Georgia Southern 14, No. 20 East Carolina 4
STATESBORO, Ga. - Griffin Benedict (Dunwoody/St. Pius) tied a NCAA record hitting two home runs in an eight-run seventh inning, leading Georgia Southern to a 14-4 win over 20th-ranked East Carolina Sunday afternoon (March 8) at J.I. Clements Stadium.
The Eagles end their 12-game homestand to start the season 11-1, including two wins over 'Top 20' teams. The 11-1 start is the best 12-game start to the season since the 1979 team opened the year 13-0.
ECU (8-2) cut the Eagles' lead to 6-4 after plating another run in its half of the seventh. Benedict lined a 1-0 pitch opposite field over the fence in left to start the seventh inning fireworks. Brian Pierce (Roswell/Roswell) added to his team RBI lead with a double (now 13 RBI this year). Kevin Bowles (Statesboro/Statesboro) lifted a sacrifice fly and Matt Miller (Canton/Woodstock) ripped a RBI single. Two batters later A.J. Wirnsberger (Tuscaloosa, AL/Paul Bryant) lined a RBI single to center. Benedict, facing his second different Pirate pitcher in the inning, hammered the first ball he saw from Joe O'Malley over the right field fence.
It was his second home run of the year and tied a NCAA record done on many occasions.
"I thought the leadoff home run was big because they had just cut it to two, and anytime you can get the leadoff runner on it helps the confidence and gets momentum back on your side," said Benedict. "I saw it was a cutter and just tried to make good contact."
The Pirates entered the game averaging around 10 runs per game. They quickly struck first. Freshman Matt Murray (Spring City, PA/Owen Roberts), making his first weekend start, struck out the first two batters he faced but Stephen Batts blooped a single to right. Kyle Roller followed with a 2-run homer but Murray responded with another strikeout to end the first.
Miller drew a leadoff walk, the first issued this year by Sthil Sowers. He stole second and scored on Benedict's two-out RBI double.
The Eagles plated four runs in the third inning. Miller singled then Phillip Porter (Marietta/Sprayberry) was hit by a pitch. Wirnsberger could not get a sacrifice bunt attempt down, but would deliver a RBI single up the middle.
Benedict singled home another run then Ty Wright (Montrose/ABAC) hit a soft grounder back to the mound. Sowers tried throwing home but Wirnsberger knocked the ball loose and was safe on the play. Randy Williams (Valdosta/Andrew College) lifted a sacrifice fly to right field making it a 5-2 game.
In the fifth GS strung together four straight singles but Benedict was nailed at the plate for the second out of the inning. Eric Phillips (Carrollton/Carrollton) came through with another two-out hit, lining a RBI single to center.
ECU got two singles to start the sixth, then a wild pitch put both in scoring position. Jake Brown (Forest Hill, MD/Pitt CC) got a strikeout, groundout and lineout to get out of the inning with only one run scoring, a 6-3 lead. The Pirates took advantage of a double and two wild pitches in the seventh to make it 6-4 GS.
Kyle Kamppi (Savannah/Benedictine) pitched the final three innings for his second save. He gave up one run on four hits while striking out five Pirates.
According to the senior catcher, this win builds confidence on a team off to an impressive start.
"This win is a huge confidence builder. For us to go out and knock off good teams, it also helps out our pitching staff. If we can go out and consistently play like this - beating great teams - we can beat anyone," said Benedict, who matched a career-high with six RBI while setting a new high with five hits (5-for-5).
Miller and Wirnsberger added two hits apiece as the 1-4 batters were a combined 10-for-18 with 10 runs scored and nine RBI.
Murray picked up his first collegiate win (1-0), allowing two runs on six hits in five innings. He walked two and struck out six.
Batts and Henderson added two hits apiece for the Pirates. Sowers (1-1) was charged for six runs on six hits in 4.1 innings, walking two and striking out six.
The Eagles hit the road for the first time in 2009 on Tuesday night (March 10), traveling to Jacksonville. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Wofford 11, Samford 5 (12 inn.)
