Bryan and Tennessee Wesleyan advance through busy AAC tournament day to set Saturday title game

KINGSPORT, Tenn. - Bryan and Tennessee Wesleyan emerged from a four-game Friday at Hunter Wright Stadium to reach the Appalachian Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament championship game. Day four of the tournament opened with No. 1 seed Milligan eliminating No. 4 Spartanburg Methodist, then No. 8 seed Montreat knocked out No. 2 seed Johnson. In the evening session, No. 6 seed Bryan eliminated top-seeded Milligan, and No. 3 seed Tennessee Wesleyan ended Montreat’s run. Bryan and Tennessee Wesleyan will meet for the tournament championship Saturday at 1 p.m.

Milligan started the day with a 6-2 win over Spartanburg Methodist in the 9 a.m. game. Spartanburg Methodist scored twice in the first inning, but Milligan answered with two runs in the bottom half, added two more in the second, then tacked on single runs in the fourth and fifth. Jonah Ward went the distance for Milligan, allowing two runs on six hits over nine innings while striking out nine. Cade Kalehuawehe drove in three runs, and Brody Melton added a two-run double as Milligan, the No. 1 seed, stayed alive early in the day and officially eliminated Spartanburg Methodist from the bracket.

Montreat followed with a 6-4 win over Johnson at 12:15 p.m., eliminating the No. 2 seed. Montreat collected 13 hits and built its lead with a three-run third inning, then added two runs in the fifth and one more in the seventh. Daniel Restrepo drove in three runs, including a two-run single in the third, and Matthew Brunner finished with three hits and an RBI. Johnson answered with two runs in the third, highlighted by Mitchell Birdsall’s two-run single, and scored once in the ninth, but Montreat held the tying runs on base. Ethan Caldwell worked six innings, allowed two hits and earned the win.

The afternoon elimination game matched Bryan against Milligan, and Bryan moved on with a 7-4 victory at 3:30 p.m. Cyrus Campos set the tone early, homering in the opening inning and helping spark a three-run third. Caleb Ramsey added an RBI double as Bryan built a cushion with 12 hits. Milligan pushed back late after Brody Melton’s two-run double cut into the deficit, then scored twice more in the ninth, but Bryan had enough insurance after Cade Cook’s run-scoring single in the eighth. Eli Walker gave Bryan 7 1/3 innings, allowing four hits and two earned runs to secure the win while Milligan, which had opened the day by advancing, was eliminated in its second game.

Tennessee Wesleyan closed the night by beating Montreat 11-4 at 6:56 p.m. and ending the tournament run of the No. 8 seed. Tennessee Wesleyan scored two runs in the first inning and broke the game open with five more in the second to take a 7-0 lead. Rob Gordon tripled during the first-inning rally, and the second featured run-producing at-bats from Brayan Espinoza, Josh Shelly and Kolton Reynolds. Montreat trimmed the margin with three runs in the fifth, getting key hits from Jason Brulport, Gabriel Ferrell and Gustavo Gonzalez, with Hunter Furches driving in a run, but Tennessee Wesleyan answered later and finished with 11 runs on 19 hits. Shelly had three hits, three RBIs and two doubles, Reynolds drove in three, Ethan Wright had three hits including a home run, and Cameron Goffar worked seven innings, allowing three earned runs and striking out five.

By the end of the day, the bracket had narrowed from four remaining teams to two. Milligan eliminated Spartanburg Methodist, Montreat eliminated Johnson, Bryan eliminated Milligan, and Tennessee Wesleyan eliminated Montreat. Saturday’s 1 p.m. championship game now pairs Bryan, the No. 6 seed, against Tennessee Wesleyan, the No. 3 seed, after both clubs came through decisive Friday wins in Kingsport.