Furman 11, Georgia Southern 7 (Game 1)
Georgia Southern 14, Furman 2 (Game 2)
STATESBORO, Ga. - Georgia Southern Baseball lost for the first time all year when leading after seven innings during game one, but rebounded for a game two victory against Furman on Saturday afternoon (May 2) at J.I. Clements Stadium. The Eagles improved to 32-13 overall and 14-7 in the SoCon while Furman dropped to 20-23 and 8-15.
Game 1 - Furman 11, Georgia Southern 7
Both teams were without a hit until the bottom of the second inning. A.J. Wirnsberger (Tuscaloosa, AL/Paul Bryant) launched a home run into the trees beyond the left field fence, his seventh homer of the year and first in nearly a month.
The Paladins got a RBI single from Matt Hemingway in the fourth and a sacrifice fly from Will Miller in the fifth. The Eagles took a 2-1 lead in the fourth when Brian Pierce (Roswell/Roswell) reached on a fielder's choice with the bases loaded.
In the sixth, GS scored three times. Eric Phillips (Carrollton/Carrollton) doubled to start and scored on Phillip Porter's (Marietta/Sprayberry) run scoring single. Kyle Blackburn (Marietta/Walton) ripped a 2-run homer for a 5-2 lead.
Furman erased the lead and took it for good thanks to an eight-run eighth inning, the first time in 24 games the Eagles led after seven innings and did not finish off the win. An error would eventually lead to four unearned runs in the frame. Wirnsberger hammered a 2-run homer in the bottom half of the eighth, the seventh time in his career he recorded a 2-home run game.
Chris Mederos (Valdosta/Gordon College) gave up two runs on four hits in seven innings - matching the second-longest outing of his career. He walked two and struck out six but received a no-decision. Kyle Kamppi (Savannah/Benedictine) was charged for six runs on four hits but did not record an out in the eighth, falling to 2-2 on the year.
Wirnsberger finished with a season-high three hits in four at-bats, along with three RBI and two runs scored. Blackburn's two hits were a season-high.
Ian Parry gave up five runs on nine hits in six innings of work. Jay Friedman (2-3) earned the win despite allowing a run in an inning.
Hemingway finished with two hits and three RBI. Brian Harrison added two hits and scored three times.
Game 2 - Georgia Southern 14, Furman 2
Junior Jake Brown (Forest Hill, MD/Pitt CC) pitched the team's first nine-inning complete game in two years, leading the Eagles to a win in the nightcap.
Phillips lined a RBI double in the first inning, then with two runners on Porter hammered a 3-run blast to straightaway centerfield. He regained the team home run lead with his ninth on the year.
In the second, the Eagles loaded the bases with two outs. Phillips ripped a 2-run single to left field then Porter followed with a RBI single making it 7-0.
Randy J. Williams (Valdosta/Andrew College) hit a 2-run homer to centerfield in the fifth, then Griffin Benedict (Dunwoody/St. Pius) launched a solo homer to start off the sixth inning, a 10-0 lead.
Furman had not gotten a base hit off Brown since back-to-back singles in the first inning. During the seventh Brown gave up a leadoff walk then RBI double to Miller. J.B. Jenkins added a RBI single but that would be the last hit Brown allowed.
The Eagles got those runs back and more in their half of the seventh. Ty Wright (Montrose/ABAC) reached on an infield single, scoring Williams. After an error and walk loaded the bases, Phillips ripped a bases-clearing triple down the left field line. His first collegiate triple not only matched a season-high in hits but improved on his RBI season-high total.
"Today I just wanted to put the ball in play and try to make things happen. I've tried to keep that same approach," said Phillips. "(In between games) Coach told us to forget about the previous game, and come out and win this one. This win in game two was huge. Now we can carry the momentum over and go for a series win tomorrow."
Phillips finished with six hits on the day and three runs scored to go with his six RBI. Porter recorded two hits in game two and set a new high with four RBI as the Eagles out-hit Furman 16-4.
