Georgia Southern 12, Elon 4
STATESBORO, Ga. – T.D. Davis’ grand slam sparked a 10-run fourth inning, and Sam Howard threw four-plus scoreless innings of relief to help the Georgia Southern Eagles to a series victory over the Elon Phoenix with a 12-4 win on Saturday at J.I. Clements Stadium.
Georgia Southern (23-19, 12-11 SoCon), which earned its first Southern Conference series win since March 22-24 against Davidson, rallied from an early deficit for the second straight day. The Eagles have now outscored Elon (22-23, 14-8 SoCon) by a combined score of 56-17 over the past four meetings dating back to the 2012 Southern Conference tournament opener.
Kyle Streicher got the fourth inning started with a lead off infield single. Stryker Brown was hit by a pitch before Robbie Dodds loaded the bases with a base hit to left field. After Spencer Medick recorded the first out of the inning on an infield fly, Davis deposited a 1-1 pitch into the trees to the left of the scoreboard for his 10th home run of the season and second career grand slam.
The next four batters reached base safely, plating a run before Streicher grounded into an RBI fielder's choice. After Brown walked, Dodds and Chase Griffin plated two runs each with base hits.
Howard, who entered in the top of the fourth, stranded a pair of base runners after striking out Joey Tomko and getting Alex Swim to ground out to second base. Howard (6-6) picked up the win after the Eagles rallied from a 4-2 deficit in the bottom half of the fourth and threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of starter Jason Richman.
GSU finished with 15 hits, just one more than the Phoenix. Davis, who was the only Eagle starter without a hit on Friday night, finished a triple shy of the cycle and scored two runs. Five other Eagles had multi-hit days, including Brent Pugh. Pugh came off the bench in the fourth inning and posted a pair of singles.
Medick (5-4) allowed just two runs over the first three innings but ran into trouble in the fourth inning and was tagged with the loss. The left-hander allowed seven runs on eight hits and struck out two over 3 1/3 innings.
The three-game series concludes Sunday at J.I. Clements Stadium at 1:30 p.m.
Samford 19, Appalachian State 2
BOONE, N.C. – The Samford baseball team scored 19 runs on 21 hits on its way to a 19-2 win in the second game of a three-game Southern Conference series Saturday afternoon at Smith Stadium.
Eight Samford players had multiple hits, and six Bulldogs had multiple RBIs. The 17-run win is the largest ever for Samford in a SoCon game. Shortstop Danny Rodriguez, making his first collegiate start for the injured Austin Allison, went 3-for-5 with an RBI.
Christiaan Durdaller went 3-for-6 with a home run and three RBIs. The home run was his team-leading 11th of the season. Phillip Ervin went 3-for-5 with three doubles and four RBIs, while C.K. Irby went 3-for-6 with a double, a triple and three RBIs. Zeth Stone went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs, while Brandon Haarer, Patrick McGavin and Richard Greene also had two hits each. Greene also drove in two runs in the win.
Irby (7-3) pitched seven innings, giving up two runs on eight hits to earn the win on the mound for Samford. Irby struck out five batters, while allowing just one walk. Charles Terry pitched the final two innings, giving up just two hits to close out the win.
For Appalachian State, Dillon Dobson and Josh Zumbrook each went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Will Callaway also went 2-for-4 for the Mountaineers. Sam Agnew-Wieland (5-4) pitched 2 1/3 innings, giving up nine runs on eight hits to take the loss for Appalachian State.
Samford jumped on top early with three runs in the top of the first inning. Stone singled to lead off the inning and then scored the game’s first run on a double by Ervin. Ervin then stole third base and scored on a wild pitch for a 2-0 Samford lead. Irby and Durdaller then hit back-to-back singles. Irby was thrown out at third base when McGavin reached base on a fielder’s choice. Durdaller then scored on an Appalachian error when Haarer reached base on a fielder’s choice for a 3-0 Samford lead.
The Bulldogs added two runs in the top of the second inning. With two outs, Stone and Ervin drew back-to-back walks. Irby then tripled to drive in Stone and Ervin for a 5-0 Samford lead.
Appalachian State plated one run in the bottom of the second inning to cut the Samford lead to 5-1. Dobson singled up the middle to lead off the inning. After moving to second base on a groundout, Dobson scored on a single by Zumbrook.
