The Oglethorpe baseball team clinched a spot in the 2010 SCAC Baseball Championship Saturday, sweeping Centre in a doubleheader in Danville, Ky. The Petrels won the first game 7-5, then won the second game 11-9 to clinch at least third place in the East Division (not counting probationary Birmingham-Southern), punching their ticket to the conference tournament.

The Petrels took a 2-0 lead in the first inning of Game 1 on an RBI double by Andy Farrey and a sacrifice fly by Stephen Archer. However, they watched the homestanding Colonels score four runs in the third to take a 4-2 lead.

The two teams traded runs in the fifth, maintaining Centre's two-run lead. Oglethorpe's run came off of a J.J. Rizzo home run.

In the sixth, though, the Petrels stormed out of the gates for four runs over the first nine pitches delivered in the inning. A three-run Rizzo double was the big blow, giving the Petrels the lead. Farrey added an RBI groundout, scoring Rizzo from third after an error allowed him to get there on the double. The Petrels suddenly had a 7-5 lead in a game that was only scheduled to go seven innings.

From that point, Matthew Cornwell retired the rest of the Centre hitters in order to preserve the victory for the Petrels.

Rizzo was the hero at the plate for the Petrels, going 2-for-4 with the home run, the double, four RBIs and two runs scored.

Matthew Cornwell delivered another seven-inning, complete-game victory. He allowed five runs on six hits, walking two and striking out six.

Game 2 was a back-and-forth affair. Both teams scored three runs in the third inning. Oglethorpe's came on a Cornwell RBI groundout, followed by a two-run triple by Adam Brazenas.

Both teams also scored a run in the fourth, Oglethorpe's coming on a fielder's choice-RBI by Andrew Lofholm.

However, the Petrels would score the next seven runs, tallying two in the fifth and five in the seventh. The Petrels retook the lead on a two-run homer by Archer in the fifth, and then expanded that lead to 11-4 with the help of a Cornwell grand slam in the seventh. Jake Spear's RBI single accounted for the other run.

The Petrels then had to hold on for dear life, as Centre mounted a furious rally. They came back to score four in the bottom of the seventh, and then one more in the eighth. They were able to bring the potential tying run to the plate in the ninth, but Spencer Kennedy wriggled out of the jam to pick up the save and assure the Petrels of a trip to Millington, Tenn., in a couple of weeks.

Cornwell was 2-for-5 in Game 2, with a grand slam and five RBIs. Stephen Archer was 1-for-4, but the one was big, as his two-run homer gave the Petrels the lead for good in the fifth.

The wins improve the Petrels to 19-14 on the year, 7-4 in SCAC play. The Petrels will finish up their three-game set in Danville Sunday afternoon, with first pitch scheduled for noon.