Bowles finished with three hits and three runs scored. Benedict scored four times and Pierce added two hits in the win.
Brown scattered the two runs on four hits. He walked three and struck out five in the longest outing of his collegiate career, improving to 5-3.
Kevin Gaid (0-1) was charged for seven runs on six hits in 1.2 innings. Four different Paladins recorded a base hit.
The Eagles go for the series win on Sunday afternoon (May 3), first pitch scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
College of Charleston 12, Davidson 11 (10 inn.)
Mt. Pleasant, S.C. -- Austin Morgan's two-run double in the bottom of the 10th inning lifted College of Charleston to a thrilling 12-11 come-from-behind win over Davidson in Southern Conference baseball action before 335 at Patriots Point Stadium on Saturday.
With the win. the Cougars improved to 29-16 overall and 13-10 in league play. The Wildcats fell to 17-24 and 11-12. The series finale is Sunday at 1 p.m.
Trailing 11-10, Charleston's Matt Mansilla (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) led off the decisive 10th inning with a walk on a 3-2 pitch and moved to second when Cole Rakar (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) reached when his sacrifice bunt attempt was misplayed for an error. After Mike Hentz (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) popped out, Morgan lined his third double of the game down the right field on a 3-2 pitch that scored Mansilla and Rakar for Charleston's sixth win in its last seven games.
Morgan, who had a two-out, three-run double in the second inning that tied the game at 3-3, equalled the school record for most doubles in a game. He's the eighth Cougar to record three two-baggers in a contest and the first since Michael Harrington had three in Charleston's 19-6 win at Georgia Southern on April 13, 2007.
The rally also spoiled the Wildcats' late-inning comeback attempt. Trailing 10-9 in the ninth, Brett Shore walked and, after eventually moving to third, scored on Drew Gadaire's two-out single to left. Chase FitzPatrick's 13th homer of the season, a drive to right field, leading off the 10th gave Davidson an 11-10 lead.
Davidson erased a 4-3 Charleston lead in the fourth inning by scoring six times. The Wildcats parlayed five hits, three walks and a hit batter into a 9-4 lead.
Trailing 9-6 in the seventh inning, Charleston scored four times to take the lead. Joash Brodin (Olympia, Wash.) had an RBI single and Ryan Daniels (Victoria, Tex.) a sacrifice fly that cut Davidson's lead to 9-8. Mansilla followed with this team-leading 16th homer of the season, a two-run shot to left, to give Charleston a 10-9 lead.
Morgan, who finished with five RBI, scored once and added a double in the fourth inning. Brodin had three hits while Joey Bergman (Jacksonville, Fla.) had two hits. Davidson got a game-high four hits from Gadaire and three hits from James Cerbie.
Nick Osterman (Goose Creek, S.C.) picked up the win in relief and improved to 2-1. Matt Webb (3-2) suffered the loss.
The Citadel 5, Samford 1
CHARLESTON, S.C. ? Chris McGuiness went 3-for-4 with three RBI and Matt Talley pitched six scoreless innings in relief for the win as The Citadel topped Samford, 5-1, in front of 1,053 at Riley Park Saturday afternoon.
McGuiness’ two-run single in the bottom of the first gave The Citadel an early lead that the home-standing Bulldogs would not relinquish.
Talley (6-1) earned his sixth win of the season as he pitched 6.0 scoreless innings, allowing six hits, one walk and striking out four. Talley came on in relief after starter Asher Wojciechowski left the game with a sore back in the third inning. Raymond Copenhaver finished the third inning for Wojciechowski, striking out two and walking one while allowing one hit.
David Knapp (3-5) was charged with the loss for Samford after allowing five runs ? four earned ? on nine hits while walking four and striking out five in 6.2 innings for the visiting Bulldogs. Three of his four walks came in the first inning.