Samford plated five runs in the top of the third inning to push its lead to 10-1. McGavin singled, Tommy Corbin reached base on an error and Greene walked to load the bases with one out. Rodriguez then singled to drive in McGavin and Corbin for the first two runs in the inning. Stone then hit a three-run home run to right field for a nine-run Samford lead.
Appalachian State added a run in the bottom of the sixth inning to make the score 10-2. Dobson singled to drive in Callaway for Appalachian’s second run of the contest.
Samford plated another five runs in the top of the seventh inning to increase its lead to 15-2. Ervin doubled to drive in Corbin, Rodriguez and Stone for the first three runs of the inning. Irby and Durdaller also drove in a run each in the inning for Samford.
The Bulldogs added four final runs in the top of the ninth inning to make the final score 19-2. Durdaller hit a two-run home run and Greene hit a two-run double to give Samford a 17-run lead.
With the win, Samford improved to 23-21 overall and 9-11 in Southern Conference play. Appalachian State dropped to 23-14 overall and 11-11 in league play.
Samford and Appalachian State will conclude their series with a game Sunday at 1 p.m.
Radford 7, College of Charleston 3 (game one)
College of Charleston 5, Radford 3 (game two)
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – College of Charleston split a doubleheader with Radford, losing game one, 7-3, and winning the second game, 5-3, to even the series.
College of Charleston (23-19) won the second game with two home runs and a strong start from Ryan West. The Highlanders (24-18) combined for 18 hits in the two games but stranded five base-runners in the seven-inning second game.
West (4-1) tallied a quality start in the second game, going six innings and allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out eight batters. West has now averaged 8.75 strikeouts in his last four starts, with three of them being quality starts.
Carl Wise had a big day at the plate, extending his hitting streak to 13 games and jacking a two-run homer in the second game, which proved to be the eventual game-winner. Brandon Murray hit his eighth homer of the season, a three-run bomb in the third inning of the second game.
Josh Gardiner led Radford with five total hits, two runs and four RBIs.
GAME ONE
Radford’s Tyler Costello (4-3) picked up the win for Radford in the first game, pitching 5 1/3 innings and allowing just two runs. Michael Hanzlik (1-3) picked up the loss after allowing four RU runs in the sixth inning that blew CofC’s 2-1 run lead.
Jake Zokan pitched well through five innings, scattering six hits and allowing just one run with five strikeouts.
The Cougars took a 2-0 lead in the first inning with a wild pitch from Costello that scored Gunnar Heidt and Devon Reed.
The Highlanders got one run back in the second with a bases-loaded single from Gardiner. RU then broke the game open with a four-run sixth inning. Gardiner hit an RBI double and then Ryan Burgess was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Zach Woolcock then singled in a run and Alexander Lee tallied an RBI with an infield groundout to give Radford a 5-2 lead.
RU scored two more runs in the seventh with two hits and two CofC throwing errors on a sacrifice bunt attempt by Chris Coia.
Charleston tried to rally in the bottom of the ninth inning with an RBI double with no one out from Heidt. However, James Woods came in for RU and induced two fly outs and a strikeout to end the game and pick up the save.
GAME TWO
Radford scored a run in the top of the first inning after a single and steal from Gardiner and a groundout from Burgess.
Charleston rallied in the third inning with a two-out, three-run blast from Murray to right field. It marked Murray’s eighth home run of the season, and he retook the team lead with 45 season RBIs.
The Highlanders were able to tie the game in the fifth inning with singles from Kyle Fairbanks, Blake Sipe and Gardiner. Josh Reavis then hit an infield single on a bunt attempt to scored Sipe and tie the game. West worked out of trouble with a pickoff at second base and an induced groundout that left the game tied at 3.
Blake Butler singled in the bottom half of the inning and Wise drilled a home run to left field that broke the tie and put CofC up for good.
Dre Watts picked up the save with a shutout seventh inning, striking out Reavis to earn his fourth save of the year.
College of Charleston will go for the series win Sunday at noon at Patriots Point. After the game, the Cougars will be shaving heads as part of their Vs. Cancer fundraising initiative.
Western Carolina 10, UNCG 7 (game one)
Western Carolina 15, UNCG 5 (game two)
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG baseball team could not stop Western Carolina’s Southern Conference winning streak Saturday as the Catamounts downed the Spartans in a doubleheader by scores of 10-7 and 15-5 at the UNCG Baseball Stadium.
