SoCon Recaps for May 7, 2008
ELON 19, DAVIDSON 9
ELON 7, DAVIDSON 1
DAVIDSON, N.C. - Elon starting pitcher Steven Hensley outdueled Davidson's Thomas Middour to lead the Phoenix to a 7-1 victory in the nightcap of a SoCon baseball doubleheader Wednesday afternoon at Wilson Field. The Phoenix got the sweep by topping the Wildcats 19-9 in the first game of the afternoon.
Hensley fanned 10 and gave up one run and six hits in eight innings of work. He threw 108 pitches, and 77 were strikes. Middour struck out eight and allowed three runs, two earned, in seven innings of action. He walked just one and threw 120 pitches with 71 for strikes.
Donny Jobe doubled in the first inning of game two and scored later on a groundout to give Elon a 1-0 lead. Greg Annarummo singled, went to second on an error and scored on a Chris Dove single to give the Phoenix a 2-0 lead in the second frame.
Elon made it 3-0 in the fifth when Cory Harrilchak singled, stole second - his sixth stolen base of the day - and scored on a Chase Austin single. Austin added a solo homer with one out in the eighth, while Mike Melillo plated a run with a triple and scored on a bunt single later in the inning to extend the cushion to 6-0.
The Wildcats had a chance to put runs on the board in the sixth, when Shore and Kayne recorded consecutive one-out singles. But Hensley dug in and struck out the next two batters to end the threat. The same two reached with two outs in the bottom of the eighth, but this time, Matt Webb plated Shore with a bloop single to trim the lead to 6-1.
Middour had some excellent defense behind him and helped his cause by picking off two runners on the base paths. Shore made a diving catch in left field to end the fifth inning and also threw out a runner at the plate in the top of the ninth. Third baseman Chris FitzPatrick made a diving stop and throw to first to end a scoring threat in the third.
Davidson used five walks and a two-run single by Shore to open a 4-0 lead in the second inning of the first game. Hugh Eden drew a bases-loaded walk with two outs to plate a run, and Shore followed with a single to left field that scored two more. After Kayne drew a walk to load the bases, Webb walked to drive in a run.
Elon stormed back with six runs on one hit in the third, and three wound up being unearned. The Phoenix benefited from two walks and two hit batters to put up three runs. After a Wildcat error extended the frame, Melillo stroked a three-run homer over the wall in right centerfield to give the Phoenix a 6-4 lead.
Free passes hurt the 'Cats in the top of the fourth as three walks loaded the bases with one out. Bennett Davis plated two with a single, and Dallas Tarleton followed with an RBI single. Chase Austin capped the rally with an RBI double to extend the Elon lead to 10-4.
After Elon got a run in the fifth, Davidson came back with two in the seventh to trim the lead to 11-6. Webb reached on an infield single and went to second on an error. After getting to third on a wild pitch, he scored on a Danny Weiss groundout that wound up being a very close play at first base.
After Chase FitzPatrick and Sam Payne walked, FitzPatrick scored on an error trying to handle a Tommy Piacenza groundout. The Phoenix quelled any thoughts of a comeback by scoring six runs in the eighth, keyed by a two-run homer from Harrilchak.
Davidson's Jay Honeycutt capped the scoring with a pinch-hit, three-run home run over the left field wall in the ninth for the final 19-9 margin. Kayne and Webb each had two hits to lead the 'Cats from the plate.
The Wildcats and Phoenix will finish the series tomorrow at noon at Wilson Field. It's the final home game of the season for Davidson.
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON 13, CHARLESTON SOUTHERN 4
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. -- Michael Kohn, Brandon Sizemore, Michael Harrington and Austin Morgan homered, and four College of Charleston pitchers struck out 14 as the Cougars completed their season sweep of Charleston Southern, 13-4, in college baseball action before 317 at Patriots Point Stadium on Wednesday.
