Davidson 22, Furman 2

DAVIDSON, N.C. – Davidson set new team records for runs and margin of victory in a Southern Conference baseball game as the Wildcats defeated Furman, 22-2, Saturday afternoon at Wilson Field.

Eleven Wildcats, including all nine starters, combined for 19 hits in the game, and just four Wildcats were stranded, thanks in part to three home runs.

First baseman Andrew Barna led Davidson (7-9, 3-5 SoCon) with four RBI, driving in two each with a single and a home run in a 2-for-6 day at the plate. Designated hitter Ryan Lowe slugged a three-run home run, and third baseman David Daniels reached base four times on a 3-for-4 day with a walk, three RBI and three runs scored.

Centerfielder Forrest Brandt also had three RBI and scored three runs after going 2-for-4 with a walk. Shortstop Michael Zeblo scored the first run of the game with a solo home run to lead off the third and went 2-for-4, also scoring three runs. Second baseman Sam Foy (2-for-5) and right fielder Lee Miller (2-for-3, 2 BB) also were amongst the five three-run scorers for the Wildcats.

All 22 runs came in a span of four innings, as Davidson scored five in the third inning, six in the fourth inning, seven in the fifth inning and four in the sixth inning.

On the mound, RHP Danny Mooney (3-1) earned his third straight SoCon win by holding Furman (14-5, 5-3 SoCon) to two runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out five in seven innings of work.

The previous record for runs in a SoCon game for Davidson was 20, set in a 20-19 victory over The Citadel on May 2, 1961, while the record for margin of victory was 18, set in a 19-1 victory over East Tennessee State on May 12, 2005.

After Zeblo’s solo shot to right field to start the third, left fielder Nathan Becker (2-for-4) doubled off the fence in left field and catcher Daniel Gerow (1-for-4) dropped a bunt for a base hit, allowing Foy to record his first of two RBI on the day with a single up the middle. Foy stole second to move into scoring position with Gerow, and each of them scored on back-to-back groundouts by Daniels and Brandt. Miller, batting in the cleanup spot, dropped a bunt with the bases empty to reach base, advanced to third when Barna reached on an error, and then scored by stealing stole home while the pitcher was holding the ball, sliding under the tag for a 5-0 Davidson lead.

Zeblo led off the fourth inning and was hit by a pitch, and with one out, Gerow walked before a passed ball moved both into scoring position. Foy hit a sacrifice fly to score Zeblo, and then Daniels plated Gerow with a single up the middle for the first two runs of the inning. Brandt crushed a double to the gap in right to drive in Daniels, and then scored from second base on a wild pitch. Miller then walked and Barna sent his third home run of the season over the fence in right-center for an 11-0 Davidson advantage.

All of Davidson’s scoring in the seven-run fifth inning came with two outs, as Zeblo doubled after leading off for a third consecutive inning, but RHP Ryan Griffith retired the next two batters. Foy reached on a throwing error by Griffith that allowed Zeblo to score from second, and another error on the same play allowed Foy to reach second. Daniels doubled to drive in Foy, and then Brandt and Miller both walked to load the bases for Barna, who, following a pitching change, drove in Foy and Brandt with a single to left field.

With four runs across in the inning and two men on, Lowe faced being the final out for a third consecutive inning but delivered with the second home run of his career, sending a ball over the Bojangles sign in right field to drive in three runs.

Trailing 18-0, Furman scored its lone runs in the top of the sixth inning, which were driven in by third baseman Chris Ohmstede (1-for-3, BB) and second baseman Jordan Simpson (2-for-4). Centerfielder Will Muzika led the Paladins at the plate for the day, reaching base four times on three hits and a walk in five plate appearances, but did not factor in the scoring as the Paladins left 11 runners on base.

The Wildcats added four more runs in the bottom of the sixth, as Brandt and Miller had back-to-back RBI singles with the bases loaded, and two more runs scored on wild pitches.

Furman used six pitchers, with starting RHP Elliott Warford (0-2) taking the loss. Just 14 of the 22 runs allowed were earned, as all seven in the fifth were unearned.

In nonconference action, Davidson has had similar offensive outputs in recent years, defeating North Carolina A&T, 22-15 on March 22, 2011, and defeating Mount Saint Mary’s by 22 runs on Feb. 28, 2010, 29-7.

Davidson earned a 25-6 victory over UNCG on April 17, 1992, but both schools were members of the Big South at the time. The Wildcats first joined the SoCon in baseball in 1947 and were members through 1988, but rejoined the league in 1993 after going independent in 1989 and 1990 and competing in the Big South in 1991 and 1992.

Davidson and Furman will play the rubber match in Greenville, S.C., Sunday at Fluor Field with first pitch slated for 2 p.m.

