MILLIGAN COLLEGE, Tenn. – Marty Popham added his name to the Union College record book twice in the final Appalachian Athletic Conference game of the season at Milligan (Tenn.) College Saturday. With Popham's pitching and a Justin Hart three-run home run, No. 14 Union won 6-3 in the second contest after Milligan won a 10-4 opener.

The junior right hander from Louisville, Ky. tossed his eighth complete game of the season to improve to 12-1. He tied the single-season wins record held by Kevin Wilson during the 1994 campaign. The three strikeouts on the day gave him 92 on the year, two more than Bryan Heatson and Wink Laughead recorded. Heatson's 90 strikeouts came in 2002 while Laughead established the record 10 years earlier.

Popham scattered nine hits and gave up three runs, one was an earned run.

Hart's sixth-inning home run was his fifth of the season to tie his career high. It was the only hit in the second game for the Lake Mary, Fla., native.

Before Hart's home run, Levi Hardin (Elizabethtown, Ky.) was hit by a pitch and Joe Grinstead (Bowling Green, Ky.) drew a walked.

Union had to answer two Milligan first-inning runs and the Bulldogs tied the game with a pair of runs the next half inning. Hardin was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded which pushed Matt Brady (Louisville, Ky.) across the plate and a RBI groundout from Kenny Kysar (Corbin, Ky.) allowed Trey Wheeler (Hopkinsville, Ky.) to tie the game.

The home-standing Buffaloes regained the lead in the bottom half of the second before Josh Ehringer (Somerset, Ky.) tied the game at 3-3 with his second home run of the day. It was his 11th home run of the season, the most by any Bulldog so far in 2008.

Brady finished the game with a 3-for-4 performance, his fourth time he has recorded three hits in a game. One of the hits was a double and he was the only Bulldog with more than one hit. Kysar stole his 29th base of the year as well.

Milligan's offense was led by Brandon Murphy as he also recorded a 3-for-4 effort. The loss went to Jason Trivett as he went 1 1/3 innings and gave up two earned runs on two hits.

Three Union home runs in the opening game were not enough for the visitors. The first came from Brady as it cleared over the left-field fence in the fourth inning.

Milligan answered Brady's home run as Justin Motte scored on a Ricky Morgan fielder's choice the next half inning.

The next inning, Grinstead hit a solo home run and Ehringer added a two-run home run. C. R. Berry (Roark, Ky.) was on base at the time.

The lead was short lived as Milligan sent 10 batters to the plate and six runs came home in the bottom of the fifth. The Buffs added another run in the sixth with two more in the eighth inning.

At the plate for Union, Hart collected three hits in four plate appearances. Grinstead added another hit. Russell Logsdon (Bowling Green, Ky.) suffered his first loss of the season to start the day.

Milligan's Frank Newcomb picked up the win and Todd Caldwell pitched the final four innings flawlessly for the save. Motte finished the game with three hits, two runs scored and two RBIs. Crouch and Busby each drove in two runs.

After the games, Union owns a 37-12 overall record and a 13-5 AAC mark which puts the Bulldogs second in the conference standings. Tennessee Wesleyan College clinched the regular-season crown with a win at King (Tenn.) College earlier in the day. Milligan ends the regular season at 24-24 and 8-10 in conference play.

The Bulldogs will have to wait to see who they will draw in the AAC Tournament on Wednesday. The bracket will be announced Sunday for the eight-team tournament to be played at Hunter-Wright Stadium in Kingsport, Tenn.

Bulldog Notes

• Brady extended his hitting streak to eight games to tie his season best.
• Grinstead's home run was his ninth of the season, which ranks second on the team.
• Union is now 25-5 in games decided by five or more runs.
• Ehringer is the first Bulldog since 2004 to have a double-digit home run total. Bubba Szary and Brandon Ketron hit 13 and 11, respectively.