McGuiness’ two run single in the first scored Nick Orvin and Sonny Meade who had reached on an error and a walk, respectively. The Citadel added another run in the second as Meade drove in Orvin with a double to left center. That double extended Meade’s hitting streak to a career-best 16 games, matching a 16-game streak Meade recorded across the 2006-07 seasons.
Samford scored their only run of the game in the third inning as Wayne Miller drove in Michael Johnson with a single to left.
The Citadel extended its lead in the bottom of the seventh as Richard Jones hit a two-out ground rule double to deep center. The ball was ruled ground rule as it bounced on the warning track to dead center field then over the wall and off the batter’s eye. McGuiness drove in Jones with an RBI single to center, but then was caught attempting to steal second in the next at bat. Matt Simonelli reached base with a double down the left field line and then was driven in by David Greene’s double to left field. Sid Fallaw grounded out to third to end the rally as the homestanding Bulldogs held the 5-1 lead.
The two teams will meet in the rubber game of the series on Sunday, May 3 at 1 p.m. at Riley Park.
Western Carolina 9, UNC Greensboro 4
GREENSBORO, NC ? UNC Greensboro seemed to be cruising with a 3-1 lead, but Western Carolina rallied for four runs in the fifth inning and added three more in the ninth as the Catamounts won, 9-4, on Saturday afternoon at the UNCG Baseball Stadium.
Catamount reliever Garrett Ozar was credited with the loss after he came into the game in the fifth inning for Western Carolina (29-17, 15-7 SoCon) and allowed just one hit in 3 2/3 innings of work. Leadoff hitter Trevor Collias paced the Catamounts at the plate with a 3-3 effort with three RBI and two runs scored on the afternoon.
UNCG starter Greg Martin picked up the loss for the Spartan (16-25, 4-17) after allowing five runs (four earned) on four hits in five innings.
The Spartans hopped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first inning after Drew Gehringer hit a single up the middle with one out in the inning. He stole second before moving over to third on a wild pitch and scored later in the inning on Pedro Leon’s RBI single through the left side.
UNCG was able to extend its lead to 2-0 in the bottom of the second. Raymond Frias was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and advanced to second on Alex Frederick’s sacrifice bunt. Brent O’Berry then hit a two-out single to center field to score Frias from second.
The Catamounts responded in the top of the third inning with a run of their own to narrow the lead to 2-1. Matt Johns hit a double off the batter’s eye in center field to lead off the inning. He would score later in the inning on a sacrifice fly by Collias.
Frias led off the fourth inning for the Spartans with a single up the middle before advancing to second on a Kris Richards sacrifice bunt. O’Berry then came through with his second two-out RBI single to center field to extend the Spartans lead to 3-1.
It appeared as if the Spartans were cruising but they ran into trouble in the top of the fourth inning. J.C. Lyons doubled to right center to lead off the inning and moved to third on a groundout. After the Catamounts were issued back-to-back walks to load the bases, Collias was hit by a pitch to walk in a run. Nick Liles hit a sacrifice fly to score another run before Ross Heffley hit a two RBI double down the right field line to put the Catamounts ahead, 5-3.
UNCG answered with a run in the bottom of the fourth to narrow the deficit to, 5-4. With one out, Leon drew a four-pitch walk before moving to third on Rob Gilliam’s single to center field. Trevor Edwards followed with an RBI single through the right side to score Leon.
After the Catamounts extended their lead to 6-4 in the seventh inning, they tacked on three more in the top of the ninth. With one out, Collias recorded his third hit of the afternoon, but this one was a home run over the left field wall for a solo home run. After Liles singled to left, Ross Heffley hit a line drive over the wall in right center for his fourth home run of the season.
The Spartans and Catamounts will wrap-up the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. at the UNCG Baseball Stadium.