 

Elon 6, UNCG 3

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Tyler McVicar's two-out, pinch-hit double down the left-field line in the top of the eighth inning drove home two and broke a 3-3 tie as the Elon Phoenix earned a 6-3 Southern Conference baseball victory over the UNCG Spartans on Saturday afternoon.

Elon (10-8, 4-4 SoCon) entered the eighth inning in a 3-3 tie with the Spartans (8-9, 0-2) and saw Antonio Alvarez begin the game-winning rally with a single through the left side of the infield. After a sacrifice bunt that advanced Alvarez and a pop out, UNCG intentionally walked Joey Tomko. That was when McVicar strode to the plate and ripped the first pitch he saw from Corey Taylor toward third. The hot shot glanced off the third baseman and rolled down the left field line. Alvarez easily scored and aggressive base running by the Phoenix allowed Tomko to score from first. On the throw home, McVicar took third. He would later score on a UNCG error to make it a 6-3 game.

Once Andrew MacDonald tossed a scoreless eighth, Nate Young came on for Elon and retired the first hitter in the last of the ninth on a fly ball to left. An infield single kept the Spartans' hopes alive before Young struck out the next two hitters to garner his fifth save of the season.

The Phoenix scored first for just the third time this year as Alex Swim, who hit a one-out triple in the top of the first, scored on an Alvarez ground out. The hit was the 240th of Swim's career, moving him into a tie for sixth on Elon's career hits chart.

UNCG came right back with a run in the last of the first. After Kyle Webb set down the first two hitters of the inning, Trevor Edwards drew a walk. Lloyd Enzor followed with a soft single to right before back-to-back infield singles from Cambric Moye and Eric Kalbfleisch tied the game at 1.

Elon went back in front in the second when Danny Lynch tripled home Wil Leathers only to see the Spartans push across two in the bottom of the second. Shawn Hendon drew a leadoff walk and went to second on an error before Ray Crawford singled home the tying run. The go-ahead run would later score on a Kalbfleisch infield single.

UNCG held on to its 3-2 lead until the seventh when the Maroon and Gold tied things up. Tomko reached on a one-out single before Danny Lynch walked. Tomko then raced home on a Sebastian Gomez single through the left side.

Webb (1-0) was the winning pitcher after he allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits in seven innings on the mound. The senior struck out eight and walked two.

The loss went to Spartan reliever Taylor, as he was charged with three runs (two earned) on two hits in just one inning of work.

Elon will look to complete the SoCon series sweep on Sunday in a 1 p.m. game at UNCG Baseball Stadium.

 

Georgia Southern 18, Samford 14

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Georgia Southern broke open an 11-11 tie with a three-run seventh inning to even the Southern Conference series with Samford with an 18-14 win on Saturday.

Georgia Southern (11-7, 4-1 SoCon) took the lead for the final time in the seventh inning after the two teams traded the lead four times. Ben Morgan homered to lead off the inning. Chase Griffin followed with a walk and scored a run on an error after reaching third base on a base hit by T.D. Davis. Robbie Dodds drove in the third run off the inning and the second off of reliever Patrick McGavin with a single down the left-field line.

Patrick Moronde (1-1) took the loss for Samford (12-8, 2-3 SoCon) after giving up the go-ahead home run to Morgan in the seventh inning. Moronde struck out one batter and allowed one hit over an inning of work.

Justin Hess (2-2) picked up the win in relief of starter Jason Richman. Hess battled on the mound and worked around a pair of home runs to earn his first relief win since April 8, 2011, at Marshall.

Hess allowed five runs over four innings and struck out two batters.

The two teams combined for 32 runs on 35 hits and six errors. The two teams hit a combined six home runs and three doubles. Dodds led the Eagles with four hits. Davis tallied three hits, walked twice and plated four runs. Scooter Williams added three hits and three RBI, while Morgan tallied three hits and scored two runs. Caleb Bryson led the Bulldogs with four hits, four RBI and two home runs.

Samford struck for four runs in the bottom of the first inning. GSU had previously allowed only seven total first inning runs over 17 games. C.K. Irby started the scoring with a RBI single before Christiaan Durdaller drove in two more runs with a home run. Drew McWhorter kept the two-out rally going with the fourth straight hit and drove in the final run of the inning with a single.

Davis started the Eagles' scoring with a solo home run in the second inning before driving in three more with a second homer in the third inning. GSU sent 12 batters to the plate in that frame and scored eight runs on seven hits and an error. Before the home run, Griffin plated two runs with a double. Williams drove in the final two runs of the frame with a single.

