ASHEBORO – Wingate’s baseball team swept the South Atlantic Conference Tournament championship series at McCrary Park.
The Bulldogs secured the automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament with the title.
Third-seeded Wingate won the best-of-3 opener by 11-4 against Lincoln Memorial with Sean Barnett homering twice Friday. That was followed by Saturday’s 9-1 romp, Sean Barnett and Brett Adams both driving in three runs.
Wingate (33-23), owner of a six-game winning streak, heads to North Greenville (S.C.) for Southeast Region play. The Bulldogs open against Mount Olive, with Georgia College and North Greenville in the other matchup to start the double-elimination event.
SAC member Catawba (40-14) will be a regional host in the NCAA Tournament as the No. 1 seed in the Southeast Region. Tournament play begins this week. UNC Pembroke and Young Harris are also at that three-team site.
Lincoln Memorial finished 33-17.