Statistics

Circleville, Ohio. The Free Will Baptist Bible College baseball team picked up their first win of the season in the National Christian College Athletic Association’s Mid-East Regional Tournament last week. After dropping the opener in the double elimination tournament to Johnson Bible College 10-0, they moved to the loser’s bracket and had to face JBC again. But this time, the Flames came away with an 8-4 win.

Game two started off with a flurry as the Flames’ scored twice in the top of the first inning. But JBC was able to match that in the bottom of the first with two runs of their own. The Preachers went ahead with a run in the bottom of the second, but the lead was short-lived as FWBBC added another run in third to knot the game again at 3-3.

The big inning for the Flames came in the sixth. After two quick outs, Matt Wright got things started with single. Daniel Armstrong was hit by a pitch and Tyler Cannon came up with an infield single to load the bases for John Owen. The Flames leading hitter fouled off a couple of pitches before drilling a double to left-center to score Wright and Armstrong. Greg Smith joined in the rally with a single that drove in Cannon and Owen to put the Flames up 7-3.

Both teams added runs in the seventh inning to make the final score 8-4. Owen pitched a great game to get the win and Armstrong came on in the seventh to pick up the save.

In their final game, the Flames just ran out of steam as tourney favorite, OCU, won the tournament 11-1.

“We had a good tournament,” said Coach Jerod McNeal. “I was really proud of the team for coming back in game two after getting shut out in the opener. We played well, but ran out of pitchers in the final game.”

The Flames ended their season at 1-13.

ST. LOUIS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE 16, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 6

ST. LOUIS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE 12, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 2

April 17, 2010

St. Louis, Missouri. Injuries have slowed down the Free Will Baptist Bible College baseball team. After cancelling two earlier games, the Flames were able to play on Saturday, but dropped both games of a double-header to St. Louis Christian College, 16-6 and 12-2.

In game one, the Soldiers consistently scored on the Flames, tallying runs in each of the five innings played. Daniel Armstrong went two for three and scored twice. John Owen and Greg Smith had two RBIs apiece and Shane Huey drove in one run.

Armstrong started on the mound for the Flames in game two and pitched five solid innings, striking out five, and limiting the Soldiers to five hits. But in the bottom of the fifth, the Flames committed three errors and three hits and allowed seven runs to cross the plate and end the game.

The Flames end their regular season at 0-13. The Mid-East regional playoffs are Monday and Tuesday the 26th and 27th at Ohio Christian University.

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ST. LOUIS CHRISTIAN COLLEGE 9, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 8

April 1, 2010

Nashville, TN The Free Will Baptist Bible College Flames didn’t give up many earned runs in game one, but still dropped the opener 12-2 on Thursday. The Flames five errors accounted for eight of the Soldiers 12 runs. At the plate, it was Daniel Armstrong and Tyler Cannon who had RBI singles to give the Flames their two runs.

In the nightcap, FWBBC had their best outing of the season as they dropped a heart-breaker, 9-8. It didn’t look good at the start as the Soldiers tallied five times in the first. But the Flames bounced back, scoring three of their own in the bottom of the first on a three-run homer by John Owen.

The game went back and forth until the bottom of the fourth inning when Greg Smith drove home Cannon and Owen to knot the game at eight apiece.

The fifth and sixth innings were scoreless. In the top of the seventh, the Soldiers were able to pick up their ninth run on a dropped fly ball. It looked like the Flames were going to pick up their first win of the season, but they stranded runners on second and third as SLCC fielded a hard grounder to end the threat.

“We had our chances,” said Flames coach Jerod McNeal. “We played a pretty good second game and just couldn’t seem to score that crucial run.”

Armstrong had a good day, going 3-3, with a double and run scored. Owen had three RBIs and scored twice while Smith went 2-4 at the plate with two RBIs and a run scored.

Now, 0-11, the Flames will play a make-up game with Johnson Bible College on Monday, April 12.

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March 29, 2010

Circleville, OH. Errors were not the Flames enemy Monday, but great hitting was as Ohio Christian University powered past Free Will Baptist Bible College 23-4.

The Trailblazers’ bats got hot early as they tallied 11 runs in the first inning and eight more in the second to take a commanding 19-1 lead. Starting pitcher Daniel Armstrong had trouble with his control, allowing the OCU batters to get ahead in the count. “When you pitch behind in the count it is easy for teams to be selective and pick a pitch to drive,” said Flames coach Jerod McNeal.

After the shaky start, Armstrong and (reliever) Andrew Hurrle were able to hold the Trailblazers to just four runs over the remainder of the game.

Armstrong had a solid performance at the plate on the day, going 2-4. John Owen had two RBIs and Shane Huey added one.

Now, 0-9, the Flames are home Thursday to host St. Louis Christian College.

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MARANATHA BIBLE COLLEGE 15, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 2

Nashville, TN

March 24, 2010. There wasn't much of a home field advantage for the Flames Wednesday as they lost a double-header to Maranatha Baptist Bible College 20-0 and 15-2 at Bellevue Baseball Field.

In game one, the Crusaders put the Flames in a deep hole in the top of the first inning, scoring five runs. Starting pitcher John Owen then allowed MBBC only two runs in the second and one in the third inning. But MBBC kicked their offense into high gear in the fourth inning, scoring 10 runs while their pitching held FWBBC scoreless.

Game two went much better early on as Andrew Hurrle kept the Flames in the game, allowing only one run in each of the first two innings. However, in the third, MBBC was able to push four runs across the plate to make the score 6-0. In the bottom of frame, Joel Forlines singled and stole second and third. Daniel Armstrong walked and stole second. Owen walked to load the bases. Greg Smith was then hit by a ptich to bring home Forlines for the Flames first run.

