ASHEBORO, N.C. – A massive seven-run sixth inning proved to be the difference as the Brevard College baseball team (17-21-1) opened its USA South Conference Tournament run with a 11-4 victory over sixth-seeded Pfeiffer (14-25) at historic McCrary Park on the turf of Dr. Jon "Buck" Couch Field on Thursday afternoon.
 
With the contest tied 3-3 in the middle of the sixth, the Tornados surged for seven runs in the bottom of the sixth and held Pfeiffer in check down the stretch.
 
Cale Oehler got things started for Brevard in the bottom of the first with an RBI single that scored Hayden Jennings. Frankie Vasquez then followed suit with an RBI single of his own to plate Logan Sawyer – who was playing in his hometown of Asheboro for the first time in his collegiate career – as BC took the early 2-0 lead.
 
Jordan Searcy, a senior right-handed pitcher from Polk County, North Carolina, turned in a stellar outing for the Tornados. Searcy got through five innings, allowing just one hit and two walks while striking out three batters.
 
The one hit that the Falcons managed off of Searcy was a two-out, two-run homer that sneaked over the right-center field wall off the bat of Carter Merrill that tied the contest at two runs apiece in the top of the fifth.
 
Brevard answered back in the bottom-half of the frame when All-Conference First Team selection Vasquez drilled his sixth home run of 2025 to left-center field, as the Tornados retook the lead, 3-2.
 
A pair of throwing errors in the top of the sixth allowed the Falcons to scratch across their third run of the game on a sacrifice fly, but fellow First-Team honoree Matthew Evans (5-3) limited the damage to just one unearned run.
 
BC blew the game open with a massive seven-run bottom of the sixth inning that gave the Tornados breathing room the rest of the way. Lucas Granata drew a leadoff walk that was followed by an infield bunt single off the bat of Nico Bartolotti. Davis Bryson got a sacrifice bunt down, and after CP Pyle drew an intentional walk, Jennings drove in Brevard's first run of the frame.
 
Sawyer followed suit with a two-RBI single to left field that extended the Tornado lead to a 6-3 margin. Vasquez then added to his huge day at the dish with a two-RBI double as Brevard extended its advantage to five. A Luke Morton RBI single and a Granata RBI double capped off the game-changing sixth.
 
Oehler's first triple of 2025 in the bottom of the seventh pushed BC's advantage up to eight runs. Zack Wilson and Kaden Tuten followed up Evans with scoreless, 1-2-3 frames in the seventh and eighth innings. Gage Granata hurled the ninth as the Tornados took game one of their USA South Conference Tournament run, 11-4.
 
Oehler, Pyle, and Vasquez all recorded three hits apiece for the Tornado offense, with Vasquez driving in four total runs in a 3-for-4 performance. Pyle went 3-for-4, scoring two runs and drawing a pair of walks, while Oehler drove in a pair. Eight of BC's nine starters recorded a base hit in a 15-hit effort for the third-seeded Tornados. Granata and Pyle also notched extra-base knocks as well.
 
Stay tuned to BCTornados.com for updates on the remaining schedule in Asheboro as action in the three-team double-elimination pod continues.
 
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