South Alabama pitcher Zach Willingham left Sunday’s game at Georgia Southern after he was hit in the face by a line drive.

Willingham, a sophomore left-hander in his first season with the Jaguars, was pitching in relief in the sixth inning of a 5-4 loss when the Eagles’ Jesse Sherrill hit a line drive back through the middle with two outs. The ball struck Willingham in the face, and he immediately fell to the ground holding his hand over the area of his left eye.

On-site trainers tended to Willingham on the field and he eventually walked to the South Alabama dugout with a towel pressed to the left side of his head, then was escorted to an ambulance outside the stadium. According to a South Alabama spokesman, he was still being treated at local hospital in Statesboro, Ga., as of 3:10 p.m. Sunday.

Willingham, a native of Cleveland, Miss., transferred to South Alabama this season from Northwest (Miss.) Community College. In seven relief appearances this season, he has a 2-1 record and a 5.91 ERA.

Willingham was replaced on the mound by Matthew DeLano, who got the final out to finish the inning. Neither team scored the remainder of the game.

South Alabama was swept by Georgia Southern over the weekend in the Sun Belt Conference opening series for both teams. The Jaguars are now 8-12 overall (0-3 in the Sun Belt) and have lost six straight games.

South Alabama stays on the road Tuesday, traveling to Montgomery to face Auburn at 6 p.m. at Riverwalk Stadium.