ST. LOUIS—[BOX SCORE] Despite jumping out to an early lead on Saturday afternoon, Missouri Baptist Baseball was not able to overcome a three run sixth and a strong performance by the Georgia Gwinnett bullpen. The Grizzlies completed a three-game sweep with a 5-2 victory.

The Spartans drew first blood for the second consecutive day when Drew Brooks was driven in on an RBI single from Gabriel Castillo in the third. The Spartans extended their lead to 2-0 one inning later when John Hagan broke through with his first hit and RBI of the 2018 campaign, bringing home Jonathan Pasillas.

It took until the bottom of the fifth for the Grizzlies to answer. Alex Garland doubled down the left field line, making it a one-run game.

With the help of three walks and an error, Georgia Gwinnett brought home the tying run in the top of the sixth. This set the stage for Chris Jones, who plated two more runs with a bases loaded single, extending the lead to 4-2.

Georgia Gwinnett was able to tack on an insurance run in the top of the seventh inning after a wild pitch scored C.J. Ballard for the Grizzlies' fifth run of the game.

Despite a promising start to the afternoon, the Spartans were not able to overcome the lights out performance by the Georgia Gwinnett bullpen in the late innings (5.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER). The home side earned the sweep to start the season.

Missouri Baptist will look for their first win of the season next weekend in Tennessee when they take on Martin Methodist. The first of two doubleheaders is scheduled for Friday at 12 pm. The teams will also play two on Saturday with the first pitch scheduled for 10 am.