UNCG 4, Davidson 2
UNCG 8, Davidson 6
GREENSBORO, N.C. - UNCG sophomore Dylan Hathcock outpitched Davidson's Ryan Overcash in a pitcher's duel in game one and Thomas Troelstrup and Christian Wolfe collected three RBI a piece as the Spartans scored five runs in the seventh inning of game two as UNCG defeated Davidson, 4-2 and 8-6, in a doubleheader in Southern Conference action on Saturday afternoon at UNCG Baseball Stadium.
UNCG (20-18, 6-12 SoCon) picked up its first conference series victory of the 2012 campaign as it snapped a five-game losing streak and ended Davidson's five-game undefeated streak in the process.
Herndon, Va. native, Zach Leach gathered two hits in game one and followed up with a 1-for-5 performance in game two to extended his hitting streak to a team-best 14 games.
Davidson (16-21, 7-14 SoCon) stranded 15 runners on the day and saw David Daniels commit four errors as UNCG kept its postseason hopes afloat by taking two-of-three games in the series.
In game one, the Spartans scored single runs in four of the first five innings and gave starter Hathcock (3-3) plenty of support as the Tampa, Fl. native was marvelous as he allowed one hit, a single by Ryan Lowe, through his first seven innings of work.
The sophomore provided UNCG's bullpen some much needed rest after they threw 8 1/3 innings of relief on Friday. Following Lowe's single, Hathcock retired 17 of the next 19 batters.
The Spartans' Bobby Martin led off the bottom of the first inning with a single to right. Following a sacrifice bunt and a groundout, Martin scored on a fielding error by Daniels off the bat of Trevor Edwards to give the Spartans its first lead of the series, 1-0.
UNCG would tack on single runs in the second and third inning to extend the lead to three, 3-0. In the second, TJ Spina plated Troelstrup, who doubled, via sacrifice fly to make it 2-0 in UNCG's favor.
Leading 2-0, Edwards belted a run-scoring double to right to give the Spartans the 3-0 lead. UNCG looked to build on the lead as it loaded the bases with two outs, but Overcash buckled down and ended the threat after a groundout.
Senior Kris Richards doubled in Lloyd Enzor in the fifth inning to extend the Spartan lead to four, 4-0.
Trailing 4-0 in the eighth inning, it looked as if Hathcock was going to breeze through the inning as he retired the first two batters, but, the Wildcats Calvin Sigelbaum drew a five-pitch walk to put a runner on first with two outs. The next batter, Jake Berman, connected on a monster two-run blast to dead center to cut the deficit in half, 4-2. Following an error and single, the Spartans' Brennen James was called upon to end the threat and did just that as he fanned Andrew Barna.
James would collect his fourth save of the season by working a perfect ninth inning and giving UNCG the 4-2 victory.
Hathcock impressed as he went a career-high 7 2/3 innings while striking out a career-high seven batters and allowed only two runs.
Overcash (3-6) took the hard luck loss as he went the distance and allowed four runs (three earned) and scattered eight hits while striking out three. Davidson's starters threw complete games in the first two games of the series.
In game two, the Wildcats Drew Gadaire struck again as he drove in a run with a single up the middle to give Davidson an early 1-0 lead after half-an-inning of play.
Davidson pushed another run across as it got an RBI single from Daniel Gerow in the top of the fourth to make it a 2-0 Wildcat lead.
UNCG would crack the scoreboard in the fifth inning after Martin roped an RBI double down the left field line to plate Cambric Moye.
In the back-end of the sixth inning, UNCG would take a 3-2 lead as Troelstrup roped an RBI single to right. The next batter, Wolfe, plated Richards after an RBI groundout.
Davidson responded with a boom as it scored three runs on four hits in the top of the seventh inning. Barna plated the first run after he singled to right field. Two batters later, Daniels delivered a two-run single to left off of Corey Taylor to make it a 5-3 Wildcat lead. Zach Furl struck out Gerow to end a bases loaded threat.
