Royals Stun #3 Reinhardt with Saturday Sweep to Win Series

Knoxville, TN– In a weekend that may go down as the most defining moment in program history, the Royals swept Saturday's doubleheader against #3 Reinhardt, earning 6–4 and 5–4 victories to clinch a massive Appalachian Athletic Conference series win in front of a packed home crowd.

Game one of the day saw the Royals respond with urgency after Friday's series-opening loss. A back-and-forth battle tilted in Johnson's favor late, when Cade Liefer delivered the biggest swing of the weekend—a towering three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning that broke a 3–3 tie and lifted the Royals to a thrilling 6–4 win. Liefer finished with three RBIs on the day, while Travis Hobbensiefken had a standout performance at the plate, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Braden Frank chipped in with a pair of hits and an RBI. Mason Schmidt turned in a gutsy start on the mound, tossing 5.2 innings and striking out five. Kaleb Townsend and James Showalter combined to shut things down late, with Showalter earning the win in relief.

In game two, Johnson once again relied on pitching and timely hitting to complete the sweep. Eli Garrett set the tone with a strong five-inning outing, allowing just one run while striking out five. Garrett Borst followed with a lights-out performance out of the bullpen, tossing four innings of one-run ball to pick up the save. Offensively, the Royals struck early with two runs in the first and kept the pressure on through the middle innings. Bryson Shown and Braden Frank each recorded an RBI, while the Royals capitalized on walks and smart base running to stretch the lead. Though Reinhardt mounted a late push, Borst worked through the pressure and secured the final outs to preserve the 5–4 win.

"What a series," said head coach Dave Serrano. "I can't say enough how happy I am for our players, how proud I am of them, how happy I am for this program and this athletic department. When you lose game one against a very good team and then turn around to sweep a doubleheader, that says a lot about the character of this team. These guys just keep grinding, and I saw some personalities change this weekend. This was two first-place teams battling it out in early April, and to come out on top in front of our fans and families—it means everything."

First baseman Cade Liefer echoed that sentiment: "Today was really a dog fight in both games. We got a great outing by Mason Schmidt in the first game and Eli Garrett threw well in the second. Garrett Borst was just huge out of the pen. And props to our hitters—we never gave in. That is a great Reinhardt pitching staff, and we were always ready to hit and win the game."

With the two wins, the Royals improve to 25–9 overall and 16–5 in AAC play, sitting atop the conference standings. Johnson will look to carry this momentum into the final stretch of the season as they continue their push toward a conference title and a spot in the national tournament.