Samford tied the ballgame at 9-9 with a five-run third inning. The first four batters in the inning reached base before Matt McCall recorded the first out of the inning with a sacrifice fly. Austin Allison scored the third run of the inning with a sacrifice fly before Irby drove in two more runs with a base hit.

Georgia Southern retook the lead in the fifth inning only to see the Bulldogs score two runs in the sixth inning to even the score at 11-11. The Eagles outscored Samford 7-3 over the final three innings to secure their first win of the series.

After scoring three times in the seventh inning, GSU scored a single run in the eighth inning after Allison misplayed a hard-hit ball by Griffin. The Eagles added three more runs in the ninth on a bases-loaded walk by Tyler Avera and an error by the shortstop on a bouncing ball off the bat of Morgan.

The series concludes Sunday at 2 p.m. EDT.

 

The Citadel 9, Wofford 8

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Ryne Hardwick drove in the game-winning run with a pinch-hit double in the eighth, and Skylar Hunter locked down the lead with two innings of perfect relief as The Citadel evened its weekend series at Wofford with a 9-8 victory over the Terriers.

The Bulldogs improved to 13-7 overall and 3-2 in the SoCon with their eighth win in the past 10 games while Wofford dropped to 8-12 and 1-4 in the league. The teams will play the rubber game of the three-game series Sunday at 1 p.m.

After Wofford battled back from an 8-3 deficit to tie the game in the seventh, Tyler Griffin and Johnathan Stokes drew walks to lead off the top of the eighth. Calvin Orth sacrificed the runners up one base, and Hardwick lofted a fly ball that dropped in medium left-center to score Griffin to put The Citadel back in front.

Hardwick was making only his sixth plate appearance of the season but came through with his third hit, his second double and first RBI. The double was the fourth of the game for The Citadel, tying its season high, and seventh extra-base hit of the contest, a new season best.

Hunter came in to start the bottom of the eighth and proceeded to strike out the side. After the Bulldogs were retired in the top of the ninth, Hunter breezed through the bottom of the frame, getting a groundout and two pop outs, with Hunter himself taking care of one of the infield flies, to record his fifth save of the season.

Hunter has 16 strikeouts in only 9 2/3 innings during the early portion of his freshman year. David Rivera got the final two outs in the seventh and was credited with the win to move his record to 3-0. The junior right-hander has not allowed an earned run in 17 innings and has two walks and 18 strikeouts.

The Bulldogs appeared on their way to a comfortable win when they scored four times in the fifth to build an 8-3 cushion. Hughston Armstrong doubled and scored on a Bo Thompson single, and Griffin followed with a three-run blast to right center, his sixth homer of the year and second of the series.

That home run was the third of the game for The Citadel and the 20th of the season, a figure that already exceeds the total for the entire 2012 campaign. Griffin also increased his RBI total to a team-leading 24.

But the Terriers began their search for a second straight come-from-behind win in the series when they tallied a run in the bottom of the fifth and added three more in the sixth, including a two-run homer by Matthew Pelt off of Logan Cribb that barely cleared the fence in left-center. Wofford completed its comeback in its next at-bat when a sacrifice fly by Josh Hyman brought in the tying run.

The game started out as a variation of home run derby, with Thompson and Hyman hitting two-run blasts in the first. The round-tripper was the seventh of the year for Thompson, one more than Justin Mackert hit when he led the Bulldogs in that category a year ago. The sophomore slugger had three RBI in the game to give him 20 on the year.

The Citadel retook the lead in the second on back-to-back doubles by Orth and Bret Hines to open the inning, with Orth extending his hitting streak to a career-long eight with his two-base knock. Joe Jackson made it 4-2 the following inning with his second home run of the season and third of his career, an opposite-field shot to left-center.

Wofford starter Jesse Morris went the first six innings and was tagged for eight hits and eight runs, all earned, while walking two and striking out six. Bulldog starter James Reeves was lifted after three innings and surrendered three hits and three runs (two earned). All four of the runs off Cribb were unearned.

Freshman right hander Austin Mason (1-1, 4.84 ERA) will take the ball for The Citadel in the series finale on Sunday. He will be opposed by freshman righty Luke Leftwich (1-1, 5.65).

 

College of Charleston 6, Western Carolina 4

MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – Late-inning drama descended on Patriots Point yet again and the Cougars came out on top on Saturday, scoring two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to defeat Western Carolina, 6-4.

The Cougars (11-7, 3-2) scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to break a 4-4 tie and Dre Watts (1-0) worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the ninth inning to earn his first win of the season.

Redshirt freshman Morgan Phillips stepped up big after replacing Cody Martin in the second inning, knocking two doubles and scoring two runs. His first double was the first of his career in the fifth inning, while his second double scored Carl Wise for the game-winning run in the eighth inning.

