FRANKLIN – Coming off of an eight-game road trip, the Franklin baseball team stepped out onto the turf at John P. McDowell Field on Saturday (Apr. 13) afternoon for the first of a three-game weekend series with the Mount St. Joseph Lions.
 
A six-run fourth inning from the home side blew the game open, as Franklin (14-10, 5-6 HCAC) rolled to a game one win over the Lions (12-12, 7-3 HCAC) by a 14-7 count.
 
How it Happened
Luke Willmann opened the scoring in the second with a two-run home run, his first long ball of the year. The Lions tied things up in their half of the third but Tysen Lipscomb restored Franklin's lead in the bottom of the inning with a two-run homer of his own to make it a 4-2 game.
 
The Mount got three runs in their half of the fourth to take their first lead of the day, but the Grizzlies exploded in their half of the inning to put the game well out of reach. Garrett DeHart had the big blast in the inning with a three-run double, part of that big six-run frame that gave Franklin a 10-5 lead. Franklin added one in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh to finish out a run of six straight innings with a runner crossing home plate.
 
Inside the Box Score
-DeHart tormented Lion pitchers all afternoon, going 4-for-5 with four RBI and two runs scored, finishing a home run shy of the cycle.
-Lipscomb had three RBI and scored three runs.
-AJ Sanders joined Willmann with two runs knocked in.
-Matthew Johnson got the start and struck out seven batters over 4.2 innings of work.
-Michael Carter (1-0) earned the first win of his career, taking over for Johnson and working 1.1 innings in relief.
 
Up Next
The two teams meet on Sunday at McDowell Field for games two and three of the series. First pitch of game one is set for noon.