One of the highlights of the day was UNCG senior outfielder Christian Wolfe extending his hitting streak to 21 games, surpassing Ricky Orton’s 20-game stretch, which occurred during the 2007 campaign. Senior infielders Trevor Edwards and Lloyd Enzor both ended the day 4-for-9 at the plate with a combined four RBIs and four runs scored.
Western Carolina (30-17, 18-6) is the first team in the SoCon to reach 30 wins and has now captured 11 straight wins in league play. The Spartans fall to 18-26 overall and 6-15 in Southern Conference action.
GAME ONE
UNCG senior LHP Corey Taylor began game one on a high note, setting down the Catamounts in order. UNCG was able to capitalize in the bottom of the inning, as Wolfe and junior outfielder Cole Harrison poked back-to-back singles into right field. Edwards grounded out to advance the runners before sophomore outfielder Eric Kalbfleisch doubled to deep center to score the runners and make it 2-0 in the Spartans’ favor.
The teams could not push across any runs in the second and third frames, but Western Carolina cut the UNCG lead in half in the top of the fourth as Adam Martin hit a two-out solo home run to left field. The Spartans could not answer in the bottom half of the inning as the Catamounts would take the lead in the fifth.
Dale Urquhart was hit by a pitch to lead off things before Bradley Strong laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runner to second. A single up the middle by Danny Bermudez loaded the bases with one out before Aaron Attaway laced a single to right field to tie the game. The second out came by way of a Julian Ridings strikeout, but Tyler White was hit by a pitch to fill the bases once more. Jacob Hoyle would then give the visitors the lead for good as he roped a single to right field to bring home two runs and push the score to 4-2.
The Catamounts extended their cushion to 7-2 in the sixth, plating four runs on five hits. A triple by Strong and double by Bermudez accounted for two of the runs, while a wild pitch and RBI single completed the scoring in the inning.
A run in the top of the seventh pushed the WCU advantage to seven runs before the Spartans made a charge in the bottom of the eighth. Edwards and Enzor doubled to begin the inning before consecutive singles by Kalbfleisch and Spina loaded the bases – still with no outs on the board. Junior catcher Cambric Moye worked a walk on a 3-1 count to make the score 9-4 and redshirt sophomore infielder Ray Crawford kept the hit parade going with an RBI single to score Kalbfleisch. Wolfe fouled out deep enough behind third base to plate Spina and bring the Spartans to within 9-6.
The teams traded runs in the ninth as the Blue and Gold’s comeback efforts fell just short. An RBI single by Moye accounted for the game’s final margin.
Taylor was tagged with the loss as he threw five complete innings, giving up five runs on five hits while striking out six batters. Sophomore RHP Tyler Frazier was responsible for three of the Catamount tallies, hurling 2/3 of an inning and allowing four hits.
Enzor was 2-for-5 in the contest while also scoring two runs and driving in one. Kalbfleisch and Moye combined for four RBIs as they tallied two apiece.
GAME TWO
Offense ruled the day to begin game two as the teams combined for seven runs and seven hits in the first inning alone. Western Carolina scored four of the runs before UNCG responded with three of its own in the bottom of the frame.
The Catamounts took over the game from there – netting four runs in the second and third innings to take a commanding 8-3 advantage. A double by White with two outs in the top of the third was the big blow as WCU tallied eight hits in the first three frames.
After a scoreless fourth stanza, Western Carolina put the game away with four runs in the fifth and sixth innings. The lead grew to as much as 15-3 before a two-run shot over the right-field fence by Enzor ended the scoring run and provided the final score.
Both Edwards and Enzor recorded multiple-hit efforts for the second straight contest, while Enzor drove in three runs to pace the Spartans offensive attack.
Sophomore RHP Lee Gilliam took the loss for UNCG, giving up eight runs on eight hits in three innings with four strikeouts. Freshman RHP Ryan Clark and sophomore RHP Brennen James threw the final two frames, keeping the Catamounts scoreless and without a hit.
The Blue and Gold returns to the diamond Tuesday, wrapping up a four-game homestand with a contest against crosstown neighbor North Carolina A&T. First pitch at the UNCG Baseball Stadium is slated for 6 p.m.
Western Carolina will hit the road to face Kennesaw State on Wednesday at 5 p.m.
Wofford 4, Davidson 3
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – On a rainy Saturday afternoon, the Wofford baseball team defeated Davidson 4-3 at Russell C. King Field. After five-hour rain delay in the top of the fifth inning, the Terriers loaded the bases in the bottom of the ninth and a single by Josh Hyman drove in the winning run.
