The Citadel 2, Davidson 1
Charleston, S.C. - William Ladd score the winning run in the bottom of the seventh on a Davidson error as the Bulldogs rode strong pitching to snap their five-game skid with a 2-1 victory over the Wildcats on a warm Saturday afternoon at Riley Park in front of a season-high 952 fans.
The Citadel (8-10, 4-4) reversed their fortunes on Saturday by coming out on top in a one-run game. The Bulldogs had lost their previous five games by a combined six runs and has lost six one-run games this season in all.
Senior Matt Talley (Sumter, S.C.) pitched his best game of the season as he went 8.0 innings and scattered five hits, one run, four walks and eight strikeouts to pick up his first win of the season.
"I felt pretty good overall today," said Talley. "I knew it would be important for us to go out and have a good start after a tough loss last night, so I did my best to keep us in the game. It was definitely nice to come out on top in one of these one-run games, it has been tough for all of us to swallow losing so many close ones. Hopefully we can ride this win and get another one tomorrow."
Davidson (8-10, 3-4) got on the board in the fourth when third baseman Andrew Barna singled, stole second base and advanced to third on a groundout. Shortstop Michael Zeblo then roped a single up the middle to score Barna.
The Citadel responded in the bottom of the frame with a run of its own when third baseman Drew DeKerlegand (Pearland, Texas) tripled when right fielder Coleman Barron dove and missed on a hard hit ball to right field. The freshman came into score on a groundout by Matt Simonelli (Orlando, Fla.) to tie the game off Davidson starter Ian Horkley.
Leading off the bottom of the seventh, Joe Jackson (Mauldin, S.C.) ripped a double to deep right center field, but was gunned down at third base trying to stretch it into a triple. William Ladd(Winnsboro, S.C.) then reached on a base hit to knock Horkley out of the game. Ladd proceeded to steal second and third base off Wildcat reliever Mike Frongello. Catcher Daniel Gerow attempted to nail Ladd at third, but his throw went wide of Barna and into left field, allowing Ladd to score and giving the Bulldogs the 2-1 lead.
Senior closer Drew Mahaffey (Summerville, S.C.) came in to relieve Talley in the ninth and after a rough outing that featured several Bulldog miscues on Friday night, the southpaw had no such problems on Saturday as he set down the Davidson batters in order to pick up his fifth save of the season and 19th of his career.
"Talley was outstanding for the majority of the afternoon today," said head coach Fred Jordan. "Horkley pitched just as well for Davidson. This is one of the better teams they have had up there. Hopefully getting a win today will give us a little momentum to try and take the series tomorrow."
The series finale is set for 1 p.m. at Riley Park on Sunday. Darren Goldwater will be calling the action on Fox Sports Radio 1450 AM in Charleston.
Samford 9, Georgia Southern 2
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.- The Samford baseball team grabbed an early five-run lead and never looked back on its way to a 9-2 Southern Conference win over Georgia Southern Saturday afternoon at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Saxon Butler hit a grand slam in the second-consecutive game, going 3-for-5 with four RBI. Brandon Miller also homered for the second-straight game. Miller was 3-for-5 with an RBI in Saturday's win. Kevin Putkonen went 3-for-4 with two RBI, while Phillip Ervin was 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Lex Rutledge (4-1) earned the win, pitching 7.0 innings, giving up two runs on four hits and striking out seven batters to earn the win. C.K. Irby tossed the final two innings for the Bulldogs.
For Georgia Southern, Eric Phillips was 1-for-3 with an RBI. Josh Adams (4-2) gave up four runs on three hits in 1.0 inning to take the loss for the Eagles.
Samford plated a run in the first inning and four more in the second inning to take an early 5-0 lead.
In the first inning, Ervin was hit by a pitch with one out. Ervin later scored from third base when Putkonen singled to right field to give Samford a 1-0 lead.
In the second inning, Tommy Corbin singled and Tyler Filliben and Brad Moss walked to load the bases. After the next two batters were retired, Butler hit a grand slam to center field to make the score 5-0.
