COUGARS CLINCH EIGHTH STRAIGHT SERIES WIN AT CHATTANOOGA STATE
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
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2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 10 | 0 |
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1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Cleveland State Community College continued its strong conference play Saturday with an 8–1 win over Chattanooga State at Tiger Field, securing its eighth series win in eight tries this season. The Cougars improved to 27–14 overall and 19–5 in TCCAA play.
Cleveland State jumped out to an early lead in the first inning as Jon Jon Read scored on a wild pitch and Nolan Sergeant crossed the plate on a sacrifice fly by Kwade Carver. After Chattanooga State answered with a run in the bottom of the inning, the Cougars took control for good.
Carver doubled home Nelson McKnight in the third, and the Cougars added two more in the fourth inning as Nate Severance scored on a sacrifice fly by Evan Leonard and Sergeant scored on an error following aggressive baserunning. Cleveland State continued to extend the lead in the fifth with an RBI triple from Owen Phillips and a sacrifice fly by Severance, before Jordan Smith capped the scoring with an RBI single in the seventh.
The Cougars collected 10 hits on the day. Read and McKnight each finished with two hits, while Sergeant scored twice and stole two bases. Carver and Leonard drove in two runs apiece, Phillips added an RBI triple, and Severance and Smith each recorded an RBI. Samuel Formby also scored, while Hank Adams contributed on the bases.
On the mound, Braden Suggs earned the win with seven strong innings, allowing just two hits and one run while striking out six. JC Armour threw two scoreless innings in relief to seal the victory.
Head Coach Aaron Bryant credited his team's consistency and approach throughout the series.
"I'm proud of how our guys continue to handle conference weekends," Bryant said. "Eight straight series wins speaks to their focus and toughness, and we're getting contributions throughout the lineup."
Bryant also noted sophomore Nolan Sergeant's continued impact, as he broke Cleveland State's single-season home run record on Friday to cap a historic weekend.
Cleveland State returns home Tuesday for a non-conference matchup against Roane State before enjoying a bye weekend next weekend.