Hurrle then held the visitors to just one run over the next two innings as the Flames trailed 7-1 going into the top of the sixth inning. But once again the Crusaders had a big inning, scoring eight runs on four hits, four walks, and two errors. In the bottom of the inning, Owen walked, stole second, and scored FWBBC's second run on an RBI single by Shane Huey.

"I was really pleased with Andrew's performance today," said Flames coach Jerod McNeal. "He pitched five strong innings and had pretty good control most of the day."

Now 0-8, the Flames head for Circleville, Ohio, to take on Ohio Christian University on Monday to play the Mid-East Region rival Trailblazers.

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JOHNSON BIBLE COLLEGE 12, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLGE 4

Knoxville, TN

March 20, 2010. The Free Will Baptist Bible College baseball team traveled to Knoxville to take on Johnson Bible College in an NCCAA Mid-East double-header Saturday and dropped the pair by scores of 10-5 and 12-4.

Game one began a little rocky for Flames’ starter Daniel Armstrong as he loaded the bases in the bottom of the first with only one out, but was able work himself out of the inning without giving up a run.

The second inning didn’t work out as well for the Flames as they gave up six runs on just two hits while committing three errors.

FWBBC battled back as they scored four runs in the top half of the third. Andrew Hurrle started off the inning with a double down the left field line. Armstrong was able to bring him home, then steal second, and move to third on a passed ball. Joel Forlines hit a sacrifice fly to bring Armstrong home. Then John Owen walked and stole second. Greg Smith came through with a double to score Owen. Matt Johns walked to put runners on first and second with two outs. Shane Huey delivered a single to bring home Smith to bring the score to 6-4.

The Flames picked up one more run in the fifth inning when Johns doubled and Huey brought him home with a single. But the Preachers picked up four more runs to make the final score 10-5.

The nightcap didn't start out any better for FWBBC as they gave up six runs in the second inning. Despite solid pitching from Hurrle and Owen as they combined to strike out eight Preacher batters, errors and walks were the order of the day for the Flames as they dropped game two, 12-4.

Although the Flames lost both games, it was not from lack of hitting as they had 22 hits over the double-header. Armstrong led the way with four hits, two runs, two walks, and one RBI. Owen also had four hits, three runs, three stolen bases, and an RBI. Matt Johns had a pair doubles and an RBI. Greg Smith had an RBI double, and Shane Huey had two hits and two RBIs on the day.

Now 0-6, the Flames are back in action Wednesday morning at 10:00 a.m. at Bellevue Baseball Field.

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OHIO CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY 20, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 5

Nashville, TN

March 6, 2010. Despite a strong pitching performance from John Owen, the Flames committed eight errors through his six innings of work and FWBBC fell 10-5 in the opener of a double header with Ohio Christian University. The Flames scored two runs in the third when Daniel Armstrong led off with a single, followed by a Joel Forlines' single. Owen helped his own cause out with a double to drive in both base runners. But the Flames could only muster one more run in their loss.

OCU picked up in the second game where they left off in the first game. The FWBBC defense failed to come through for starting pitcher Brandon Bernard as they committed three errors in the first inning. Armstrong replaced Bernard in the third, but the errors continued and OCU took advantage of the poor defense and scored eight more runs. The game was called in the fifth inning due to the "run" rule. Final score 20-5 in favor of OCU.

On the day, Owen led the Flames going 4-7 with a double, four RBIs, and a stolen base. Matt Johns recorded his first two hits of the season and had two RBIs. Shane Huey and Josh Hampton each picked up their first hits of the season.

"Our defense is struggling right now," said Flames' coach Jerod McNeal. "I am pleased with the pitching,but we have got to back them up when the ball is hit."

The Flames are now 0-4 and are off until after spring break.

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GRACE COLLEGE 14, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 4

Nashville, TN

March 4, 2010. After being shut out in their season opener, the Flames baseball team was able to score four runs in the second game against Grace College on a chilly, but sunny day at Hillsboro High School. Grace, an NAIA school, showed their dominance early on as they scored early and often enroute to the first game shutout.

The second game started out a little differently as Daniel Armstrong led off in the bottom of the first with a double to right-center field. John Owen singled to center to bring Armstrong home for the game’s first run.

But the Lancers rallied to score 14 straight runs over the next four innings to take a commanding 14-1 lead.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Flames offense got hot. Tyler Cannon smacked a double to center field and Andrew Hurrle walked. Brandon Bernard faked a bunt, then poked a single to right field to score Cannon and advance Hurrle to third. With one out, Joel Forlines laid down a perfect bunt to load the bases. Owen calmly came to the plate and hit a single to center to drive in two more runs to make the final score 14-4.

“They (Grace) are a much bigger school than us,” said Flames coach Jerod McNeal. “It was nice to see us hit the ball better in the second game.”

The Flames are 0-2 and host Ohio Christian University tomorrow (Saturday) at Hillsboro High School. The first game is set to start at noon.

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GRACE COLLEGE 14, FREE WILL BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE 4

Nashville, TN

But the Lancers rallied to score 14 straight runs over the next four innings to take a commanding 14-1 lead.

“They (Grace) are a much bigger school than us,” said Flames coach Jerod McNeal. “It was nice to see us hit the ball better in the second game.”

The Flames are 0-2 and host Ohio Christian University tomorrow (Saturday) at Hillsboro High School. The first game is set to start at noon.