Georgia Southern came back with two runs in the top of the third inning to cut the Samford lead to 5-2. Brent Pugh scored when Michael Burruss reached base on a fielder's choice for the Eagles' first run of the game. Arthur Owens later scored when Phillips reached base on a bunt single to bring Georgia Southern to within three runs.
Samford added a run in the fifth inning, one in the sixth inning and two more in the seventh to make the final score 9-2. In the fifth inning, Miller hit a solo home run to left field to make the score 6-2. The run in the sixth inning scored when Ervin singled up the middle to drive in Michael Johnson. In the seventh inning, Putkonen drove in a run and Miller score on a wild pitch for the game's final two runs.
The win was Samford's seventh-straight victory. The Bulldogs improve to 15-6 overall and 5-0 in Southern Conference play. Georgia Southern drops to 11-9 overall and 3-2 in league play.
The teams will conclude their three-game series with a game Sunday at 1 p.m. at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Furman 4, Wofford 2
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - On Saturday afternoon, the Wofford baseball team was defeated 4-2 by Furman at Russell C. King Field. The game was tied at two after three innings, but the Paladins plated runs in the fifth and sixth to take the second game of the weekend series.
Wofford is now 11-8 on the season and 0-2 in SoCon play, while Furman is 9-11 overall and 3-4 in the conference. The Terriers were led by Clark Wise with two hits and an RBI. The Paladins were led by Aaron Thompkins with two hits and Reese Wade with two RBIs.
In the top of the first, Furman scored one run on an RBI single by Reese Wade to take a 1-0 lead. The Paladins left the bases loaded to end the inning. In the top of the second, Aaron Thompkins added a single through the right side to score a run for a 2-0 advantage.
Wofford had a double by Landon Bennett in the bottom of the second and Josh McKinney walked, however a double play ended the scoring chance. In the bottom of the third, Alex Lee and James Foster had hits and Clark Wise had an RBI single to left field for a 2-1 score. A single by Mac Doyle loaded the bases with one out. A ground out by Konstantine Diamaduros tied the game at 2-2.
Furman loaded the bases with one out in the top of the fifth. A sacrifice fly by Reese Wade scored one run for a 3-2 lead, but the Paladins left two on base at the end of the inning. Wofford had one hit by Clark Wise in the bottom of the fifth. In the top of the sixth, the Paladins added two singles and a walk to load the bases with two outs. A hit by pitch scored one run to increase the lead to 4-2.
After a scoreless seventh, Wofford left one runner on base in the bottom of the eighth. After Furman went one-two-three in the top of the ninth, Wofford also went down in order in the bottom of the ninth for a 4-2 final score.
For Wofford, starter Drew Sheridan (1-2) went 5.2 innings with seven hits allowed, four runs scored and four strikeouts. Ryan Traylor threw 2.1 innings with only one hit allowed. Brandon Yarusi retired the side in order in the ninth with one strikeout.
Furman starter Tyler Wood (2-1) threw 6.1 innings and allowed two hits on seven hits with three strikeouts. Nate Smith went an inning with one strikeout. Jay Friedman worked two-thirds of an inning without allowing a base runner. Dylan Cole picked up his fourth save of the year by pitching the ninth with one strikeout.
The weekend series against Furman will conclude on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. Next week Wofford will travel to Presbyterian College on Wednesday and will host The Citadel beginning on Friday night in a SoCon series.
Appalachian State 4, UNCG 2
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Appalachian State hit a three-run home run just over the right field wall in the top of the first inning as UNCG fell to the Mountaineers, 4-2, on Saturday afternoon at the UNCG Baseball Stadium. The loss snapped UNCG's six-game winning streak.
Nathan Hyatt picked up his second win of the season for the Mountaineers (9-10, 1-7 Southern Conference) after going five innings and allowing only one run on four hits, while striking out six batters. Taylor Miller came in to pitch the final 2 1/3 innings to pick up his third save of the season.
UNCG starter Brandon Browne was credited with the loss after giving up three runs on just three hits in four innings of work.
John Hein came off the bench to go 2-2 at the plate for the Spartans (12-6, 4-1 SoCon), while Trevor Edwards and Thomas Troelstrup each had an RBI.