Wofford is now 18-27 on the season and 9-15 in the Southern Conference. Davidson is 13-29 overall and 8-16 in conference play. The Terriers were led by Clark Wise with three hits and two RBIs, while J.D. Osborne had seven strikeouts in the final 2 2/3 innings for the victory. Davidson was led by Michael Zeblo with two hits and two RBIs.
In the bottom of the first, Wise led off with a single. A double by Seth Neely scored Wise for a 1-0 lead. Wofford added a run in the bottom of the second when Matthew Pelt reached on an error and was driven in on a double by Wise for a 2-0 score.
In the top of the third, Davidson led opened with a double. After a walk and a sacrifice bunt, Davidson scored a run on a sacrifice fly by David Daniels. A double by Zeblo drove in a run to tie the game at 2-2. Davidson left two runners on base in the top of the fourth inning and Wofford stranded one in the bottom of the fourth.
The game entered a rain delay in the top of the fifth inning. After five hours, play resumed and Davidson stranded two runners in the top of the inning. Davidson scored in the top of the seventh when Daniel Gerow singled and was driven home on a double by Zeblo for a 3-2 contest.
Pelt led off the bottom of the ninth with a single and Demetrius Jennings reached on an error. A bunt single by Wise drove in the tying run. A walk to Alec Paradowski loaded the bases with one out. Josh Hyman hit a single to right field that scored Jennings for the 4-3 win.
Wofford starter Luke Leftwich went four innings and allowed two runs on two hits with six strikeouts. Matthew Milburn threw 2 1/3 innings with one run allowed on four hits and one strikeout. J.D. Osborne (2-1) went 2 2/3 innings and allowed only two hits with seven strikeouts.
Davidson starter Danny Mooney threw four innings with two runs allowed on four hits with five strikeouts. Matt Saeta worked four innings and did not allow a run on three hits with four strikeouts. Zeblo (1-2) threw the ninth and allowed two runs on three hits.
The Terrier host Winthrop on Tuesday night at Fluor Field in Greenville before a three-game home series against the College of Charleston begins on Friday. Davidson is off until facing The Citadel on the road next weekend.
The Citadel 13, Furman 7 (game one)
Furman 14, The Citadel 10 (game two)
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Citadel exploded for 11 runs over the final four innings and finished with a season-high 19 hits in a 13-7 victory over Furman in the opening game of a Southern Conference doubleheader Saturday. In game two, Jacques de Gruy threw 5 2/3 innings of solid relief and Furman came off the deck by erasing a 7-0 second inning deficit with 11 unanswered runs en route to a 14-10 victory.
Prior to the game two loss, the Bulldogs (27-18, 14-7 SoCon) had won 10 in a row and eight straight in the conference and were on a double-digit winning streak for the fifth time in 22 seasons under head coach Fred Jordan. The streak was the longest since a 13-game run near the end of the 2010 campaign that culminated with a victory over Virginia Tech in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.
Furman moved to 23-19 and 10-14 in the SoCon and has lost 13 of its last 18 games against The Citadel. This marks just the second time in Citadel history that the Bulldogs have defeated the Paladins in football, swept the two games in basketball and won the baseball series. The only other time that occurred was during the 1992-93 academic year.
The first game started nearly 3 1/2 hours after the scheduled 2 p.m. start due to heavy rains in the Upstate.
Bo Thompson led the hit parade with a career-high five, including his second multiple-home run game of the season. The sophomore slugger had a solo shot in the fourth and a two-run blast in the eighth while adding an RBI double in the first and a run-scoring single in the seventh to enable him to match his career best of five RBIs, established earlier this season against Samford.
It is the second five-hit game for a Bulldog in the last week as Hughston Armstrong reached that figure against Appalachian State last Sunday. Thompson also extended his streak of consecutive games reaching base to 43 and has 12 home runs and 39 RBIs on the season, while raising his batting average to .356 and slugging percentage to a whopping .689.
Thompson was not alone in producing huge offensive numbers, with the effort of Bailey Rush being the most notable. He entered the game as a pinch hitter in the sixth and proceeded to drive in two runs with a double before adding a single in the eighth and a run-scoring triple in the ninth to give him a career-high three RBIs while matching a career high with three hits.
Johnathan Stokes continued his red-hot hitting with another three-hit game, making him 6-for-8 with five RBIs in the series. The shortstop has driven in at least one run in 12 of the last 15 games with a total of 23 over that span. Joe Jackson and Drew DeKerlegand both had two hits and combined to score five runs.
