GREENSBORO, N.C. (Interstat) — The North Carolina A&T Aggies erupted for nine runs in a marathon first inning and never looked back, routing the Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs 16-6 in a seven-inning nonconference baseball game Tuesday at War Memorial Stadium.

The most important part of the game was decisively its opening frame, which saw the Aggies (8-19) send 14 batters to the plate against three Gardner-Webb pitchers. Trailing 6-0 before even taking the field, North Carolina A&T responded immediately. Tyler Smith’s single, a hit-by-pitch and an RBI single by Savori Edwards made it 6-1. JT Taylor then cleared the bases with a two-run double, and Luis Gomez followed with an RBI single to tie the game.

After a pitching change, the Aggies took the lead on a passed ball that scored Adrian Gonzalez. Nick DiCarlo and Andrew Tinsley added run-scoring singles, and Bruce Wyche capped the historic inning with an RBI single that also involved a Gardner-Webb fielding error. When Edwards finally flied out to end the inning, the Aggies had turned a six-run deficit into a 9-6 lead, a 15-run swing that effectively decided the contest.

The offensive barrage continued, with the Aggies adding a run in the second on an error, another in the third on a passed ball, and single runs in the fifth and sixth innings. They sealed the mercy-rule victory with a three-run seventh, highlighted by pinch-hitter Ryan Allen’s bases-clearing triple.

The Aggies’ 16-hit attack was led by Taylor, who went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, and DiCarlo, who was 2-for-5 with an RBI. Allen’s lone pinch-hit was the game’s biggest blow, driving in three. On the mound, reliever Benny Whiteaker provided critical stability, throwing two scoreless innings with one hit allowed and two strikeouts to earn the win.

Gardner-Webb (13-16) saw its early 6-0 lead vanish in the bottom of the first. The Runnin’ Bulldogs’ offense was held to eight hits, with third baseman Drew Ripepi providing the highlight—a three-run home run to deep right field in the third inning that briefly brought his team within four runs at 11-7. Jude Littrell added two RBIs for Gardner-Webb.

The Runnin’ Bulldogs used eight pitchers in the loss. Trey Graydon was the most effective, throwing two hitless innings of relief while allowing one unearned run. Jack Iannibelli, Matt Manley and Nicholas Blaszczak combined for two perfect innings of relief, but the early damage was too severe to overcome.

The game concluded after seven innings due to the NCAA’s 10-run mercy rule. The result gave North Carolina A&T a two-game season sweep of Gardner-Webb, having also won 10-6 in Boiling Springs the previous Tuesday. The outcome defied pregame projections from Interstat, whose game simulator had predicted a 4-3 Aggies win, while its ELO system gave Gardner-Webb a 54.7% probability of victory.

Gardner-Webb, which has lost four straight, opens a Big South Conference series at UNC Asheville on Thursday. North Carolina A&T, which has won three of its last four, hosts Elon for a three-game series starting Friday.