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.?Wofford’s Michael Gilmartin hit two home runs and was the winning pitcher as the Terrier baseball team won its series finale, 11-5 in 12 innings over Samford in Southern Conference action Sunday afternoon at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Samford drops to 5-6 overall and 2-1 in SoCon play with the loss. Samford took the first two games of the series to earn the series win in its first-ever SoCon series. Wofford improves to 4-6 overall and 1-2 in league play.
On the mound, Gilmartin, who was one of seven pitchers used by Wofford, tossed 3.0 innings, giving up no runs on two hits. At the plate, Gilmartin was 2-for-7 with four RBI. Neil Robinette hit a grand slam in a 1-for-2 performance, and Jake Williams was 3-for-5 at the plate for the Terriers.
For Samford at the plate, Matthew Bennett was 2-for-3 with a home run and an RBI. David Schulze was 2-for-3 with two RBI, and Mason Meredeth was 2-for-4.
Samford used six pitchers in the game. Josh Martin pitched two-thirds of an inning, giving up six runs on four hits to take the loss for the Bulldogs.
The teams went to extra innings tied at 4-4. After neither team could manage a run through the 10th and 11th innings, Wofford plated seven runs in the top of the 12th to take an 11-4 lead.
Konstantine Diamaduros led the 12th inning off for Wofford by reaching base on a Samford error. After Williams reached base on a bunt single and Mac Doyle walked to load the bases, Robinette hit a grand slam to give the Terriers an 8-4 lead.
James Foster later singled and Alex Lee walked. Gilmartin then hit his second home run of the game to make the score 11-4.
Samford plated a run in the bottom of the 12th inning to make the final score 11-5. Wayne Miller and Michael Johnson both walked to lead off the inning for Samford. After Meredeth singled to load the bases, Schultz hit a sacrifice fly to center field to drive in Miller for the game’s final run.
Wofford grabbed a 4-0 lead with a run in the first inning, two runs in fourth and one in the fifth. Samford came back with one run in each of the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth innings to tie the score at 4-4.
Samford will return to action on Tuesday, Mar. 10, when the Bulldogs play host to in-state Jacksonville State. The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. CT start from Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Wofford returns home to host Gardner-Webb Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET.
Furman 11, Davidson 7
DAVIDSON, N.C. -- Senior Zach Kayne went 4-for-5 with a pair of RBI, but the Davidson Wildcats could not overcome a six-run third inning, falling 11-7 in the final game of the Southern Conference series with the Furman Paladins Sunday afternoon at Wilson Field.
The Wildcats (6-5, 2-1) won the series with victories in Friday and Saturday's contest, but Furman (6-5, 1-2) picked up its first SoCon win of the season Sunday.
Neither starter went deep into the game, but both earned decisions. Junior Chris Kennedy (1-1) was tagged with the loss, after allowing six runs on five hits in two innings, while Furman's J.P. Goldsberry allowed five runs on eight hits in 3 1/3 innings.
For the third straight day, Davidson controlled the game early, pushing across a pair of runs on four hits in the first. Kayne led off with a double and scored on a sacrifice fly from senior short stop Matt Webb. Sophomore first baseman Danny Weiss plated senior center fielder Brett Shore, who followed Kayne with a single into left.
Furman started scoring with a run in the second and exploded for six in the third, including a grand slam by Matt Hemingway.
The Paladins pushed the lead to 9-2 with a pair of runs on two hits in the fourth, but Davidson got three runs on four hits in the fourth to cut it to 9-5. Senior left fielder Pat Brady led off the inning by legging out a triple into center field and scored on a one-out RBI-single from freshman catcher Seth Freeman. With runners on the corners, Kayne slapped a double into the right field gap to send in senior third baseman Chris Fitzpatrick (single) and Freeman.
The Wildcats added another run in the sixth to get within three, but Furman added two in the seventh inning to stifle the rally.
Senior right fielder Chase Fitzpatrick posted the final Wildcat run in on his fifth home run of the season.
Davidson will step out of conference play for a pair of games with the Yale Bulldogs Tuesday (6 p.m.) and Wednesday (4 p.m.) before traveling to Elon for a three-game SoCon set next weekend.