Daniel Kassouf led the Mountaineers on Saturday as he went 2-3 with three RBI and two runs scored. Jack Myers also added a pair of hits for the visitors.
The story of the day seemed to be that the Spartans weren't able to take advantage of several opportunities to score runs. They left the bases loaded in the fifth, seventh and ninth inning and left a total of 16 runners on base for the game.
Appalachian State set the tone in the first inning as Tyler Zupcic led off the game with a 12-pitch walk before moving to second on a sacrifice bunt. Myers then singled to right field to put runners on the corners.
Kassouf followed with a home run that just barely cleared the right field wall and beyond the leaping effort of Drew Gehringer to give the Mountaineers the early 3-0 lead.
UNCG was finally able to get on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning. Cambric Moye led off with a single to center and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Gehringer. After a UNCG strikeout, Bobby Martin and Eric Brindle drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. Edwards was then hit by a pitch to score Moye and make the score 3-1.
The Mountaineers were able to get that run right back in the top of the sixth when Kassouf led off with a single and later scored on a wild pitch to make it 4-1.
Down to its final three outs, UNCG started a rally in the bottom of the ninth. Brindle hit a leadoff single to right field and stole second before moving to third on a wild pitch. After a strikeout, Troelstrup was able to reach on an error by the shortstop, which allowed Brindle to score and make it 4-2.
Hein was then hit by a pitch before a UNCG fly out made it two outs in the inning. Andrew Spleth followed with a single up the middle to load the bases, but Miller was able to get one final strikeout for the Mountaineers to end the threat and the game.
The Spartans and Mountaineers will square off in the rubber game on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Elon 5, Western Carolina 4
Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina was unable to dig out of a four-run hole as Elon jumped out to a 4-0 lead through the first three innings, capped by a three-run home run by Neal Pritchard in handing the Catamounts a 5-4 loss in Southern Conference play at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium.
The final game of the series is scheduled for 2:00 pm on Sunday afternoon.
WCU (8-9, 0-5 SoCon) chipped away at the Phoenix lead, scoring single runs in the fifth and ninth innings with a two-run seventh, but were unable to overtake Elon on the day in dropping the best-of-three series.
Freshman starter Jordan Smith (2-2) surrendered five earned runs on five hits through six and a third in suffering his second-straight loss. The Liberty, N.C., native fanned three against one walk. Morgan McKinney worked one inning of hitless, scoreless relief out of the bullpen with Kyle Deese striking out three in an inning and two-thirds, allowing one base hit.
Elon (14-6, 5-0 SoCon) took the early 4-0 lead with a run in the second and a three-run third inning where all three runs came with two outs. Niko Fraser was hit by a pitch ahead of Alex Swim who singled to right center moving runners to the corners. Pritchard then drove the second pitch of his at bat over the left field fence to spot the Phoenix to a 4-0 advantage.
Pritchard finished 2-for-4, scoring twice and driving in three.
In the fifth, WCU broke the shutout with a run, closing back within three, 4-1. Stephen Notaro and Adam Martin opened with back-to-back singles with Tyler White sacrificing them into scoring position. Freshman Aaron Attaway drew a five-pitch walk to load the bases ahead of Cameron Dullnig, who grounded out but drove in Notaro from third. However, the Catamounts stranded two in scoring position.
The Phoenix manufactured a run in the top of the seventh as Jake Luce lifted a bases loaded, sacrifice fly to right field where Dullnig made a diving stab to take away a would-be base hit, but allowed Cyle Rasmus to score from third.
Down 5-1, the Catamounts scratched the scoreboard twice in the home half of the seventh inning. The frame opened with consecutive walks issued to both Notaro and Martin with White singling to left field to load the bases and to chase Elon starting pitcher Ken Ferrer. Attaway drove in a run with a fielder's choice along the middle of the Phoenix infield. Dullnig then drove in his second run of the game on another infield ground out, cutting the deficit to two, 5-3. But again, the Catamounts left two on base when the inning closed.
