The Covenant baseball team could not overcome an early deficit as the Scots dropped the finale of a three-game series at North Carolina Wesleyan, 7-3, on Saturday afternoon at Bauer Field.
The loss is the fifth in a row for Covenant (6-12, 1-8 USA South). N.C. Wesleyan (15-5, 7-2 USA South) has won five straight overall.
After three scoreless innings from both sides, N.C. Wesleyan got on the board first with a three-run fourth inning. Nate Gardner singled in a run and Tony Sanchez followed with a two-run homer to right field to make it 3-0.
Covenant scratched across two runs in the sixth to make it a one-run game.
Devin Cerrato singled to leadoff the inning and Luke Harvey followed and reached on an N.C. Wesleyan error. Two batters later, Cerrato scored on a wild pitch and Amorelli delivered an RBI single to right field scoring Harvey to make it 3-2.
The host Bishops added a run in the seventh when Gardner was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded giving N.C. Wesleyan a 4-2 lead. Covenant answered right back in the eighth when Caleb Bloye had an RBI single to center field that plated Harvey to once again cut the deficit to a single run at 4-3.
But N.C. Wesleyan put the game out of reach for the Scots with three runs in the bottom half of the eighth. Joseph Borgerding then set down the Scots in the ninth to seal the win and the series sweep for the Bishops.
Covenatn starter Zach Kyzer (1-3) went 6.2 innings and surrendered four runs on three hits. Ross Skipper and Matt Herrin combined to allow one run in 1.1 innings out of the bullpen. Bloye finished 2-for-3 with an RBI at the plate for Covenant, while Harvey scored two runs.
Gardner and Sanchez had two RBIs apiece for the Bishops. Gardner (2-1) also made the start on the mound and went six innings allowing no earned runs on five hits.
Covenant will travel to play Sewanee for a doubleheader on Tuesday. The two seven-inning games get started at 1 p.m. EDT (12 p.m. CDT).