The Cougars, who went 4-0 against the Bucs this season, improved to 31-17 overall. Charleston Southern fell to 16-29. The Cougars open a three-game Southern Conference series with Wofford at 7 p.m. on Friday.
Kohn belted his 10th homer of the season with one out in the second to give Charleston a 1-0 lead.
Sizemore's 14th homer of the season was a towering three-run shot down the left field line in the third that gave Charleston a 4-1 advantage. Harrington followed with his 19th homer of the season, a blast to right, that stretched Charleston's lead to 5-1.
Austin Morgan, who finished 2-for-2 with three RBI, hit a two-run homer to left in the sixth to give the Cougars a 10-3 lead.
Casey Lucchese (5-2) picked up the win allowing three runs with eight strikeouts over the first 5 1/3 innings. Danny Meszaros struck out three over 1 2/3 innings, Nick Osterman struck out one in the eighth and Kohn struck out two in the ninth inning. Eric McGough (0-1) was the starter and loser for the Buccaneers.
Derek Smith hit his 11th homer of the season for Charleston Southern, while Nick Chinners and Taylor Black added two hits each.
Kohn finished with three hits, while Jeremie Tice and Mike Hentz two hits each.
THE CITADEL 14, WINTHROP 7
ROCK HILL, S.C. ? Sophomores Richard Jones and Chris McGuiness both hit home runs Wednesday night as The Citadel overpowered Winthrop in an 14-7 win in front of 776 at The Winthrop Ballpark in Rock Hill.
The Citadel (25-23) scored 14 runs on 15 hits as the bats in the top half of the line-up came alive Wednesday night. Four of The Citadel’s top five hitters in the line-up went 13-for-18 with 10 runs scored and 11 RBI. Winthrop (21-30) scored seven runs on 15 hits and committed two errors.
Jones hit his 25th career home run as he sent the ball beyond the right field wall as he moved up to a tie for sixth in school history in career home runs. That mark ties the 25 home runs hit by Garrick Haltiwanger (1994-96). Jones finished the game with a 4-for-6 performance, scoring twice and driving in three.
McGuiness’s only hit of the game was a two-run home run in the third inning over the right field fence.
Sonny Meade tied a career-high five hits on the night as the Summerville, S.C. native scored three times and notched five RBI. Chris Swauger was 3-for-3 with two walks and scoring a season-high four runs in the game.
Brett Bull (2-1) was credited with the win after throwing 3.0 innings on the mound without allowing a run, giving up two hits and striking out three. Bull was one of eight Bulldog pitchers to take the mound in the game. Dane Yoder (1-2) took the loss after allowing five runs on six hits in 2.1 innings on the mound.
The Bulldogs went up early in the game, scoring two runs in the top of the first before Winthrop rallied back with three runs in the bottom half of the inning. McGuiness put The Citadel on top for good in the third with his two-run shot.
The Bulldogs tallied three more runs in the fifth, with two of the runs coming of Jones’ home run. Matt Arnold, who reached on a walk, eventually scored on a throwing error as Winthrop catcher Billy Froehlich’s throw sailed into center field as the Eagles tried to putout Conrad Kellahan at second.
An RBI double by Meade in the sixth and an RBI single in the eighth scored three more runs for the Bulldogs with McGuiness sending home another run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly. Winthrop would add four runs in the bottom of the eighth to pull within four at 11-7, but The Citadel would score three more runs in the ninth to secure the 14-7 victory.
With the win, The Citadel closes out an eight-game road stretch. The Bulldogs return home on Friday, May 9 to host Western Carolina in The Citadel’s final Southern Conference series of the season.
CLEMSON 11, FURMAN 5
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Kyle Parker’s two-out, two-run sixth inning double broke a 5-5 tie and powered Clemson to a 11-5 win over Furman in front of 5,030 fans at Fluor Field at the West End in downtown Greenville Wednesday night.
