VALDOSTA, Ga. - The No. 19 Valdosta State baseball team dropped its Saturday matchup against Auburn Montgomery by a final score of 12-6.
 
The Blazers (3-3, 3-3 Gulf South Conference) were able to get on the board first during the matchup but three errors over the course of three innings put the Warhawks on top. The Blazers saw offensive support from Nick Lewis and Chase Coker who both led the team in hits with three while each batting in a runner. VSU racked in 10 hits but committed five errors while also giving up 17 hits.
 
The Blazers return to the diamond tomorrow to finish its weekend series with a doubleheader against the Warhawks with first pitch set for 1 p.m. Fans can access links to live stats, audio/video streaming and ticket information for the games at vstateblazers.com on the baseball schedule page.
 
AUBURN MONTGOMERY 12, #19 VALDOSTA STATE 6
 
The Warhawks got on the bags first during the top of one after a Blazer error, a trend VSU seemingly saw throughout the ball game. Although there was a Warhawk on base, the Blazers were able to get out of the inning and have its first chance at the plate. Ben Rowdon got things started for the Blazers with a single to right center followed by Lewis to bring Rowdon in scoring position. David Maberry blasted one into right field to put the Blazers on the board first, putting two more runners in scoring position. An error committed by the Warhawks made it 2-0 right before Logan Stephens made it 3-0 on a ground out. Maberry was able to find home plate the ensuing batter to give the Blazers a strong 4-0 lead after the first inning.
 
The Warhawks would answer, however, where a wild pitch put runners in scoring position and eventually were batted in from a Warhawk single, cutting the deficit in half. Jackson Ceman stole second while a VSU throwing error on the attempt put him at third and a single up the middle brought him home to make it just a one run game.
 
It wasn't until the fourth where AUM opened the floodgates, converting four runs on two errors committed by the Blazers. VSU was able to get the first batter out, but the next seven batters saw the base pads, converting three runs during that span. After the Blazers were able to send a batter away to make it two outs, the team couldn't catch a break where it gave up a bases loaded walk to put the Blazers down 7-4 after four innings.
 
Over the next two innings, the Warhawks secured two insurance runs off four hits where the Blazers were only able to get two runners on base who eventually got left stranded. The Blazers were in a five-inning scoring drought but after the seventh inning stretch, a Chase Coker triple shed some light on a comeback as he batted in Ralph Morla Jr. who doubled into left center. Coker crossed home plate during the next at-bat with Lewis sending him home. Now down just three with two innings to go, a comeback was more feasible.
 
However, the Warhawks always had an answer where it put up two runs the following inning as well as one more in the top of the ninth off its two hits and a Blazer error. Now down six, the Blazers looked to rally in the bottom of the ninth after Coker led off with a double. After the next batter fouled off to the catcher, the Warhawks were able to seal the game with a double play from the right fielder to the shortstop, handing the Blazers its third straight loss.