ATHENS, Tenn.— The Montreat baseball team put forth a valiant effort against the No. 2-ranked Tennessee Wesleyan University Bulldogs in an Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) contest Friday afternoon, leading 4-1 early on before ultimately falling in nine innings, 10-4. With the defeat, the Cavaliers fell to 28-22 (10-15 AAC) on the season.
 
Tennessee Wesleyan (42-5, 22-3) got the scoring started on Friday afternoon by scratching a run across in the bottom of the first. The Bulldogs capitalized on a Montreat error in the opening frame, recording an unearned run on a double to center field to grab an early 1-0 edge.
 
Montreat didn't waste any time in erasing the deficit, however, as the Cavs scored twice in the second and third innings to move in front by three runs.
 
In the top of the second, Jeff Cardazzone drove in Rafael Padilla and OJ Borroto on a single through the right side. Then, in the third frame, Padilla hit his 12^th home run of the year, a two-run blast that launched the Cavaliers out to a 4-1 lead, their most runs scored against TWU since March 30, 2018.
 
Entering the day with the second-most runs scored in the NAIA, the Bulldogs proved that they have plenty of pop in their bats, too. Just two batters into the bottom of the third, Tennessee Wesleyan returned the favor with a two-run homer of its own, immediately trimming its deficit back to a single run (4-3).
 
Both teams struggled with errors, particularly early in the contest. In the fourth inning, Tennessee Wesleyan tallied its second and third unearned runs of the ballgame to regain a 5-4 lead through four frames.
 
Daniel Willie performed admirably on the mound for the Cavaliers, throwing five innings while surrendering five hits and two earned runs. Willie added eight more strikeouts on the day, bringing his season total to 109. The Ooltewah, Tenn. native has now pitched 92.1 innings, the most of any pitcher in the NAIA this season.
 
Tennessee Wesleyan found more offensive success against the Montreat bullpen, registering three runs in the sixth and one run each in the seventh and eighth thanks to a trio of longballs. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers couldn't quite find the same luck against the Bulldogs' bullpen, earning their way on base a few times but never crossing home plate.
 
The Bulldogs held Montreat scoreless over the final six frames as they took game one of the three-game set, 10-4.
 
Padilla (3-4) and Chase Bruno (2-4) were responsible for five of the Cavaliers' seven total hits on Friday afternoon. Daniel Wetmore and Cardazzone both batted 1-for-4 in the defeat. On the rubber, Hayden Franklin, Caden Wright and Rawley Stinson each pitched one inning in relief.
 
The Montreat baseball team continues its three-game set against Tennessee Wesleyan with a doubleheader on Saturday. First pitch of game one is slated for 1:00 p.m. in Athens, Tenn.