SoCon Baseball Recaps for May 2, 2008
FURMAN 3, DAVIDSON 2
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Connor Lind’s two-out bases loaded single in the bottom of the ninth inning lifted Furman to a 3-2 win over Davidson Friday evening in the opener of a three-game Southern Conference baseball series at Furman Stadium.
Lind’s sharp single to right field off Davidson reliever Mike Frongello plated Matt Hemingway to give Furman (27-15, 13-6 SoCon) its school record 11th consecutive SoCon triumph and move the Paladins into a first place tie in the league with the College of Charleston, which fell, 6-3, at UNC Greensboro Friday evening. A ninth place preseason pick by league head coaches, Furman last won a SoCon regular season baseball championship in 1976.
The loss was the sixth straight for Davidson (10-30, 2-17 SoCon).
In the decisive ninth, Campbell Lewis drew a one-out walk and Hemingway followed with a single to right field off Davidson’s Ian Horkley to put runners on the corners. After Frongello replaced Horkley, Joey Rodgers worked a one-out walk to load the bases. With his infield playing in, Frongello then induced a force play grounder to retire Lewis at home plate, but Lind ended the contest with a 2-2 liner into right field to score Hemingway for the game winner.
Furman’s run in the ninth made a winner of Nick Karow (4-0), who came on with two outs in the top of the frame to retire Chris Fitzpatrick on a close play at first base with the go-ahead run at third.
Furman starter Jay Jackson, the SoCon’s winningest pitcher entering the contest, pitched solid ball, going 8 2/3 innings and allowing six hits, two runs, and four walks while striking out 10.
Davidson starter Thomas Middour also pitched well, yielding only two runs on six hits and a walk over 6 1/3 innings. He struck out five.
Furman managed eight hits in the contest to Davidson’s six. Lind and Hemingway had two hits each while Hugh Eden and Tommy Piacenza collected two hits apiece for the Wildcats. Reese Wade went 1-for-3 and drove home two of Furman’s three runs.
The Wildcats broke on top in the third after Chase Fitzpatrick walked to lead off and moved to second on a groundout before coming around to score on Eden’s two-out single to center field.
Furman knotted the game at 1-1 in the fourth on a Wade sacrifice fly.
Davidson loaded the bases with on outs in the sixth and went up 2-1 on a Matt Webb sacrifice fly, but the Wildcats’ bid for a bigger inning was cut short after Ronnie Shore was retired at third base while trying to advance on Webb’s sacrifice fly. Jackson then struck out Weiss to end the threat.
Furman tied it in the bottom of the frame after Lind drew a leadoff walk and later scored on Wade’s RBI single up the middle.
Saturday’s 6:00 p.m. game between the Paladins and Wildcats will be proceeded by ceremonies at 5:20 p.m. when Furman’s baseball facility will be officially dedicated as Latham Stadium.
UNC GREENSBORO 6, COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 3
GREENSBORO, N.C. ? Through over seven innings on the mound, UNC Greensboro’s Greg Martin held the College of Charleston to just eight hits on the evening to help hold off the Cougars for the 6-3 victory Friday night at UNCG Baseball Stadium. This was UNCG’s first home victory and first conference win since the 10-9 win over Elon on April 25.
The Spartans (27-19, 12-7 SoCon) came away with the series opener after stranding nine Cougars (30-15, 13-6 SoCon) and racking up three doubles. Martin (6-2), the junior starter, gave up just one run while on the mound; he was credited with CofC’s two runs scored in the eighth after coming off of the hill. Just two of the eight hits given up by Martin garnered extra bases and his pitches caused 11 of his 33 batters faced to pop up and out. Spartan reliever Rob Gilliam (2-3) earned his sixth save of the season after coming to the rubber in the ninth. Gillam now sits with fellow Spartan, senior Wes McCall on UNCG’s career save list. Cougar starter Jake Goldberg (3-3) took the loss after giving up all six runs.
The Spartan bats were led by three seniors. Tim Carrrier hit 2-for-3 with two RBI and a double, Greg Feltes was 2-for-3 on the evening with a run and a double, and Matt Gaski went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI. CofC’s Mike Hentz led at the plate going 3-for-3 with an RBI.
Charleston came out first in the second inning. A triple down the right field line by Clay McCord in the second drove in Austin Morgan from first and gave the Cougars the 1-0 lead.
