MONTGOMERY Ala. – The Auburn Montgomery baseball team saw 5.1 innings of scoreless relief from their bullpen, and a key two-out, two-RBI base hit from Sage Smelley in the sixth inning, to help propel them to a 4-2 win in their season opener over Talladega College on Friday, Feb. 1 from the AUM Baseball Complex. 
 
NOTES
- The win improves the Warhawk's record to 1-0 on the season, and marks for AUM's third season-opening victory in the last four seasons.
- The Warhawks all-time series advantage improves to 45-7 over Talladega with the win. 
- Newcomers Corey Armstrong, Quinterrious Arrington, Grayson Blackwell, Dalton Cobb, Zach Feaster, Casey Henderson, Micah Henderson, Seth Oglesby and Smelley all made their AUM debut in the contest.  
 
STANDOUT PERFORMERS
- Feaster clubbed a team-high two hits in four at-bats, while also scoring a team-high two runs on the evening. 
- Smelley drove in a team-high two runs on the evening, while reaching base twice in the contest.
- Josh Flowers and Blackwell both tallied a hit and a run, while Hayden Friesen added a hit, and Arrington accounted for an RBI.
- Jonathan Brandt reached base twice in the game, registering a team-high two walks.
- Sam Steigert (1-0) picked up the win in relief. The sophomore sidewinder retired nine of the 13 batters he faced over three innings, en route to notching his first win of the year.
- Todd Burkett (1) picked up the save for the Warhawks, tossing the final 2.1 innings of relief to slam the door shut for the victory. 
- Micah Henderson threw the first 3.2 innings for AUM on the mound, striking out two and giving up two runs on three hits. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Tornadoes struck first in the contest, with a two-out single to left field from Waldemar Figueroa to give them the early 1-0 advantage in the first inning.
- The Tornadoes would go on to double their lead to 2-0 over AUM in the second, on another two-out knock, this time from leadoff man Jorge Rodriguez. 
- The Warhawks were finally able to come through in the fifth inning, with back-to-back singles from Feaster and Blackwell with one out, followed up by a hit-by-pitch from Smelley that loaded the bases for Arrington. Arrington would go on to work a walk to drive in the first run of the game, while a wild pitch would plate Blackwell to tie the game at two-all. 
- The Warhawks just missed taking a four-run lead a couple batters later, as a Matthew Zielonko long-fly ball with the bases loaded and two away came within just feet of clearing the fences, but would find the Tornado's center fielder for the final out of the fifth.
- AUM added two more in the sixth inning, courtesy of a clutch two-out knock up the middle from Smelley to plate Feaster and Flowers and give the Warhawks a 4-2 advantage. 
- Talladega was able to get a runner on third base in the seventh, and runners on second and third in the eighth, but Burkett was able to tightrope his way out of both innings unscathed, while finishing with a four-batter ninth inning to seal the deal on the Warhawks win.

QUOTING THE COACH

 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- The AUM bullpen needed just 68 pitches to retire the final 16 hitters of the ballgame on Friday night, while allowing just three free passes and five hits.
- AUM pitching forced 12 ground-outs, 11 fly-outs, and stranded 12 Talladega base runners on the evening. 
- Five different players were responsible for AUM's six base hits, while three different Warhawks scored a run. 
 
UP NEXT
- The Warhawks will wrap up their season-opening series with the Tornadoes on Saturday, Feb. 2 with a doubleheader from the AUM Baseball Complex beginning at 1:00 p.m.

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