ATLANTA—The Oglethorpe bats came to life in game one, but Centre bounced back to win the Southern Athletic Association series in the rubber game Sunday at Hermance Stadium. The Stormy Petrels won game one of the series 12-8 but lost games two and three 7-5 and 6-1.

Carson Weir had one of the biggest swings of the series with a three-run homer to right-center field that gave Oglethorpe a late lead in what would have been a series-clinching win in game two, but Centre answered right back to even the series before winning it with one big inning in Sunday's finale.

Game One | Oglethorpe 12, Centre 8

Centre looked to be in control of the opener with a three-run lead midway through the third inning, but six runs from the Petrels in the bottom half swung the lead.

The same exchange then happened in the fourth as four runs from Centre in the top half put the Colonels back in the lead, only until Oglethorpe scored six more in the bottom half. It would be all the scoring the Petrels needed on the way to securing the victory.

Jonathan Cruz tied the game for the last time with a double in the fourth, scoring Drew Jabaley. Then, a bases-loaded walk drawn by Mason Pearcy gave the Petrels their final lead.

Cruz and Greg Johnson both posted three-hit games, going 3-for-5 with two RBI's. Colin Stewart earned the winning decision to improve to 1-0. He struck out two across 3.2 innings.

Game Two | Centre 7, Oglethorpe 5

The nightcap of the twin bill featured all the same theatrics as game one, and even went to extra innings. Oglethorpe led 2-1 after five innings, but Centre quickly took the lead with three runs in the top of the sixth, looking to even the series at a game apiece. That was, until Weir's ninth career home run in the bottom of the sixth gave Oglethorpe a 5-4 lead and put the Petrels in prime position for winning the series.

However, a run from Centre in the following frame, then two more in the added eighth sent the series into a tie.

Cruz once again put up a three-hit game, his sixth of the season, to lead the Petrels' offensive effort. Aiden Hosford went 2-for-4, one of six other Petrels with a hit in game two.

Game Three | Centre 6, Oglethorpe 1

Both teams did all their scoring in one inning. For Centre, this came in the form of six runs on four singles and two walks in the top of the fourth. Oglethorpe tried to answer in the bottom of the fifth with three hits, including a pair of doubles, but only pushed one across. Jabaley had the RBI to score Johnson, making it 6-1.

Nick Tarantino and Johnson were the multihit Petrels in the finale, both 2-for-3. Jake Hill, Grant Guinther and Thomas Krystopa shared the pitching duties, Krystopa going two scoreless with four strikeouts to finish out the eighth and ninth.

Series Notes

• Oglethorpe still leads the all-time series head-to-head since 2010, with 32 wins and 18 losses against Centre.
• Cruz saw his hitting streak snapped at 17 games but still went 6-for-11 for the series. This raised his season average to .455.
• Cruz's .455 average is third in the SAA, and his 35 hits lead the league.
• Johnson went 6-for-12 with three doubles in the series.
• Tarantino was 4-for-9 with three runs.

Up Next

Oglethorpe has a busy week ahead with a road trip to Covenant on Tuesday then a home game against Huntingdon on Wednesday, both followed by a weekend SAA series at home against Berry next Friday-Saturday.