JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (March 15, 2025) – The ETSU baseball team rallied twice and overcame multiple miscues in the field to defeat Longwood by a score of 5-4 in 11 innings on Saturday afternoon at Thomas Stadium. Saturday's win completes the Bucs' sweep of the Lancers and boosts ETSU's record to 15-4 this season.
 
Cody Miller and Axel Melendez each had two hits on Saturday to account for four of ETSU's 10 hits on the day. Melendez drove in two with a game-winning single, while Miller went 2-for-4 with a double and a stolen base. Jamie Palmese slugged ETSU's lone home run in the win, which was his seventh of the season.
 
Michael Harpster got the ball to start on Saturday for the Bucs. Harpster struck out six and allowed just one Longwood hit in four innings of work. Three walks, two batters hit by a pitch and a couple of Buccaneer errors, however, drove up Harpster's pitch count so the Bucs turned to the bullpen to start the fifth inning. Colin Eaton, Derek McCarley, Landon Crumbley and Andrew Ronne pitched well out of the bullpen combining for seven innings pitched with no earned runs allowed. Crumbley tossed 3.1 of those innings but Ronne ended up getting the win after picking up a save on Friday.
 
There was not a ton of offense on either side for most of the game. Longwood broke through with two runs in the fourth and added another in the fifth. Those three runs of support and a low pitch count helped Longwood starting pitcher Guillermo Garcia pitch into the eighth inning. Garcia held ETSU's offense to just three hits entering the eighth, but the Bucs started to put things together in that frame.
 
Gabe Juarez was hit by a pitch and Melendez followed with a single to give ETSU two runners on base with one out. Palmese then came up and blasted a three-run home run to suddenly tie the game at 3-3. For Palmese, the sophomore center fielder has already more than doubled his home run total from last season (3 to 7) in nearly 60 fewer at-bats.
 
The two teams then traded zeros in the ninth and tenth innings, but Longwood pulled back in front with an unearned run in the eleventh to get the lead back, 4-3.
 
Finding itself trailing again, Joey Little got things going for the Bucs with a one-out single in the bottom of the eleventh. Pinch hitter Lenny Montesano then doubled to give ETSU the potential winning run in running position with still one out. Melendez then delivered with a single to score Little and Henry Ferguson, who pinch ran for Montesano, to seal the sweep for the Bucs, 5-4.
 
ETSU will return to action on Tuesday when it visits No. 2 Tennessee. First pitch between the Bucs and Volunteers is set for 5 p.m. on SEC Network Plus.  

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