Freshman Alex Pastorius also tallied two doubles with his second one scoring Phillips for an insurance run in the eighth inning.

Western Carolina’s Aaron Attaway led the Catamounts with two hits and three RBI, and Danny Bermudez scored two runs on three hits. Tyler White and Austin Neary each tallied two hits.

WCU’s Tyler Powell (1-1) suffered the loss for the Catamounts, allowing two runs in the eighth inning to put the Cougars ahead.

Starters Jake Zokan and Morgan McKinney each picked up no-decisions as the Cougar weekend starters now have nine no-decisions in 14 starts. Zokan had a quality start by pitching 6 1/3 innings, scattering seven hits and allowing three runs, two earned. He struck out six while only walking one.

McKinney also had a quality start with 6 1/3 innings and three runs, one earned. He scattered six hits, striking out two and allowing one walk.

The Cougars scored first with an RBI single from Martin in the second inning, scoring Wise. WCU answered with an RBI single from Attaway in the top of the third inning.

A sacrifice squeeze bunt from Gunnar Heidt in the fifth inning scored Phillips to give CofC a 2-1 lead, but the Catamounts plated a tying run off of an RBI single from Neary to tie the game in the sixth inning.

Bermudez hit a one-out double to left in the seventh inning, advancing Bryant Noteboom to third base. The Catamounts took the lead when Attaway launched a Drew Freie pitch into center field to score two runs and give Western Carolina a 4-2 lead.

The Cougars scored two runs in the seventh inning to tie the game yet again after Bradley Goodson got his only hit of the day, an RBI bunt single that fell in between the pitcher and first base. However, the Cougars could not get the go-ahead runs in the seventh inning when Tyler Jackson hit into a bases-loaded double play that ended the frame.

Western Carolina threatened in the top of the eighth inning, putting runners on second and third with only one out, but Watts induced a foul out and fly out to end the inning and set up Phillips’ and Pastorius’ big hits in the bottom of the eighth inning.

College of Charleston will go for a rubber-game win on Sunday for the third week in a row, pitching freshman Nathan Helvey against WCU’s Jordan Smith.

 

Appalachian State 9, Cornell 4 (game one)
Cornell 15, Appalachian State 5 (game two)

BOONE, N.C. – Noah Holmes went 4-for-6 with two home runs, three RBI and four runs scored to lead Appalachian State in its doubleheader split with Cornell on Saturday afternoon at Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium. Appalachian State won Saturday’s opener, 9-4, and dropped the nightcap, 15-5.

Holmes hit two home runs and scored three times in the opener to help lead Appalachian (10-6) to a come-from-behind win. The two-homer game was the first of his career and the second by a Mountaineer this week (Dillon Dobson went deep twice in last Sunday’s 10-9 victory at Furman).

Despite Holmes’ second-inning home run, Appalachian trailed 3-1 after four innings in the opener. However, the Mountaineers exploded for five runs in the bottom of the fifth, two in the sixth and one more in the eighth to turn the two-run deficit into a commanding 9-3 advantage before Cornell scored a single run in the top of the ninth to account for the final margin.

Hector Crespo, Preston Troutman and Jaylin Davis all drove in runs in the decisive fifth inning, the latter coming on Davis’ third home run of the season, a towering solo shot to left center field. Appalachian also benefitted from two costly Cornell errors in the five-run fifth.

Josh Zumbrook stretched Appalachian’s lead to 8-3 with a two-run homer in the sixth, and Holmes closed out the Mountaineers’ scoring with his second solo shot of the day in the eighth.

In addition to Holmes, who finished 2-for-3, Crespo went 3-for-5 and Zumbrook went 2-for-4 to pace the Mountaineers’ 11-hit effort in the opener. Jamie Nunn overcame a shaky start to work eight strong innings on the mound, allowing just three runs on eight hits while striking out eight to move to 4-1 on the campaign.

Appalachian State was not able to repeat the comeback effort in the nightcap, as Cornell (5-5) led 11-0 after 4 1/2 innings and Appalachian never got closer than eight runs the rest of the way.

Holmes was one of the Mountaineers’ lone bright spots in the 10-run loss, as he went 2-for-3 again with an RBI and a run scored. Troutman added a two-run double and Zumbrook hit his second home run of the afternoon, a two-run blast, in the losing effort.

Matt Hall went 5-for-6 with two doubles and four RBI to highlight Cornell’s 19-hit outburst in the nightcap. J.D. Whetsel, Tom D’Alessandro and Ryan Plantier chipped in with three hits apiece for the Big Red.

Appalachian State and Cornell play the rubber match of their three-game series on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Smith Stadium.