CLEVELAND, Miss. –  Zack Shannon and Jason Popovich combined for six RBIs to lead No. 5 Delta State University (30-7, 18-4 GSC) to an 11-5 win over Lee University (23-9, 14-9 GSC) in the nightcap of a doubleheader on Sunday Harvey Stadium-Ferriss Field.

The Flames used a four-run top of the 10^th inning and then held off a Statesmen rally in the bottom of the 10th to claim a 13-10 win in game one.

Shannon went 3-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs connected on his 24^th home run of the season and the 43^rd of his career while Popovich finished 2-for-5 with three RBIs in game two

GM 1 Score: Lee University 13 | #5/5 Delta State 10 (10)  
GM 1 Start: 12:59 p.m. | TOG: 4:26
GM 2 Score: #5/5 Delta State 11 |  Lee University 5
GM 2 Start: 6:02 p.m. | TOG: 3:00
Date/Time: Sun., April 15, 2018
Location: Cleveland, Miss. | Harvey Stadium-Ferriss Field
Records: Statesmen 30-7, 18-4 GSC | Flames 23-19, 14-9 GSC
Series:  Statesmen lead the series 9-5
HOW IT HAPPENED (GM 1)

• Jordan Howard gave Lee a 2-0 lead, hitting a two-run home run with Tyler Payne on base in the top of the first inning.
• The Statesmen answered with three runs in the bottom of the first to gain a 3-2. Jason Popovich singled and scored on a Zack Shannon groundout. Emil Ellis singled and scored on a Clay Casey double and Casey scored on a Juwan Burney double.
• Justin Nussbaum singled to lead off the second and scored on a Brian Lane sac-fly to give the Statesmen a 4-2.
• Lee tied the game in the top of the fourth. Howard hit his second two-run home run of the game to even the score, 4-4.
• Delta State took the lead back with a two-run fourth. Ellis walked, Lane was hit by a pitch and Shannon was intentionally walked with two outs to set up a Casey two-RBI single to make the scored 6-4.
• Lee plated three runs in the top of the seventh to take a 7-6 lead. Ryan Beamish had a two-RBI single and a Fernando Ortiz sac-fly put the Flames in the lead.
• The Green-and-White scratch three runs across to regain a 9-7 lead. Burney was hit by a pitch and scored on a throwing error. Nick Morgan scored on a Popovich sac-fly and Ellis doubled home Nussbaum.
• Miguel Pimentel singled and scored on a Spencer Mossburg single to cut the DSU lead to 9-8 in the eighth.
• Beamish hit a solo home run to right field to tie the game 9-9 in the ninth.
• Delta State loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth only to see the inning end with a strikeout and a fly out.
• Lee broke the tie with four runs in the top of the 10^th to take a 13-9 lead. Chase Gadau delivered a two-RBI single to score Miguel Pimentel and Howard and Mossburg scored on a wild pitch.
• The Statesmen scored a run on an Ellis RBI single only to see a ground out end the inning with the tying run at the plate.

ON THE MOUND (GM 1)

• Hunter Riggins (2-2) gave up three runs on four hits with four strikeouts as the pitcher of record for the Statesmen.
• Eric Freeman (4-4) Eric Freeman allowed two runs on eight hits with a strikeout and three walks to get the win for the Flames.
• Logan Workman (3) entered in the 10^th to record the final out and pick up the save.

HOW IT HAPPENED (GM 2)

• Ellis drew a walk and Lane singled with one out in the top of the first.  Shannon singled up the middle to score Ellis and a Casey sac-fly plated Lane for an early 2-0 Statesmen lead.
• Lee cut the DSU lead to 2-1 on a Gadau sac-fly to centerfield that scored Mossburg in the top of the second.
• The Statesmen added a run in the second to build the lead to 3-1. Morgan singled and after moving to third on a wild pitch scored on a Popovich single to right.
• Five runs crossed the plate in the third to stretch the Statesmen lead to 8-1. Morgan and Popovich drove two runs each with singles and a run came home on an RBI groundout by Ellis.
• The Flames got one run in the top of the fourth and three runs in the fifth to cut the deficit to 8-5.  Dalton Ney had an RBI single to trim the deficit to 8-2 in the fourth. Pimentel and Gadau had RBI singles and Mossburg got a run home on a sac-fly in the fifth.
• Delta State got three insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth. Shannon belted a two-run home run to score pinch-runner Weber Herbison. A Morgan single to left scored Matthew Majeur to give the Statesmen an 11-5 lead.

ON THE MOUND (GM 2)

• Dalton Minton (6-1) struck out five Flames while yielding five runs, four earned, on six hits to earn the win.
• Jumpei Akanuma (4-3) gave up six runs on five hits with a strikeout and two walks in 2.1 innings pitched to suffer the loss for the Flames.
• Peyton White (4) tossed three scoreless innings with seven strikeouts to register the save.

NOTABLES

• The Statesmen have scored a run in the first inning in five straight games.
• Delta State pitchers yielded a season-high 20 hits in game one.
• The game one loss snapped a nine-game winning streak and a six-game GSC winning streak for the Statesmen.
• Ellis went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored and Clay Casey was 2-for-5 with three RBIs.
• Shannon had four RBIs in the doubleheader to move him into a tie for ninth with Dee Haynes (1998) and Steven Tomazewski (2002) on DSU's single-season RBI's list. His 162 career RBIs rank ninth all-time, passing Jason Page (1994-96).
• Shannon finished 3-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs and Morgan, who went 3-for-4 three RBIs for the Statesmen in game two. 
• Popovich went 2-for-5 with three RBIs as the only other Statesmen with multiple hits.
• Shannon's home run in game two was his 24th this season and 43rd of his career, ranking second on the single-season and career home runs lists.

UP NEXT
Delta State travels to Arkansas Tech for a single game on Tuesday at 7 p.m. and Wednesday at 2 p.m. in Russellville, Ark.