Parker’s drive off Furman’s Spencer Hale into the deep right center field gap bounced off the glove of a leaping Paladin center fielder Joey Rodgers and scored Matt Sanders and Jeff Schaus to give Clemson a 7-5 lead. Parker then scored on a Ben Paulsen single to give the Tigers an 8-5 advantage.
Clemson tacked on a run in the seventh and two in the eighth on an RBI double by Jeff Schaus, who later scored on another Paulsen RBI single.
The win improved Clemson to 25-23-1 on the season while the loss dropped Furman to 29-17.
Matt Zoltak (4-0) was the beneficiary of the Clemson’s three-run sixth, earning the victory after working a scoreless inning.
The loss was charged to Spencer Hale (1-1), who surrendered the Tigers’ three decisive runs on three hits in an inning of work.
Paulsen led Clemson’s 15-hit attack with a 4-for-5, 2 RBI performance. Parker, Schaus, and Doug Hogan added two hits each for the Tigers.
Furman, which had nine hits, was paced at the plate by freshman third baseman Brian Harrison, who went 3-for-4 with a double.
Furman took a 1-0 lead in the first on Ryan Lee’s RBI grounder.
The Paladins stretched their advantage to 3-0 in the third on RBI double by Bobby Hubbard and two-out run scoring triple by Reese Wade.
It remained 3-0 until the fourth, when the Parker stroked a leadoff single off Paladin reliever Justin Holloway and Paulsen followed with a double to center field. Parker, who stopped after rounding third base, induced a throw a throw to third from Paladin cutoff man Marcus Rose before racing home for the inning’s first run. After two walks loaded the bases, Matt Sanders tied the game with a two-out, two-run single.
Furman regained the lead with two runs in the fifth, with the first coming off a wild pitch by D.J. Mitchell that allowed Connor Lind to score, and the second on an RBI double to right field by Campbell Lewis that plated Hubbard.
Clemson quickly tied it at 5-5 in the bottom of the fifth on Hogan’s two-run double off Furman’s Barry Benton that plated Parker and Wilson Boyd.
Furman returns to action on Friday when it travels to Boone, N.C., to open a three-game Southern Conference series against Appalachian State. First pitch is set for 7:00 p.m.
SOUTH CAROLINA 10, WOFFORD 5
SPARTANBURG, S.C. ? The Wofford College baseball team was defeated 10-5 by #12 ranked South Carolina on Wednesday night at Russell C. King Field. The Gamecocks scored five runs in the first to open the game and had an 8-0 lead after three innings.
Wofford is now 21-29 on the season and 4-17 in the Southern Conference, while South Carolina is 34-15 overall. The Terriers were led by Michael Gilmartin with three hits and Mo Seay with two RBIs on a double.
The Gamecocks opened the game with the first five batters reaching base before the first out on a fielder’s choice. Two more singles enabled the Gamecocks to score five runs in the innings and send ten batters to the plate. The Terriers led off with a single from Sterling Dye, but were unable to score and South Carolina had a 5-0 lead after the first.
In the top of the second, Whit Merrifield hit a double and scored on a single from Phil Disher to take a 6-0 lead. In the top of the third, Reese Havens doubled to score one run, then an RBI single from Justin Smoak added another run for an 8-0 lead.
For the Terriers in the fourth, Michael Gilmartin and Jake Williams hit singles, but were left on base. Wofford loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth inning with three walks. A sacrifice fly by Keith Munns scored a run for the Terriers, but two men were left on base with an 8-1 score.
Heading to the top of the eighth, South Carolina added a run on a solo homer by Harley Lail to make it a 9-1 game. In the Wofford half of the eighth, Shane Kirkley singled and Michael Gilmartin doubled. A single by Jake Williams down the right field line scored one run. A double by Mo Seay with two out scored two more runs for a 9-4 score.
In the top of the ninth, the Gamecocks added a run on a groundout by Reese Havens. For the Terriers in the bottom of the ninth, a single from Michael Gilmartin scored one run for the final 10-5 tally.