After the seventh inning stretch, the Spartan offense came to life as it scored five runs off of three hits. Leach drove in Martin, who stole second after walking, for the first run of the inning. With two outs and the bases loaded, Troelstrup continued to torture the Wildcat pitching staff as he drove in two runs with a single to right. Wolfe imitated Troelstrup as he drilled a two-run single to right himself to give the Spartans an 8-5 lead.
The Wildcats' Forrest Brandt made it interesting as he hit an RBI triple to make it an 8-6 contest in the top of the eighth. However, Jonathan Jones buckled down and retired the next two batters to end the threat. Jones pitched a perfect ninth to gather his first save on the year.
Furl (3-0) remained perfect on the year as he went 2/3 of an inning in relief to pick up the win. Matt Saeta (0-1) took the loss as he allowed two runs to score while recording only one out.
Davidson's Brandt enjoyed a four-hit performance as he went 4-for-5 with an RBI in the second game. In both games, all but two starters gathered a hit for the Spartans.
UNCG returns to action on Tuesday evening as it travels to Chapel Hill to face North Carolina in a nonconference game. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Samford 4, Western Carolina 2
BIRMINGHAM, Ala.-Samford senior pitcher Josh Martin struck out a career-high 13 batters and became Samford's all-time leader in career wins in leading the Bulldog baseball team to a 4-2 win over Western Carolina in Southern Conference action Saturday afternoon at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Martin's 13 strikeouts surpass his previous career high of 10 set against Penn State on March 5th of this year. The win was Martin's 19th of his career, breaking the previous record of 18 set by Glen Criswell from 1994 to 1997.
Brandon Miller led Samford at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two home runs and two RBI. With the two home runs, Miller now has 16 on the season, just one away from tying the single-season school record of 17 hit by Jim Morgan in 1997. With his 16 homers, Miller leads the Southern Conference, and he is among the leaders in the nation.
"This was a heck of a battle," Samford head coach Casey Dunn said. "Obviously, I thought they played well, and I thought we swung the bats a lot better than the hit-count showed. We played really well defensively, and it was just a good night all around, obviously carried by what Josh did out there on the mound."
In earning the win, Martin (7-1) pitched 8.2 innings, giving up just two runs on 10 hits. C.K. Irby came on to get the final out and earn his team-leading seventh save of the season.
"Josh had some big strikeouts in some key situations," Dunn said. "He had double-digit strikeouts against the team that does the best job in our league with two strikes, and I think that says a lot about the kind of stuff he had today."
Irby, in addition to earning the save, went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and an RBI as the team's designated hitter. Christiaan Durdaller went 2-for-3 for the Bulldogs in the win.
For Western Carolina at the plate, Bradley Strong went 2-for-4 with a home run and one RBI. Cody Jones, Ross Heffley and Adam Martin had two hits each for the Catamounts. Morgan McKinney (5-2) pitched 6.0 innings, giving up three runs on five hits to take the loss on the mound for WCU.
The game was scoreless until the top of the fifth inning when Western Carolina plated two runs to take a 2-0 lead. Strong led the inning off with a solo home run to center field for the game's first run. With one out in the inning, Jones walked. Heffley then reached base on an infield single and Jones moved to second base. Tyler White then doubled to down the left-field line to drive in Jones for a two-run Catamount lead.
Samford came back with a run in the bottom of the fifth inning to cut the WCU lead to 2-1. With one out in the inning, Austin Allison was hit by a pitch. Zeth Stone then reached base on an error and Allison moved to second base. Brad Moss then singled through the left side of the infield to drive in Allison to pull Samford to within one run.
The Bulldogs took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Miller and Irby led the inning off with back-to-back homers to left field to give Samford a 3-2 lead.
The final run of the game was scored by Samford in the bottom of the eighth inning when Miller homered for the second time in the game, this one also a solo shot to left field.
Saturday's win, paired with the Bulldogs' win in Friday night's series opener clinched the series win for Samford. The Bulldogs improve to 24-15 overall and 12-8 in SoCon play, while Western Carolina drops to 25-14 overall and 10-7 in league play.
The teams will conclude their three-game series with a game Sunday at 1 p.m. at Joe Lee Griffin Field. The game can be heard locally at WVSU-FM 91.1, or worldwide on the internet at www.samford.edu/wvsu. The game can also be viewed online on the Bulldog Big Screen at www.samfordsports.com. Fans can also follow the game online via GameTracker at www.samfordsports.com.