In the home half of the inning, UNCG knotted the game at 1-1. After reaching on a line drive up the middle, senior Ricky Orton was pushed to third by Carrier’s double to left center. A groundout in the next at-bat allowed Orton to trail down the third base line and give the Spartans their first run of the evening.
In the bottom of the fourth, UNCG broke the 1-1 tie and took a one-run lead over the Cougars. Feltes led off with a double to right center. A groundout to second base by Orton put Feltes in position to score off of a sacrifice fly to centerfield by Carrier. The flyout was Carrier’s 10th of the season; he continues to lead the nation in the category.
Three outs later, the Spartans jumped out by two more. Sophomore Corey Overholtzer led off the inning with a 1-2 single to centerfield. In the next at-bat, freshman Drew Gehringer laid down a sacrifice bunt to move Overholtzer. A throwing error by the catcher allowed him to reach safely and move Overholtzer to third. A wild pitch plated the first run before Gehringer was driven in off of a left side single by Gaski.
Holding a three-run lead, UNCG tallied two more insurance runs in inning seven. A sacrifice fly to right field allowed junior Pedro Leon to cross the plate and in the next at-bat, Carrier knocked a single through the left side of the field to bring in Gaski.
With UNCG holding the 6-1 advantage, the Cougars scored two in the top of the eighth to cut the lead to 6-3. Needing just two to tie, CofC was shut down in the ninth as UNCG took the Cougars three up, three down and walked away with the victory.
The Spartans and the Cougars are back in action tomorrow afternoon at UNCG Baseball Stadium for a 2pm game. They will follow with a 1pm first pitch on Sunday.
GEORGIA SOUTHERN 17, THE CITADEL 13
STATESBORO, GA. ? Ty Wright (Montrose/West Laurens) and Chris Shehan (Strasburg, PA/Lampeter-Strasburg) hit key home runs in support of Drew Murray (LaGrange/LaGrange) as Georgia Southern defeated The Citadel 17-13, Friday night (May 2) at J.I. Clements Stadium. The Southern Conference series opening win was the seventh straight overall for the Eagles (27-18 overall, 11-8 SoCon).
Sonny Meade lined a RBI single in the first inning then with two down Chris McGuiness hit a RBI single to put the Bulldogs ahead 2-0. Meade added a 2-run single with two down in the second frame. However, a two out rally ? capped by Wright - put the Eagles ahead.
Jeremiah Parker (Carrollton/Carrollton) was hit by a pitch with one out then A.J. Wirnsberger (Tuscaloosa, AL/Paul Bear Bryant) singled. After Matt Crim recorded the second out, Brian Pierce (Roswell/Roswell) hit a RBI single up the middle. Jeremy Beckham (Griffin/Griffin) bounced a run scoring single through the left side. Wright, who was named the SoCon ?April Player of the Month’ earlier in the day, smacked a 3-run homer into the left field trees for a 5-4 lead. It was Wright’s 15th round-tripper on the year.
Griffin Benedict (Dunwoody/St. Pius) and Parker hit singles to start the third. Wirnsberger lined a single to right then an error by Meade allowed Benedict to score. Parker came around on Pierce’s groundout for a 7-4 lead.
The Citadel (23-22, 11-11) got one run back in the fourth on Richard Jones’ RBI double. But the Eagles responded right back, sending 11 batters to the plate in their half.
GS loaded the bases with one out and Parker drew a walk. Chris Boyce entered the game in relief, but before he threw a pitch he was called for a balk, bringing home another run. Wirnsberger recorded a RBI groundout then David Richardson (Dahlonega/Lumpkin County) hit a run scoring single to left. That single extended his hitting streak to 11 games. Pierce followed with another RBI single up the middle. After Beckham walked, Wright lined a shot back up the middle to make it 13-5.
Jones hit a 2-run homer in the sixth but again the Eagles quickly responded. Two singles and a fielder’s choice loaded the bases with one out. Phillip Porter (Marietta/Sprayberry) beat out a potential double play, as second baseman Bryan Altman’s throw skipped in the dirt allowing Pierce to score and also Beckham to score from second. Chris Shehan (Strasburg, PA/Lampeter-Strasburg) hit a 2-run bomb over the trees in left centerfield, extending the lead to 17-7. Shehan moved back into for a share of the team home run lead hitting his 16th.