Elon 21, Wofford 2
ELON, N.C. -- A night after picking up a win in 18 innings, the Elon Phoenix made sure that it took care of business in regulation on Saturday night as it earned a 21-2 Southern Conference victory over the Wofford Terriers from Latham Park. Elon, winners of 13 straight league games, now sits at 32-13 overall and 19-4 in SoCon action. Wofford is 17-24, 7-15.
The Phoenix has also won a season-best eight consecutive games overall and 12 straight at Latham Park.
In the bottom of the second, Pat Irvine singled and stole second before Bennett Davis reached on an error. Justin Hilt's liner to third was knocked down and Irvine was forced out for the second out of the inning. Dallas Tarleton's two-out double to left plated Davis with the first run of the contest. Ryan Adams walked on four straight pitches to load the bases. Elon could push no more across, however as Zeth Stone struck out to end the inning.
Bobby DeLuria walked the first three Phoenix hitters of the third inning, putting Cory Harrilchak on third, Chase Austin on second and Irvine on first. Davis lifted a fly ball down the right field line for the first out and Harrilchak was able to tag and score Elon's second run of the game on the sacrifice. Mike Melillo added three more to the Phoenix's total with a bomb to right, his 13th of the year.
Jake Williams led off the Wofford fourth with a single and went to third on Josh McKinney's one-out double into the left field corner. Williams crossed the plate with the first Terrier run when Robinette lifted a sac fly to left.
Wofford got another back when Michael Gilmartin went deep for the 10th time on the year in the fifth. His solo shot cleared the wall in left-center with two outs.
In the bottom of the inning, Irvine was plunked before Davis went deep for the 13th time of the year. The blast was also the 31st of his career, moving Davis into sole possession of third place on Elon's career list. Melillo followed with a walk and raced to third on a single from Harry Austin. Harry Austin took second on the throw to third. Melillo came in with Elon's eighth run on Tarleton's ground out to first. An Adams double to left-center allowed Harry Austin to score as the Phoenix built a 9-2 lead.
The Phoenix erupted for 12 runs on seven hits, sending 18 hitters to the plate in the sixth. An error and two walks allowed Elon to load the bases with just one out. Harry Austin then doubled off the wall in center to score both Chase Austin and Davis. After Tarleton walked to reload the bases, Adams greeted new pitcher Cash Collins with a double off the wall in left-center, scoring both Melillo and Harry Austin as Elon extended its cushion to 13-2. Pinch-hitter Neal Pritchard then drew a walk to load the bags back up. The lead grew to 14-2 on Harrilchak's single that plated Tarleton. Chase Austin cleared the bases with a double to left-center. The Phoenix scored the ninth run of the inning when Matt Kirchner's infield single scored Chase Austin. Harry Austin's bloop single down the left field line brought in two more. When Tarleton was plunked, Elon had the bases juiced again. Elon added another run on a fielder's choice that failed to record an out as Kirchner scored to give the Phoenix a 21-2 lead.
Daniel Britt (6-0) was solid in his six-inning performance on Saturday. The junior scattered seven hits and struck out a career-best nine hitters while walking just three. The Phoenix bullpen of J.D. Reichenbach and Daniel LoCastro threw three scoreless innings and allowed just one hit. They did not walk a batter and fanned three.
For Wofford, DeLuria (1-5) was tagged with the loss after surrendering five runs (four earned) on three hits in his three innings. DeLuria was hurt by six walks.
Harry Austin went 3-for-4 with two runs scored and a career-best four RBI. Chase Austin (1-for-4, three runs), Davis (1-for-2, three runs), Melillo (1-for-2, three runs) and Adams (2-for-3, one run) all drove in three for the Phoenix. The homers from Melillo and Davis gave Elon its first-ever 100 home run season in program history.
Robinette recorded a 3-for-3, one-RBI night at the dish for Wofford. Gilmartin had two hits, including his solo homer.
The teams are scheduled to conclude the series at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Prior to the game, Elon will honor its seniors.