Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 FRANKLIN, Ind. - Transylvania opened a three-game Heartland Conference series with Franklin Saturday by falling in both ends of a doubleheader by scores of 6-3 and 14-9.

The losses left the Pioneers with an overall mark of 21-11 mark, 12-8 in HCAC play, while the Grizzlies moved up to 25-12, 15-8 HCAC. Franklin moved into second place in the league race, just behind Manchester with Anderson, Rose-Hulman, and Transy bunched next with one day left in regular season play.

In the first game, Transy took a 1-0 lead in the second inning only to see Franklin rebound for two runs in the third and four more in the fourth. The Pioneers rallied two scores in the top of the seventh (and last) inning before the Grizzlies put out the fire for the win.

John Doering (Newport Coast, Calif.) had two of the visitors' four hits and Ben Kuebbing (Burlington, Ky.) drove in two in the seventh with a single that brought in Doering and Thomas Tolliver (Wurtland, Ky.).

Taylor Bugh (Louisville, Ky.) (6-1) took his first loss of the year, going the distance with one strikeout and three walks.

In the nightcap, Zach Muench (Ft. Thomas, Ky.) was five-for-five with a double, two runs scored, and a pair of RBI, Kuebbing added two hits and three runs, and Evan Rhea (Louisville, Ky.) cracked four hits and drove in three, but Franklin used a five-run fifth inning rally to turn a 5-4 deficit into a 9-5 advantage.

The Grizzlies tacked on three more in the sixth to build a lead of 12-7.

Tolliver contributed three hits, two runs, and one RBI. Starter Andy Emery (Louisville, Ky.) (3-2) took the loss, pitching into the fifth with two strikeouts and three walks.

The two teams will conclude their series and wrap up regular season play Sunday with a single game, beginning at noon. The top four HCAC finishers qualify for the league tournament, which begins Thursday at the site of the conference champion.