College of Charleston 7, The Citadel 2
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. - College of Charleston jumped out to an early lead yet again and Cougar starter Christian Powell shut down The Citadel en route to a 7-2 series-clinching win at Patriots Point on Saturday.
The Cougars used solo home runs from Marty Gantt and Brandon Murray in the first inning to take a lead that they would never relinquish thanks to strong pitching and outstanding defensive play.
College of Charleston (28-12, 16-7) has now won four straight home series and have won seven of the last eight games. The Citadel moved to 17-23 and 7-10 in the Southern Conference.
Gantt continued his outstanding week by going 3-for-3 with a home run, double and two runs scored. He was also intentionally walked twice and made a spectacular diving grab in center field to keep the Bulldogs off the board in the fifth inning. Dating back to the South Carolina game, Gantt has hit .538 with four doubles, a home run, four RBI, three stolen bases and a slugging percentage of 1.077.
Powell (7-2) earned his seventh win of the season with by going 7.0 innings, allowing just four hits, one run and striking out four. Kyle Owings struck out two with an inning of relief in the eighth inning while David Peterson and Drew Freie pitched the ninth inning.
Murray also had a strong game for the Cougars, tallying three RBI including his first inning solo home run. Bradley Goodson and Devon Reed also tallied RBIs.
Citadel starter Kevin Connell (1-3) allowed six runs, five earned, in just five innings of work. Drew DeKerlegand and Nick Orvin each tallied RBI for The Citadel's two runs.
The Cougars scored first for the 25th time this season with a pair of solo home runs in the first inning from Gantt and Murray.
The Citadel responded with a sacrifice fly from DeKerlegand in the top of the second, but the Cougars responded with another run in the bottom of the second. Gunnar Heidt reached on a fielding error by the Bulldogs and eventually came around to score on a two-out single from Goodson to make the lead 3-1.
Both pitchers settled down after the second inning neither team scored until the sixth. Powell was helped by spectacular defensive plays in the fifth and sixth innings to work out of jams. With runners on the corners with two out in the fifth, Mason Davis hit a line drive to the gap, but Gantt laid out full extension to make the grab and end the inning.
In the sixth inning with a runner on second, Goodson dove to his left and threw across his body to get DeKerlegand for the last out and end the Bulldog threat.
The Cougars exploded for three runs in the sixth inning that put the game out of reach. CofC led off the inning with singles from Brandon Glazer and Heidt and Devon Reed singled in a run. A two-out single from Murray scored two more runs, and the Cougars led The Citadel, 6-1.
Gantt added another run for College of Charleston in the eighth inning with a leadoff double and a steal of third base before Goodson singled him in.
The Bulldogs added one run in the ninth inning, but Freie came in to relieve Peterson and induced two flyouts to end the game.
Before the contest, the College of Charleston inducted former standouts Chris Campbell ‘07 and Nick Chigges ‘07 into the CofC Baseball Wall of Fame.
The final game of the series is currently scheduled for Sunday, April 22 at 1 p.m.
Appalachian State 6, Furman 5
Appalachian State 14, Furman 0
BOONE, N.C. - Appalachian State University baseball completed a three-game series sweep of Furman in convincing fashion, beating the Paladins by scores of 6-5 and 14-0 in a Saturday doubleheader at Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium.
Saturday's first game was a back-and-forth affair that Appalachian (28-9, 13-5 SoCon) won on Tyler Tewell's (Charlotte, N.C./Butler) walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning. In the nightcap, the Mountaineers scored 11 runs over its final three at-bats to turn a close ballgame into a laugher.
Combined with a 14-2 win in Friday's series opener, Appalachian outscored visiting Furman (18-23, 7-14 SoCon), 34-7, en route to its first sweep of the Paladins since 2008. With the series sweep, the Mountaineers will remain atop the Southern Conference standings for the seventh-consecutive week.
