COLUMBIA, TN – No. 12 Walters State overcame a three-run deficit on Saturday afternoon but a Columbia State run in the bottom of the eighth gave the Chargers an 8-7 win. 

With the loss, the Senators fell to 13-7 on the season. 

Karson Bonaparte got the start on the mound for Walters State, throwing 5.2 innings. Bonaparte gave up seven runs on nine hits and struck out five. 

Luke Ferguson (1-1) replaced Bonaparte with two outs in the sixth and pitched the final 2.1 innings. Ferguson gave up an unearned run on two hits and struck out three. 

At the plate, Andrew Grande and Jarrett Martin each had two hits. Grande had two RBI, while Deniel Ortiz, Kurtis Reid, Brantley Bamberg and Zion Taylor each drove in a run apiece. 

The Senators started the game off strong, as Bamberg hit a sacrifice fly in the first and Reid hit a sacrifice fly in the second to make it 2-0. 

However, Columbia State answered with five runs in the bottom of the second to grab a 5-2 advantage. Walters State cut the lead to one in the top of the third with a 2-RBI double by Grande and took the lead in the sixth with three runs. Those runs came on a Taylor RBI single, a wild pitch that scored Taylor and an Ortiz groundout that scored Jack Vogele and made it 7-5. 

Unfortunately for Walters State, Columbia State scored two in the sixth to tie things at seven and one in the eighth that gave them an 8-7 lead they would not relinquish.

Up Next:

Walters State will be back in action on Sunday for a doubleheader against Columbia State. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. ET. 

Rob Harvey

Walters State Community College

Sports Information Director

Cell: (423) 779-8880

Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu

Website: www.ws.edu/athletics