Americus, Ga. — Albany State baseball showed resilience and poise Tuesday evening, battling back for a dramatic 8–7 non-conference victory over Georgia Southwestern. After surrendering a mid-game lead, the Golden Rams responded with clutch late-inning execution to seal the bounce-back win on the road.
 
Albany State wasted no time setting the tone. In the opening inning, Luke Addison delivered an RBI single up the middle, allowing Aiden Payne to advance and David Cooper to cross the plate. Moments later, Tyler Turner grounded out to second base to bring home Payne, giving the Golden Rams an early 2–0 edge. The Rams added to their lead in the third when Addison swiped second, and Cooper capitalized with a steal of home, pushing the margin to 3–0.
 
Georgia Southwestern answered emphatically. The Hurricanes strung together timely hits in the third before erupting for four runs in the fourth inning, taking advantage of key Albany State miscues to build a 7–3 lead.
 
Facing adversity, Albany State chipped away. A wild pitch in the fifth allowed Turner to move up as Addison scored, trimming the deficit to 7–4. The Golden Rams then mounted their decisive rally in the eighth. Emory Stephens drew a bases-loaded walk to plate Addison, and Isaiah Haygood followed with a sacrifice fly to score Turner, narrowing the gap to one.
 
The drama peaked in the ninth. With the Rams down to their final outs, Turner lifted a sacrifice fly to right field, bringing home Cooper to tie the game at 7–7. Shortly after, Ty Grover lined a go-ahead RBI single to left, scoring Payne and completing Albany State's comeback.
 
At the plate, Addison led the way with a 3-for-3 performance, two runs scored, and an RBI, while Cooper and Payne each recorded multi-hit outings. Turner drove in two crucial runs, and Grover's late heroics proved to be the difference.
 
On the mound, Albany State's bullpen held firm under pressure. After a challenging middle stretch, the Rams' relievers combined to limit further damage and give the offense a chance to respond late.
 
Up Next: The Golden Rams resume conference play and remain on the road as they travel to Mobile, Ala., to face Spring Hill. The series opens Friday, February 27, with a single game, followed by a doubleheader on Saturday, February 28.
 
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ABOUT ALBANY STATE ATHLETICS
Albany State University is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II-level intercollegiate athletic program. The university currently fields teams in 11 sports: women's volleyball, women's tennis, women's cross country, men's and women's basketball, softball, men's and women's track and field, women's soccer, baseball, and football, with all teams competing in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC), except women's soccer, which participates in the Peach Belt Conference.