The St. Andrews baseball team went into their third game with Virginia Intermont College on Sunday knowing they had a chance to win the series against one of the best teams in the conference. However, they were unable to stop the powerful offense of the Cobras, losing the rubber match 11-1.

SAU lost its series to Appalachian Athletic Conference foe VIC over the weekend despite playing two very close games during Saturday’s doubleheader. The Knights won game one before falling just short in game two, with both games being decided by one run.

The Knights took game one from the powerful VIC lineup 3-2 thanks to a strong showing from senior pitcher Ryan Pierce. Pierce gave up just four hits and one run in five and 1/3 innings. Pierce is 2-1 on the year with the win. SAU’s offense gave Pierce just the right amount of run support he needed, as batters managed to put up three runs on VIC’s Justin Hutton, who had the lowest ERA in the conference before Saturday at 1.04 per outing.

SAU got to Hutton early, scoring all of its runs in the first inning. Hutton managed to shut down the bats for the rest of the game, nut three turned out to be the right number for the Knights. John Allen Renn relieved Pierce in the fifth inning and earned his first save of the season.

Firstbaseman Daniel Whitecavage and designated hitter Matthew Beauchemin both had a great day, as each went a combined 4-for-7 in the doubleheader. Whitecavage drove in two runs while scoring once himself, and Beauchemin also scored a runner.

The second game started out like the first, with SAU taking the early lead in the first inning, but VIC came roaring back, scoring four runs in the fourth inning to take a 5-1 lead. After that, the Knights began a rally that saw them score a run in every inning for the rest of the game. However, it was not enough as they would lose 6-5. SAU had its best chance to win and clinch the series in the last inning of that game. Tyler Jordan led off the seventh inning with a double, before Daniel Whitecavage sent him home with a double of his own. However, the hitters up after Whitecavage were unable to get a hit, and VIC pitcher Brett Young picked up the win.

VIC came out swinging in the deciding game on Sunday and never looked back after a six-run first inning that forced SAU to take Beauchemin off of the mound and put in Max Everingham. Unfortunately for the Knights, the day didn’t get any easier with the pitching change. Everingham was unable to slow VIC’s bats, as he allowed four runs on 10 hits. Eight different players had a hit for VIC on Sunday, and six of those tallied at least two. Secondbaseman Mark Schultz had an especially good outing, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two stolen bases. Schultz is currently leading the conference in batting with a .455 average.

SAU sits at 12-11 (3-6 in AAC) after the weekend, and is tied for sixth place in the AAC. VIC, 14-3 (5-1), is now within 1.5 games of the first place Tennessee Wesleyan team. SAU will host Greensboro College Wednesday at 2 p.m.