Furman is back in action Monday afternoon with a 1 p.m. first pitch time scheduled at Charlotte.
Western Carolina 4, Appalachian State 3
Cullowhee, N.C. ? Western Carolina (8-2, 3-0 SoCon) broke open a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the fifth inning thanks to a two-run Homer from Nick Liles. The Catamounts went on to defeat the Appalachian State Mountaineers (5-6, 0-5 SoCon) Sunday afternoon, 4-3, in the finale of the three game series against Appalachian State at Childress Field/ Hennon Stadium.
Western Carolina now boasts a perfect 6-0 record at Childress Field/ Hennon Stadium thanks to timely hitting and quality pitching again from the Catamounts.
Junior Nick Liles came up with the biggest hit of the day in the bottom of the fifth when Liles blasted a two-run Home Run to left field to give the Catamounts a 4-2 lead that they would never relinquish.
Senior Corey Martin (3-0) earned his third win of the season to stay perfect throwing a solid 6 2/3 allowing six hits and one earned run while striking out seven Mountaineer hitters. Aubrey Edens (0-1) earned the loss for Appalachian State allowing seven hits and four earned runs through six innings of work.
Garrett Ozar and Daniel Ottone preserved the victory for the Catamounts as Ottone shut the door getting Mountaineer third baseman Nick DeRose to line into a double play to end the game earning his fourth save.
Liles extended his hitting streak to ten games along with true freshman teammate Ross Heffley who went 1-for-4 with an RBI single to extend his streak to ten.
Liles finished the weekend batting .571 with eight hits, two doubles, one triple, two Home Runs, and five RBI’s to lead the Catamounts to the sweep over Appalachian State.
Appalachian State started the scoring in the top of the third inning when with two outs the Mountaineer’s used a two-out RBI single from Wes Hobson to take the early lead 1-0.
The Catamounts answered quickly in the bottom of the third also getting a rally going with two outs. Liles doubled to center followed by Trevor Collias who was hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second for Heffley. Heffley worked a six pitch at bat and laced a single through the ride side scoring Liles from second sliding in just ahead of the tag at home to tie the score at 1-1. J.C. Lyons followed with a single to shortstop to score Collias to give Western Carolina their first lead at 2-1.
The Mountaineers answered in the top of the fourth getting a lead off single from Isaac Harrow. After a strike out to David Towarnicky, Harrow was running on the play and stole second. Chris Alessandria followed with a single up the middle to tie the game at 2-2.
The Catamounts took the lead for good after the Liles two-run Home Run in the fifth to make the final 4-3 Catamounts.
Appalachian State still has not won a series in Cullowhee since 1996 and the Catamounts will look to continue their winning ways in a two-game home series against East Tennessee State starting on Tuesday March 10 beginning at 4:00 p.m.
The Mountaineers visit nationally-ranked North Carolina Tuesday at 3 p.m.
College of Charleston 7, UNC Greensboro 1
Mt. Pleasant, S.C. -- Matt Mansilla (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) belted his fourth homer of the weekend and freshman starting pitcher David Peterson (Walnut Creek, Calif.) delivered another strong pitching performance as College of Charleston downed UNC Greensboro, 7-1, before 378 at Patriots Point Stadium on Sunday, completing a sweep of its three-game Southern Conference series.
The Cougars, who play host to Quinnipiac at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, improved to 9-2 overall and 3-0 in league play with their sixth straight win. The Spartans fell to 1-8 and 0-3. UNC Greensboro plays host to Old Dominion at 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
Mansilla's sixth homer of the season was a two-run shot to left in the sixth that stretched Charleston's lead to 5-0. Mansilla was 6-for-11 at the plate in the series with four homers and nine RBI.
Joey Bergman (Jacksonville, Fla.) homered leading off the third inning, and Cole Rakar (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) homered to start the fifth to give Charleston a 3-0 lead. It was Bergman's second home run of the season and Rakar's third.
