Lynchburg, Va. -- The Lynchburg College baseball team completed its season sweep of Averett Monday afternoon at home, hanging on for a 12-9 victory over the Cougars.

Senior center fielder Brad Hylton (Danville, Va.) extended his hit streak to seven games with a 3-for-4 outing, finishing a double shy of the cycle. Hylton had a game-high four RBIs, and senior first baseman Matt Ward (Newton, N.C.) also homered in the ballgame.

Sophomore right-hander Wesley Steelman (Glen Allen, Va.) threw a scoreless final two innings for Lynchburg, working out of jams in both the eighth and ninth for his first-career save.

THE RUNDOWN

Final: Lynchburg 12, Averett 9

Records: Lynchburg 7-3, Averett 3-13

Venue: James C. Fox Field, Lynchburg College, Lynchburg, Va.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• After Averett pushed a run across in the first, Hylton put Lynchburg ahead for good in the bottom half with a two-run triple to right-center field that plated sophomore left fielder Shawn Allen (Columbus, N.J.) and Ward.

• LC made the lead more comfortable the following inning, capitalizing on wild Cougar pitching for three runs on four walks, two hit-by-pitches, and an RBI groundout.

• Averett cut the Hornets lead to 5-4 with two runs in the fifth, but Lynchburg responded again in their half of the frame with an RBI single from junior third baseman Griffin Wild (Severna Park, Md.) and a squeeze bunt by sophomore second baseman Colin Corey (Springfield, Va.).

• LC piled on the following inning with back-to-back homers by Ward and Hylton bringing the score to 10-5 in favor of the home team. The Hornets added insurance with an RBI single off the bat of senior right fielder Will Harris (Halifax, Va.) the following inning. Harris has now hit in nine straight contests.

• Meanwhile, senior right-handers Kyle Jacksic (Hardwick, N.J.) and David Goulding (Lynchburg, Va.) turned in scoreless relief innings to help Lynchburg extend the lead. Jacksic earned his first win of the season for his three-up, three-down frame.

• Averett threatened in the eighth, scoring three runs before Steelman entered the game with the bases loaded and nobody out. The junior did allow runs on a wild pitch and an RBI groundout, but he retired all three batters he faced in the inning to stymie the rally. After LC scraped another run across in the bottom of the eighth, Steelman dodged a trio of two-out hits to induce the game-ending groundout.

LOOKING AHEAD

The Hornets will return to non-conference action on Thursday, March 8 with a trip to Buena Vista to take on Southern Virginia. The two teams will play at 2 p.m. at Parry McCluer High School.

--LC--