Wofford starter Jordan Mickleberry (3-3) went three innings with eleven hits and eight runs. Pete Noordsy threw two innings with two hits and two strikeouts. Drew Sheridan threw one inning and sat down three straight batters. Chip Hunt went an inning with one hit and one strikeout, Reid McElveen went an inning with one run on one hit and a strikeout. Ben Austin closed the game in the ninth with one hit and one run with a strikeout.
For South Carolina, starter Sam Dyson (6-0) threw five innings with four hits and one run with four strikeouts. Alex Farotto went 2.1 innings with no hits and four strikeouts. Brandon Todd threw 0.2 innings with four hits and three runs with a strikeout. Parker Bangs also went 0.2 innings with two strikeouts, while Jordan Costner allowed one hit and one run.
The game was the final non-conference game of the season for the Terriers. The crowd of 2,522 was the third largest of the season to see Wofford play and the largest at Russell C. King Field this season.
Wofford will travel to College of Charleston on Friday night for the first game of a three-game Southern Conference series. The Terriers final home series will be Friday, May 16 and Saturday, May 17 against Appalachian State.
NORTH CAROLINA A&T 5, UNC GREENSBORO 3
GREENSBORO, N.C. ? Four singles and a fielder’s choice in the top of the fifth combined for an Aggie three-run, lead changing rally as UNC Greensboro fell to North Carolina A&T, 5-3, Wednesday evening at UNCG Baseball Stadium.
For the first time since 1991, the Aggies (26-25) swept the Spartans. Despite the sweep, UNCG (30-20) still holds a commanding 32-5 series lead since the first meeting in 1991.
Starter Chris Eggers (5-5) nabbed the victory for N.C. A&T after striking six and allowing juts two runs in five innings of work. Marquis Frink (4-3) earned his fifth save of the season after holding off UNCG in the ninth. Senior Wes McCall (1-5) took the loss after allowing the lead run in the fifth. The Spartan’s freshman starter, Warren Slack, pitched an outstanding first four innings. While on the mound, the High Point, NC native struck out a team season high and a personal record eight batters while walking none.
At the plate, UNCG preserved three of its ongoing hit streaks. Sophomore Corey Overholtzer extended his to ten as we went 1-for-3, junior Pedro Leon has now gone eight games straight after hitting 1-for-5 with a run scored, and senior Matt Gaski has now gone seven in a row after batting 3-for-4 with an RBI and a double. A&T’s Joe McIntyre hit 3-for-5 with three RBI and a pair of doubles. It was his single to centerfield that tied the game in the fifth.
In the bottom of the opening inning, senior Greg Feltes slammed a four pitch solo to give UNCG the early lead. The homer over the right center wall was Feltes’ 11th this season, 19th career.
In the third, a hard hit single to the shortstop put junior Pedro Leon on first. In the next at-bat, senior Matt Gaski sent an RBI double into right center to plate Leon and give the Spartans the 2-0 lead.
Four singles and a fielder’s choice in the top of the fifth combined for an Aggie three-run, lead changing rally. Jeremy Jones, CJ Beatty, Joe McIntyre, and Nelson Santos sprayed singles to bring in the 2-2, tying run. With bases loaded, a Neil Rosser hit to third base drew a toss over to second. The Spartans got the out, but due to a fielder/runner tangle were unable to make the throw to first for the double play, allowing the lead run to come down from third.
A&T tacked on two insurance runs in the sixth as George Hines and Beatty were both plated off of a left field double by McIntyre.
In the eighth, a left side single by senior Adam Deleo brought in fellow senior Tim Carrier to knock the score down to 5-3. Unable to plate anymore, North Carolina A&T walked away with their second victory over the Spartans this season.
This weekend, the blue and gold will hit the road for their final conference three-game away series against the Georgia Southern Eagles in Statesboro, GA. Friday’s game is set for 7pm with a 6pm Saturday game and a 1:30pm Sunday game to follow.