Saturday's opening contest featured three ties and two lead changes. Appalachian jumped out to a 2-0 advantage in the second inning but Furman roared back to take 3-2 and 4-3 leads before the Apps regained a 5-4 advantage on Noah Holmes' (Rockwell, N.C./East Rowan) two-out RBI single in the sixth inning.
However, the pesky Paladins would knot the score at 5-5 in the top of the eighth and the game would remain tied until the bottom of the ninth. Tyler Zupcic (Charlotte, N.C./Providence) led off the decisive frame with a sharp single to left field, followed by Will Callaway (Greenville, S.C./Eastside) beating out a bunt single to put runners on first and second. Furman's Jacques de Gruy (1-2) loaded the bases by hitting Daniel Kassouf (Lexington, N.C./North Davidson) with a pitch to set the stage for Tewell, who ripped an 0-1 pitch past FU's diving first baseman Taylor Johnson and into right field. Zupcic scored easily from third base with the winning run to give the Mountaineers' their second walk-off victory of the season.
Led by Tewell, four different Mountaineers collected three hits apiece to pace Appalachian's 17-hit attack in the opener. Zupcic, Noah Holmes and Trey Holmes (Rockwell, N.C./East Rowan) also had three hits each while Trey Holmes drove in two of the Apps' six runs.
In the nightcap, starting pitcher Rob Marcello (Royal Palm Beach, Fla./Royal Palm Beach) turned in six shutout innings despite sitting through a 46-minute rain delay and the ASU offense exploded after the delay to finish off the sweep.
A solo home run by Callaway highlighted a three-run fourth inning that gave the Mountaineers a 3-0 lead but immediately following the fourth-inning outburst, rain halted play for the second time in the afternoon. Marcello returned to the mound following the 46-minute delay and kept the Paladins off the board for two more innings to keep Appalachian's three-run advantage intact.
The Mountaineers erupted for four runs in the sixth inning, five in the seventh and two more in the eighth to turn the slim 3-0 lead into a commanding 14-0 advantage. Tewell once again stole the spotlight with a seventh-inning grand slam that highlighted the 11-run late-inning outburst.
Tewell finished 2-for-5 with five RBI and three runs scored to wrap up a 5-for-9, six-RBI, five-run day at the plate. Zupcic and Callaway also had multiple hits in the nightcap.
Despite the offensive fireworks, the most impressive part of the 14-0 win may have been the performances turned in on the mound by Marcello and three relievers. Marcello scattered five hits and struck out three over his six shutout innings to earn the win and up his record to 5-3 on the season. Jamie Nunn (Winston-Salem, N.C./Mount Tabor), Ryne Frankoff (Apex, N.C./Apex) and Jordan Jessup (Westfield, N.C./East Surry) each worked a scoreless inning out of the bullpen to close out the triumph. Appalachian's pitchers did not walk a batter in the shutout, marking the second time in three games that ASU didn't issue any free passes.
Appalachian closes out a rain-shortened four-game homestand on Tuesday evening when it hosts High Point. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. at Smith Stadium.
Elon 13, Wofford 3
Wofford 2, Elon 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- In what was a tale of two completely different games, the Elon Phoenix baseball program split a Saturday doubleheader with the Wofford Terriers. Elon (23-19, 13-8 Southern Conference) won the opener 13-3 before Wofford (16-23, 5-13) took the nightcap 2-0.
In game one, Elon pounded out 17 hits and jumped out to an early lead with a five-run first. With two outs and Sebastian Gomez at second, Garrett Koster drew a walk to put two on for Ryan Kinsella. Kinsella ripped a double into the right field corner to drive in the first two runs of the game. Following a Tyler McVicar walk, Blaine Bower singled to center to make it 3-0. Joey Tomko followed with a RBI single and the runners ended up at second and third on the throw home. Chris Bresnahan's bunt single capped the scoring as Bower raced in from third.
The Phoenix made it 8-0 in the second on RBI from Koster, Kinsella and McVicar.
With the game still 8-0 in the fifth, Kinsella and McVicar began the frame with back-to-back homers as the maroon and gold made it 10-0.
Both teams scored single runs in the seventh and two in the eighth to provide the final margin. The first of Elon's runs in the eight came on a Gomez homer down the left field line.