Armstrong and Calvin Orth both extended their hitting streaks to eight with one single each.
The 19 hits eclipsed the previous season best of 16 accomplished twice this season. The 13 runs represent the third-highest total of the year behind only an 18-9 win over Wofford and a 14-7 victory over Elon.
The Bulldogs fell behind 3-1 in the bottom of the third, only the second time they've trailed during their winning streak, and were still behind 3-2 heading to the sixth. But Armstrong, Thompson and DeKerlegand had consecutive singles, the latter tying the game at 3, and Rush knocked in Thompson and DeKerlegand with his pinch-hit double to give The Citadel its first lead since the top of the first.
Jackson doubled in Davis and scored on a bad-hop single by Thompson to trigger a four-run seventh that included a two-run double by Stokes, upping The Citadel lead to 9-4. Furman responded with three runs in its half of the inning to pull back within two, but Thompson's second homer of the game in the eighth and the Rush triple in the ninth put the game out of reach.
Zach Sherrill retired just one batter in the bottom of the fifth in relief of starter Logan Cribb when DeKerlegand made a sliding catch in left to keep the tying run from scoring. That was enough to allow Sherrill to become the pitcher of record when the Bulldogs took the lead in the sixth, making the sophomore right-hander 3-1 on the season in his NCAA-leading 34th appearance of the season.
David Rivera and Skylar Hunter finished up on the mound for the Bulldogs, with Rivera allowing one hit and striking out one in 1 1/3 innings and Hunter fanning two in the ninth in a non-save situation.
The second game, which was moved up a day due to expected to rain in the Greenville area, was completed at 12:37 a.m. Sunday.
The win helped Furman salvage a game in the series with The Citadel, which had both its 10-game overall winning streak and eight-game SoCon run of success halted.
The Bulldogs struck for six runs on six hits in the first inning against Paladin starting pitcher Jake Wolff, who recorded only one out before getting pulled. Bailey Rush’s two-run single highlighted the first inning outburst, and The Citadel made it 7-0 in the second when catcher Joe Jackson deposited a de Gruy offering over the right-field fence.
The advantage didn’t last an inning, however, as Furman regrouped and sent 12 batters to plate and scored eight runs in the second.
With one out, Paul Nitto singled to begin a stretch that saw eight consecutive Paladin batters reach base. Jordan Simpson’s bases-loaded single scored Nitto to get Furman on the board. Jake Jones then drew a bases-loaded walk to force in a run, and Hunter Burton’s two-run single to center field cut the lead to 7-4.
Taylor Johnson continued the onslaught with an RBI single, which chased battered Bulldog starter Austin Mason. Greg Harrison followed by ripping an offering by Citadel reliever Kevin Connel into the left-center field gap for a two-run double to tie the game at 7-7. Chris Ohmstede finished off the rally with a single to left field to score Harrison and give Furman an 8-7 lead.
The Paladins made it 9-7 with a run in the third and added two more in the fourth for an 11-7 lead on a double by Nitto, who later scored on a ground out.
The Citadel trimmed the advantage to 11-8 with a run in the fifth, but Furman answered with three more in the bottom of the frame on Nitto’s second double of the contest, a line shot off the left-field fence, an Ohmstede RBI single, and groundout by Griffin Davis that plated Nitto.
de Gruy (2-1) spoiled the Bulldogs’ threat for a big inning in the sixth by getting Jackson to hit into a bases-loaded double play and then spearing a line drive off the bat of Drew DeKerlegand for the final out.
Led by Nitto, who went 3-for-3 with a two doubles, two RBIs, and three runs scored, the Paladins registered a season-high 18 hits in the game. Ohmstede matched Nitto with three hits and had two RBIs. Alex Abrams, Burton, Johnson, Davis and Simpson finished with two hits apiece.
de Gruy, whose season had included just four appearances prior to Saturday, earned the victory after allowing three runs, two of which were earned, on six hits over 5 2/3 innings. He walked two and struck out four.
Connell (0-2) was charged with the loss. He surrendered four runs on six hits over just 1 2/3 innings.
Furman’s next game is Wednesday against Winthrop at Latham Stadium, with first pitch is set for 6 p.m. The Citadel is back in action on Wednesday when it travels to Chapel Hill, N.C., to face the top-ranked Tar Heels before resuming SoCon play at Riley Park against Davidson on Friday at 6 p.m.