Albany State baseball sweeps Claflin

ALBANY — The Albany State baseball team won its third game in a row to gain second place in the SIAC East Division. ASU beat Claflin 17-8 on Sunday to move up in the standings and complete a series sweep of the visiting team.

With the win, the Rams improved to 11-20 overall and 9-3 in league play.

After Claflin scored the first run of the game off a homer in the top of the first inning, Albany State answered. Chasen Roulhac stole home, while Nicolas Griggs scored off a Jonatan Galan sacrifice fly to build a 2-1 edge.

The Panthers tied the game in the top of the second, but ASU regained the lead in the bottom of the inning. Quantico Dodson-Williams doubled to center field to score Bryant Prather and Theo Smith, and ASU led 4-2.

In the fourth and fifth innings, Albany State added four more runs to take an 8-4 advantage. However, Claflin scored three runs in the top of the sixth to cut its deficit to 8-7.

The Rams used the seventh and eighth inning to pull away from the visitors. The team scored four runs in the seventh and five in the eighth to generate a 17-7 edge.

Dodson-Williams was 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Kelvin Wimbish had two hits and three RBIs, and Theo Smith and Ryan McClendon each recorded two hits. Tyler Williams was the winning pitcher.

The Rams collected 14 hits.

Albany State will return to action on Tuesday when it hosts Georgia College. The Bobcats won the Feb. 28 meeting by the score of 12-1. Game time is set for 4:30 p.m.