Unbeaten Gaston College completes Region 10 three-game series sweep

Gaston College's offense continued its torrid surge on Sunday as the Rhinos routed Southwest Virginia Community College 15-3 to complete a three-game sweep of their weekend baseball series.

Ranked No. 8 in the www.thejbb.net National Junior College Athletic Association Division II poll, Gaston College improved to 18-0 overall and 12-0 in Region 10.

In the three-game series, the Rhinos outscored Southwest Virginia 40-7 and out-hit the Flying Eagles 42-16.

"We're in a good place and we're playing well," Gaston College coach Shohn Doty said.

In Sunday's victory, Wade Kelly (two hits, six RBIs, home run), Chandler Riley (two hits, double, one RBI), Enrique Wood (two hits, two RBIs), Pierson Gunnell (two hits, one RBI), J.D. Yakubinis (two-run double) and Logan Russell (two-run triple) led a 12-hit offense that scored runs in four of the game's five innings.

For the weekend, Riley (8-10, six RBIs, six stolen bases), Konni Durschlag (7-13, eight RBIs), Kelly (5-9, eight RBIs), Ahmir Cournier (5-10, two RBIs), Yakubinis (4-7, six RBIs) and Gunnell (4-7, three RBIs) led the Rhinos' offense that scored runs in 14 of 16 innings.

Marlowe Iorio fired his first complete game by throwing a four-hitter with eight strikeouts to improve his seasonal record to 3-0.

"We swung the bats really well this weekend," said Doty, whose team didn't commit a fielding error in any of the weekend's three games. "And we got good pitching and fielding this weekend. What you talk about a recipe for success, getting the hitting like we did with the pitching an error-free fielding we got would be it."

Gaston College returns to action on Wednesday at 3 p.m. against Louisburg College in a game that will be played at Gastonia's CaroMont Health Park that is home of the Gastonia Honey Hunters of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball.