Cullowhee, N.C. – Eight of Western Carolina's 12 base hits on Tuesday night went for extra bases including five doubles and three home runs as the Catamounts powered past archrival Appalachian State 14-10 in the front end of a nonconference baseball home-and-home at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium.
 
WCU (14-15) powered its way to a 13-5 lead through six complete innings before the Mountaineers rallied to within three, 13-10, in the top of the eighth inning. Mason Holton legged out an inside-the-park home run in the home half of the eighth to provide the final tally with Brandon Langley securing his fourth save of the season by stranding a pair of runners in the ninth inning as the Catamounts improved to 4-0 in midweek nonconference games at home.
 
Noah Quarless (3-for-4) and Jack Spyke (2-for-4) both doubled twice, and Trent Turner (2-for-4) homered as part of a two-hit effort as three Catamounts collected multi-hit games. Turner opened the game's scoring with a first-inning, three-run home run as part of a four-RBI effort, while Quarless drove home three, adding a walk to reach base four times.
 
Trey Spees (1-for-3) belted a three-run home run, also reaching on an HBP and by an error on a sacrifice bunt attempt, while Wyatt Stanley (1-for-2) doubled as part of reaching three times including a pair of walks. Mason Holton saved his most productive at-bat for his last, extending his reached base safely streak to nine-straight with an inside-the-park home run dropped into centerfield.
 
Four Mountaineers posted multi-hit games with Tyler Figueroa (3-for-5) collecting the lone two extra-base hits in a three-hit effort with a double and a three-run, eighth-inning home run as part of four RBI. Dillon Moquin (2-for-4), Tyler Lichtenberger (2-for-4), and Joseph Zamora (2-for-6) each tallied a pair of singles apiece, with Moquin adding a pair of walks to reach four times.

Turner's three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning gave the Catamounts a lead they would never relinquish on Tuesday. After stranding a pair of runners in the second, WCU used a trio of doubles including a lead-off two-bagger by Spyke and run-scoring two-base hits Stanley and Quarless to tack on two more runs for the 5-0 lead through three complete.
 
App State (14-14) got on the board in the fourth with consecutive one-out hits as Lichtenberger reached on a single before racing home on a Figueroa double as part of a hit-and-run.
 
In the bottom of the fourth inning, a two-out rally answered for the Catamounts. Hayden Friese drew his first of two walks before scoring on Spyke's double down the third-base line that alluded the App diving defender. Turner then collected his fourth RBI, scoring Spyke on a sharp single to right-center field for a 7-1 margin.
 
Both teams lit the scoreboard for a marker in the fifth, the Mountaineers on a run-scoring groundout and WCU loading the bases with a force-play at third allowing Stanley to score after leading off with a walk.
 
Appalachian State found a three-spot in the top of the sixth inning with a trio of two-out RBI singles from Riley Luft, Dillon Moquin, and Joseph Zamora to trim the deficit to three at 8-5. However, the Catamounts had the answer, erupting for five runs in the home half. Quarless doubled home Stanley and Turner for a 10-5 edge before Trey Spees capped the rally with a three-run home run and the 13-5 lead.
 
After an uneventful seventh, Appalachian State made things interesting in the eighth, matching WCU's five-run sixth with a five-spot of its own, capped by the three-run homer by Figueroa to make it a three-run contest.
 
Holton gave WCU an insurance marker in the bottom of the eighth as he dropped a base hit into center field in front of Figueroa, who dove toward the infield in an attempt to make a highlight-reel catch. The ball bounded past him and rolled to the fence while Holton circled the bases. As he rounded third and headed for home, the relay to the plate skipped off the backside of the mound, rendering it uncatchable as the Overland Park, Kansas, product slid across the dish headfirst for the inside the parker.
 
Langley retired the first two hitters in the ninth with a pair of fly-ball outs before an infield error and a walk put two Mountaineers aboard. The Canadian-born hurler then struck out App's homerun leader Juan Correa – his fourth K of the day – to end the game.
 
Making a planned short start, WCU left-handed reliever Owen Austin (3-0) was credited with the victory in his first start for the Purple & Gold. Austin struck out five against a walk in four innings, limiting the Apps to one run while scattering five hits. Evan Langston struck out three in 1.2 innings out of the bullpen and Josh Ossiander stranded the bases loaded with a strikeout in an inning and a third out of the bullpen. Brandon Langley secured his fourth save of the season, striking out two against a pair of walks in an inning and a third inning of hitless, scoreless relief.
 
Appalachian starter Jake Beaty (1-1) was saddled with the loss, surrendering the three-run homer in the first inning to Turner, striking out two against three hits. Max Tramontana likewise recorded a pair of strikeouts, giving up two runs on three hits, and Conner Barozzino also fanned a pair.
 
Western Carolina remains at home for two of its next three, hosting Gardner-Webb in a split weekend series that includes Friday and Saturday's matchups at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium before concluding with Sunday's game in Boiling Springs, N.C. Friday's series opener is set for a 5 p.m. first pitch with Saturday's game at 3 p.m., following WCU's annual Spring Football game (Noon).
 
All three games of the Gardner-Webb series will be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with Friday and Saturday produced by WCU and the series finale produced by GWU. Links to live stats for each game will also be available online at CatamountSports.com.
 
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