Kinsella went 4-for-4 with three runs and four RBI in the win.
Kyle Webb was the winner, improving to 4-3 on the season. He struck out seven and did not issue a walk. Grant McCoury tossed the final three innings to claim his second save of the year.
Wofford's Pete Noordsy (2-2) was roughed up for eight runs on seven hits in just 1.1 innings to take the loss.
The finale was scoreless until the last of the third when Wofford put together a two-out rally. After Josh Hyman singled to center, Mac Doyle singled to left-center to put runners on the corners. Eric Brenk then doubled down the left field line to score the first run of the game.
The Terriers clung to their one-run lead until the seventh when an Elon error allowed a runner to reach second. A fly out and single then scored the second run of the game.
Elon mustered only two hits, both off of starter Cash Collins (4-5) who tossed eight scoreless innings.
For the Phoenix, it wasted a solid start by Spencer Medick. Medick gave up just one run on seven hits in 5.1 innings. He fanned six Wofford hitters as he fell to 1-3, but lowered his ERA to 2.82.
The maroon and gold will be back on the diamond on Wednesday night at UNC Wilmington at 6 p.m. The night prior to that game Mellow Mushroom in Burlington will be donating a portion of its profits from 5-9 p.m. to Elon's BaseBald efforts. If you are looking for dinner on Tuesday night, make sure to head to Mellow Mushroom on Huffman Mill road to support this great cause.
Indiana 3, Georgia Southern 0
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Georgia Southern Baseball team was unable to get the bats going for a second-straight day and dropped their third game of the road trip to Indiana on Saturday. A complete-game shutout from freshman Kyle Hart in a 3-0 blanking secured the series victory for the Hoosiers.
Hart (2-4) picked up just his second win of the season after scattering five hits and striking out eight batters. The left-hander retired the side in order to start the game and received an early lead after Indiana (18-21) scored a run in the bottom of the first inning. Michael Basil struck for a RBI single and plated Kyle Schwarber, who was hit by a pitch with one out, for the Hoosiers' third first inning run of the series.
Justin Hess (Panama City, Fla.) gave Georgia Southern (22-19) another solid start on the mound and gave up just four hits in his fourth-straight quality start since returning to the weekend rotation against the College of Charleston. Hess showed some uncharacteristic early inning struggles but settled down after a first inning visit from pitching coach B.J. Green to strike out 10 batters in 6.1 innings. The junior right-hander went on to retire 11 of the next 12 batters before running into trouble again in the fifth inning.
Schwarber handed Indiana a three-run lead in that frame with a two RBI single to center field. After a strikeout of Nolden, Justin Cureton got ahead in the count and found a pitch he liked to pick up a base hit. Dustin DeMuth was hit by a pitch after Cureton stole second base, and a walk of Collin McEnery loaded the bases for Schwarber.
Hess bounced back after allowing the two runs to strike out Sam Travis and went on to punch out four of the next six batters before being lifted for reliever Jarret Leverett (Eatonton, Ga.). Leverett tossed a scoreless inning and a third out of the pen and kept the deficit to three runs.
Michael Burruss (Marietta, Ga.) started what Georgia Southern hoped would be a ninth-inning rally. The junior co-captain doubled to lead off the inning, just the second lead off runner to reach base, but Hart coaxed a ground out and two fly outs to retire the side.
The Eagles tallied four of their five hits in back-to-back innings but came up scoreless in the second and third frames. Tyler Avera (Baxley, Ga.) doubled down the right field line to put two runners into scoring position with two outs, after T.D. Davis (Evans, Ga.) singled with one out. Hart, however, got out of the jam with a two-out grounder to shortstop.
Georgia Southern came back with two hits in the third inning. Eric Phillips (Carrollton, Ga.) provided another two-out hit to move Brent Pugh (Atlanta, Ga.) into scoring position, but Hart struck out the side with a punch out of Chase Griffin (Leesburg, Ga.). Hart allowed the lead off single to Pugh but struck out the next two batters to put two outs on the board.
The three-game series concludes tomorrow with a 12 p.m. first pitch at Sembower Field. The start time was moved up an hour to accommodate the Eagles' travel schedule.