College baseball: Catawba advances to SAC championship series
Published 11:02 am Tuesday, May 6, 2025
- Catawba’s Parker Styborski. Brian Wilhite photo.
Staff report
SALISBURY — Catawba’s fourth-ranked baseball team won three more games over the weekend at Newman Park to advance to the South Atlantic Conference championship series.
Catawba was the host for action involving the 1-4-5-8 tournament seeds, while second-seeded Lenoir-Rhyne hosted the 2-3-6-7 bracket.
The Bears also advanced.
Catawba (40-12) achieved another 40-victory season with the tournament wins.
Catawba won 8-3 against Limestone on Sunday, breaking a 3-all tie in the third inning on a triple by Cole Hales (Carson) and a sac fly by Nathan Chrismon (South Rowan). The Indians got six strong innings from starting pitcher Austin Fine and led the rest of the way.
Cooper Bryson hit a two-run homer in the first inning. Hayden Simmerson (Carson) retired six in a row to finish it, with four strikeouts.
Ty Hubbard (South Rowan) had a two-run double in the ninth inning to key a 5-2 comeback win against fourth-seeded Limestone on Saturday.
Catawba won 8-4 against eighth-seeded Newberry on Friday, with Chrismon driving in three runs and Payne Stolsworth (West Rowan) earning his 10th win.
Lenoir-Rhyne (43-10) pummeled third-seeded Carson-Newman 12-3 on Sunday. Lenoir-Rhyne also edged UVA Wise and beat Wingate.
The Catawba-Lenoir-Rhyne series is best-of-three and will start at 4 p.m. on May 9 and will be played at Asheboro’s McCrary Park. The second game will be played at noon on May 10, with a third game to follow, if needed.
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