Royals Rally Late to Take Game One at No. 11 Tennessee Wesleyan

ATHENS, TN— The Royals opened their Appalachian Athletic Conference series with a statement road win Friday night, rallying late to defeat No. 11 Tennessee Wesleyan 8–5.

Johnson struck first in the opening inning, manufacturing a run as Luke Wilson came around to score on a heads-up play to give the Royals a 1–0 lead. After Tennessee Wesleyan answered in the third to tie the game, the Royals regained the lead in the fifth when Edwin Olmeda Jr. scored on a throw, putting Johnson back in front 2–1.

The Royals extended their lead in the seventh inning, capitalizing on defensive miscues. Wilson scored on an error before JJ Menesini added a sacrifice fly to make it 4–1.

Tennessee Wesleyan responded with a four-run seventh inning to take a 5–4 lead, taking advantage of errors and timely hitting to swing the momentum.

Johnson answered in the ninth with a decisive rally. After strong at-bats from Olmeda and Wilson helped set the table, Menesini's hustle on the bases helped create an opportunity before Travis Hobbensiefken delivered the biggest swing of the night, launching a go-ahead grand slam to left field to put the Royals in front 8–5.

On the mound, Colby Reynolds delivered a dominant outing, going the distance and allowing five runs while striking out five. He kept the Royals within striking distance and set the tone throughout the game.

At the plate, Johnson totaled 14 hits, with Wilson leading the way with three hits and three runs scored. Hobbensiefken drove in four runs with the game-winning home run, while Olmeda added multiple hits and scored twice.

Following the win, head coach Dave Serrano praised the team's response and overall effort.

"This team showed each other and this coaching staff how much they are a team tonight," Serrano said. "We kind of shot ourselves in the foot in the seventh inning with some miscues on defense but responded to the adversity with a team effort in the ninth. Colby Reynolds was spectacular on the mound in probably his best outing of the year. Great AB's by Eddie Olmeda, Luke Wilson and a hustle play by JJ Menesini led to the big blow by Travis Hobbensiefken. A very good win on the road against a very good team for our guys."

Hobbensiefken kept the focus on faith following his clutch performance, simply adding, "God is great, all glory to God."

With the win, the Royals take a 1–0 lead in the AAC series and will look to carry that momentum into the remainder of the weekend.