During the seventh, the Eagles looked to have turned an inning-ending double play but could not finish the turn. Citadel would eventually plate six runs, three coming off a home run by Meade and another run on a controversial call which the plate umpire called Jones safe on a wild pitch. Benedict recovered and looked to have thrown home in time to pitcher Aaron Eubanks (Moultrie/Colquitt County) covering but the umpire ruled Jones safe.
Eubanks would get the final out of the seventh then Blake Nation (Brooks/Starr’s Mill) shut the door on the Bulldogs over the final two innings. Nation gave up two hits, no walks and struck out three.
Murray (7-1) was charged for seven runs on 10 hits in six innings. He walked five and struck out four, winning his fourth straight decision.
Wright finished 3-for-6 with four RBI. Shehan had two hits, two runs and two RBI. Benedict added three hits and Pierce finished with three hits, three runs and three RBI.
In all, every Georgia Southern starter had a base hit and seven had a multi-hit game.
Meade finished 5-for-6 with a career-high six RBI. The Citadel entered the game with the lowest ERA in the SoCon at 4.69, but all 17 of the Eagles’ runs were earned. Matt Crim (5-5) was charged for seven runs on eight hits in two innings.
The series continues Saturday evening (May 3), first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.
WESTERN CAROLINA 5, WOFFORD 3
CULLOWHEE, N.C. ? The Wofford College baseball team was defeated 5-3 by Western Carolina on Friday night at Ronnie Childress Field at Hennon Stadium. The game was tied at 3-3 after four innings, but the Catamounts scored two runs in the eighth to take the victory.
Wofford is now 21-26 on the season and 4-15 in the Southern Conference, while Western Carolina is 22-24 overall and 8-11 in the conference. The Terriers were led by Michael Gilmartin and Mo Seay, who each had two hits in the game.
The Catamounts loaded the bases with a hit, walk and catchers interference in the bottom of the second. A walk to Dylan de Graaf scored one run, but the Catamounts left three runners on base at the end of the inning.
In the top of the third, Mo Seay led off with a double down the left field line, but the Terriers left two runners on base. The Catamounts added a run in the bottom of the third when Blake Murphy hit a double to right field to score Brent Greer for a 2-0 lead.
For the Terriers in the fourth, Michael Gilmartin opened with a single and Shane Kirkley added a double. A single from Jake Williams scored Gilmartin, then Keith Munns was hit by a pitch to load the bases with no outs. A fielders choice by Emre Caglayan added a run, then a bunt by Alex Lee drove in another run to give Wofford a 3-2 lead.
Western Carolina tied the game at 3-3 with a fielder’s choice from Dylan de Graaf to drive in Reid Rollision in the bottom of the fourth. Michael Gilmartin added a double for Wofford in the top of the fifth, but he was left on base.
The Catamounts loaded the bases with two out in the bottom of the sixth with two hits and a walk, but left all three stranded. Wofford had two runners on base in the top of the seventh, but were unable to score and the game remained tied at 3-3 at the end of seven.
In the eighth, Mo Seay hit a double with two out, but was left on base by the Terriers. The Catamounts opened their half the inning with a single, then a triple to right center by Ryan Mathews scored a run. A single by Nick Liles scored Mathews for a 5-3 lead after eight innings.
The Terriers led off the ninth with a walk by Alex Lee. A single from Kyle Behrendt gave Wofford two runners with one out. However a double play ended the inning for the Terriers and the final score was 5-3.
Wofford starter Scott Summers (5-7) went 7.1 innings with eleven hits and five runs and four strikeouts. It was his longest outing of the season. John Cornely threw one pitch and got two outs in the eighth on a double play.
For Western Carolina, starter Mike Tavernier went 6.2 innings with six hits, three runs and nine strikeouts. Chris Masters threw 1.1 innings with one hit and one strikeout. Tyler Sexton came in for the ninth inning and allowed one hit.
Keith Munns was hit by a pitch for the 45th time in his career, extending his school record. Shane Kirkley has played in 207 career games, tied for second most in school history with Scott Holloway. He is one game back of Strat Stavrou with 208 career games. Wofford has lost 14 straight games to the Catamounts, dating back to the 2002 season.
Wofford and Western Carolina will play again on Saturday at 2:00 pm. This is a time change in anticipation of inclement weather on Saturday. The series will conclude on Sunday at 2:00 pm. The Terriers return home on May 7 to host South Carolina at 7:00 pm.