Chickasha, OK).The Drovers started off strong in the bottom half of the sixth inning, landing Luis Pelayo (SR/Santa Cruz, Aruba) on base with a lead-off walk. A grounder back to the pitcher allows Pelayo to advance to second and then score off a line drive to centerfield for another two-out run, and the lone run of the inning.However, the momentum swung back to the Scots in the top of the seventh inning, striking for four more runs to take a 9-2 lead. USAO was able to bring in their final two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, courtesy of Jake Womack (SR/Chickasha, OK)'s two-run homerun.Lyon was able to score one final insurance run in the top of the ninth inning, prior to holding the Drovers scoreless in the bottom half of the ninth.Drew Shaver (JR/Sante Fe, TX) suffered just his third loss of the season (9-3), allowing four earned runs in 5.0 innings of work. Shaver struck out three batters.Shaver was relieved by Brett Lorah (SR/Elgin, OK) and Adam Day (SO/Glen Rose, AR) over the final 4.0 innings of the game. Offensively, the Drovers produced four hits. Womack finished 1-4 with a two-run homer, while Gage Gaunt went 1-4 with a double and a run scored. Peyton McDowall (JR/Cibolo, TX) went 1-4 with a run batted in, and Brandon Shumway concluded 1-3 with a RBI.  WHAT'S NEXT?With the loss, the Drovers will battle No. 5 seed Fisher College in the loser's bracket matchup at 11:00 AM CT in Shreveport, La. If the Drovers win, they will play again at 6:00 PM in an elimination game.   MORE INFO ON THE TOURNAMENT'ƒ  CLICK HEREhttp://www.usaoathletics.com/article/3249   Stay up to date on all Science & Arts Athletics news by following us on our media platforms!Athletics Website: www.usaoathletics.comLive-stream: www.sacsportsnetwork.com/usao/YouTube: Drover AthleticsTwitter: @DroverAthleticsFacebook: @DroverAthleticsInstagram: @drover_athleticsGIPHY: www.giphy.com/USAODrovers