May 6, 2012
ATLANTA – Kyle Wren, Sam Dove and Daniel Palka each had two hits, while Jake Davies and Alex Cruz limited Charlotte to three runs on six hits as Georgia Tech beat the 49ers, 6-3, in the first game of a doubleheader Sunday at Russ Chandler Stadium.
Davies, a senior lefty, gave the Jackets 4 2/3 innings in his first career start and Cruz tossed the final 4 1/3 innings to clinch the series and improve Tech to 28-19 overall and 18-5 in non-conference games. The 49ers fell to 20-25.
Tech goes for the sweep in Sunday’s nightcap — the sixth time this season that Tech will have played a doubleheader.
After the hosts opened a 4-1 lead in the fifth inning thanks to a balk and an RBI double from Zane Evans, Corbin Shive hit a two-run homer off Cruz in the sixth, which cut the margin to one.
But Cruz settled in after the homer – just the third and fourth runs he’s yielded over his last 38 innings pitched – by retiring the last 10 batters in succession to nail down his first career save.
Shane Brown’s RBI single gave Charlotte a 1-0 lead in the first, but the Jackets seized the lead for good in the third when Palka pounded his second two-RBI double in as many games. He then drove in a run with sacrifice fly during a two-run fifth inning as Tech increased the margin to 4-1.
Davies, who was working on a predetermined pitch count, was credited with his sixth career victory, and first this season (1-1).
Palka finished the game 2-for-2 and drove in three runs, while Dove and Wren each scored twice.
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