For the Spartans, Drew Gehringer's RBI double in the top of the eighth scored Corey Overholtzer and cut Charleston's lead to 5-1. Austin Morgan's (Katy, Tex.) solo homer in the bottom of the eighth gave the Cougars a 6-1 edge. Charleston's Clay McCord (Atlanta, Ga.) added an RBI single in the eighth for the final margin.
Peterson (2-0) blanked the Spartans on seven hits over the first seven innings. He walked none and struck out seven. Greg Smith (1-2) suffered the loss surrendering three runs on four hits over four innings of work. Smith walked three and struck out four.
Charleston starting pitchers worked 21 innings in the series and posted a 3-0 record with a 0.43 ERA. The trio of Jesse Simpson (Baton Rouge, La.), Tom Schiller (Rochester, N.Y.) and Peterson allowed only one run on 14 hits with 22 strikeouts and a walk.
McCord, Bergman, Morgan and Rakar led Charleston's 10-hit attack with two hits each. Ed Jayjack led the Spartans with three hits, while Gehringer and Kris Richards added two.
The Citadel 8, Elon 5
Charleston, S.C. ? Trailing 5-2 in the bottom of the sixth, The Citadel rallied for six unanswered runs over two innings to defeat Elon, 8-5, in front of 702 at Riley Park Sunday afternoon. The win clinched the first regular season series victory over the Phoenix since 2004.
David Greene led the Bulldogs offensively, hitting 3-for-4 with two runs scored while Nick Orvin and Richard Jones both posted 2-for-4 performances. Greene’s three hits and two runs marks a career-high for the freshman.
The Citadel (4-6, 2-1 Southern) scored eight runs on 13 hits while capitalizing on four Elon errors. The Phoenix (5-4, 3-2 SoCon) scored five runs on 10 hits in the game.
Matt Talley (1-0) was credited with the win after pitching three shutout innings in relief, allowing two hits while walking two and striking out one. Asher Wojciechowski started the game and pitched 6.0 innings, allowing five runs on six hits as he walked three and fanned six.
Jared Kernodle (0-2) took the loss after giving up three runs on one hit and walking three, failing to strike out any Bulldog batters.
Elon broke a 2-2 tie open in the top of the sixth as Justin Hilt doubled to right field with Dallas Tarleton on first and no outs. After Mike Lobacz struck out, Ryan Adams walked to load the bases and was pinch ran for Harry Austin. Cory Harrilchak popped up to second for the second out before Zeth Stone singled through the right side to score Tarleton and Hilt. Stone then stole second and a throwing error by Richard Jones allowed Austin to score, giving Elon the 5-2 lead. Wojciechowski struck out Bennett Davis to end the inning.
The Citadel responded in the bottom half of the inning as Greene led off with a single up the middle. Kyle Jordan then laid down a bunt in front of the plate and safely reached first as Tarleton couldn’t make a play. Orvin followed with a double to right center to score Greene and send Jordan to third. Bryan Altman popped up to second before Sonny Meade hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score Jordan and giving the Bulldogs their second out. Jones drove in the third run of the inning with a single to left center as Orvin scored. Chris McGuiness struck out swinging to close the frame.
Kernodle entered in the seventh and Trey Thomas drew a one out walk to reach first. Greene drew another walk to send Thomas to second. Johnny Dangerfield, pinch hitting for Kyle Jordan, singled through the right side to load the bases. Kernodle’s first pitch to Orvin went wild, advancing all the runners and scoring Thomas. Kernodle walked Orvin on five pitches and the Phoenix replaced him with Jordan Darnell on the mound.
Darnell then walked Altman on four straight pitches, scoring Greene. Meade followed with another sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Dangerfield. Jones drew a walk to load the bases again but McGuiness ended the inning with a groundout to short as The Citadel took the 8-5 lead.
Talley closed out the game, only allowing three of Elon’s last nine batters to reach base, striking out Hilt to end the game.
The Citadel returns to action on Monday, March 9 as the Bulldogs host Quinnipiac at Riley Park. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.
LaSalle visits Elon Monday with first pitch set for 6 p.m.