CARY, N.C.  A walk-off hit came at the expense of Methodist baseball Saturday afternoon as host William Peace University won a USA South Athletic Conference contest, 5-4.

With two outs and the game tied 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth, a Pacers' hit scored the game-winning run from second base.

This game—and three-game series—carries heavy implications for the conference tournament. Only the top two teams in each division will qualify for the tournament and with the win, the Pacers are now two games ahead of Methodist for the second seed in the East Division. However, the Monarchs' chance to pull even with William Peace comes Sunday with a conference doubleheader.

JUST THE FACTS
Final scores: William Peace def. Methodist, 5-4
Records: Methodist 14-15 (6-6 USA South), William Peace 16-13 (8-4)
Location: USA Baseball Complex; Cary, N.C.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Jackson May singled with one out in the bottom of the ninth and then stole second. After a pop-out for the second out of the inning, Alec Seaton delivered in walk-off fashion with a hit to centerfield that scored May from second base for the win.
• Methodist was trailing 3-1 after the first inning but took the lead by scoring three runs in the fifth. Jordan Cassell singled to score Casey Nichols from third base and Christian Yarbrough from second and a Spencer Nelson double scored Cassell for the 4-3 lead. With two outs and a runner (Seaton) on second base in the bottom of the sixth, an infield error led to Seaton scoring the tying run for William Peace.
• Cassell registered another RBI, which came in the first inning when his two-out single scored Yarbrough, who had a triple in his at-bat. The Methodist lead did not hold for long as the Pacers one-upped Methodist with four consecutive singles to score three runs.
• Cassell, Nelson, Yarbrough, and Jacob Austin each had two hits for Methodist. Along with Nelson and Yarbrough, Austin and Rob Wilkerson also registered an extra-base hit (a double).
• Methodist forced William Peace to leave 15 runners on base throughout the game, including two bases-loaded situations that the Pacers converted into just one run. William Peace also left two runners stranded in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings.

NEXT UP

• The series between visiting Methodist and host William Peace concludes with a conference doubleheader Sunday, April 18 at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.
• Methodist has a midweek conference game against Mary Baldwin University on Tuesday, April 20 at 3 p.m. in Staunton, Virginia.