Ferrer (3-0) earned the win after lasting into the seventh, credited with six innings pitched allowing three runs on four hits with four walks and six strikeouts. Dylan Clark tossed two innings of relief, walking and fanning one while Mitch Conner earned his third save - and second in as many days - tossing the ninth inning, allowing one run on one hit with a walk and a strikeout.
In the ninth, Martin blasted his third home run of the season, belting the first pitch of the frame over the left center field fence to pull the Catamounts back within a run, 5-4. A ground out and fly ball out to center field seemingly diminished WCU's chances, yet the Catamounts continued to threaten with two away. Freshman pinch hitter Cody Jones drew a four-pitch walk and Schultz reached on a fielder's choice to put two aboard ahead of freshman Dykota Spiess who struck out swinging to end the game.
Martin finished 2-for-3 to lead the Catamounts offensively, adding a walk and a strikeout. Notaro was 1-for-2 with a pair of walks and two runs scored.
#19 Connecticut 3, #20 College of Charleston 1
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - University of Connecticut starter Matt Barnes struck out eight over seven innings to lead the #19 Huskies to a 3-1 victory over #20 College of Charleston Saturday afternoon at Patriots Point in the Cougar Invitational. The Cougars fall to 15-5 on the season, dropping a pair of games in a row for the first time this season and will face Rhode Island tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 p.m.
Connecticut broke through the scoreless tie with a single run in the top of the fourth. Mike Nemeth singled to left center and advanced to second on a single by LJ Mazzilli. Ryan Fuller followed up with a RBI double down the left-field line to score Nemeth for a 1-0 Connecticut lead.
The Cougars knotted the score at 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth on a sacrifice fly by redshirt-freshman DH Daniel Aldrich (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.). After redshirt-junior DH Rob Kral (Randolph, N.J.) led off the frame with a walk and stole second. A strikeout by Barnes and a fielding error by Connecticut 2B Tom Vendi allowed redshirt-junior LF Jose Rodriguez (Hialeah, Fla.) to reach first and moved Kral to third with one out. Aldrich lifted a deep fly ball to right to score Kral, but Rodriguez was caught too far down the baseline to second and was doubled up at first. Kral crossed the plate before Rodriguez was called out, allowing the tying run to score.
UConn pulled ahead 2-1 in the seventh on a bases-loaded walk to Nemeth. After Verdi singled to left with one out, he was caught stealing for the second out. Ryan Moore walked and John Andreoli singled to right, advancing Moore to second. Another walk issued to Nick Ahmed loaded the bases and Nemeth drew a five-pitch walk from Charleston sophomore reliever Jake Zokan (Columbia, S.C.) to take a one-run lead. Sophomore RHP Matt Pegler (Greenville, S.C.) came in get the final out of the inning, getting George Springer to strike out swinging.
The Huskies pushed another run across in the eighth to open a 3-1 lead. Mazzilli led off with a double down the left-field line and Doug Elliot beat out a grounder up the middle, but Rodriguez let the ball get away at first, allowing Mazzilli to score after rounding third.
Charleston mounted a rally in the bottom of the frame, but came up empty-handed. Junior RF Marty Gantt (N. Augusta, S.C.) was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and moved to second on a throwing error by Barnes during a pickoff attempt. Senior CF Cole Rakar (Mt. Pleasant, S.C.) singled through the left side, moving Gantt to third and Kral walked to load the bases for redshirt-junior 3B Matt Leeds (Boca Raton, Fla.). Leeds drilled a sharp liner up the middle, but UConn reliever Dan Feehan stabbed the ball out of the air and doubled up Kral at first. Rodriguez walked to load the bases again for the Cougars, but Aldrich grounded out to first to end the threat.
Aldrich had two hits to increase his hitting streak to 15 games for the Cougars. Junior LHP Josh Renfro (Bradenton, Fla.) took the loss for Charleston, allowing two runs on nine hits over 6-2/3 innings.
Mazzilli finished with three hits for UConn, while Andreoli, Nemeth and Verdi chipped in two hits apiece.
The Cougars close out the Cougar Invitational Sunday afternoon at Patriots Point against Rhode Island. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.