JACKSON, Tenn. – University of West Florida baseball team dropped a 6-5 decision against Union to suffer its first-ever series defeat against the Bulldogs. West Florida now stands at 21-12 overall with a 13-8 GSC mark. UWF is tied for third place with North Alabama and three games back of first-place Delta State.
 
"We got behind the eight-ball there early with our starting pitching," said head coach Mike Jeffcoat. "We made a great comeback there in the fifth but they came right back with that solo home run. It seemed like whenever we scored some runs this weekend, we let them right back in it."
 
Nick Kerkmann drove in the first of his four RBI in the first inning with a RBI single to centerfield to give UWF an early 1-0 lead.
 
Union responded with a two-run home half of the first and a three-run third inning to jump out to a 5-1 lead.
 
Michael Savas was quick to shift the momentum in the top of the fifth, hitting a leadoff triple to provide UWF with some life. He later came around to score on a Brandon Harmon single and with one swing of the bat, Kerkmann hit his first home run of the season – a three-run blast – to tie the game at 5-5. After batting around in the inning, West Florida ended the top of the fifth with a pair of runners stranded in scoring position.
 
In the ensuing half inning, Union's Zach Phillips delivered a game-determining home run over the centerfield wall, bringing the score to its final 6-5.
 
Starter Jared Gonzalez went 2.2 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits. The bullpen trio of Jackson Smith, J.A. Harville, and JT Granat combined for 5.1 innings, and allowed just one earned run.
 
Granat continued his dominance since moving to the bullpen and gave UWF a chance to complete a comeback with 2.1 innings of no-hit, shutout ball. The senior right-hander has not allowed a hit in each of his last three outings.
 
Kerkmann's career-high four RBI paced the offense, while Brandon Harmon had a team-high three hits in a 3-for-5 showing. Justin Ambrosino went 2-for-5 at the plate from the No. 3 spot in the lineup.
 
West Florida awaits its most important midweek series of the season, serving host to No. 5-nationally ranked North Georgia for a two-game midweek set beginning Tuesday at 6:00 p.m.
 
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