Georgia Southern 7, Charleston Southern 6
STATESBORO, Ga. – Robbie Dodds threw out Zach Hagaman at the plate to preserve a 7-6 Georgia Southern victory over the Charleston Southern Buccaneers on Wednesday night at J.I. Clements Stadium.
Georgia Southern (24-21) scored seven runs over the first two innings but was held scoreless over the final six frames. Heath Durand combined with Sam Howard to hold Charleston Southern (17-25) to no runs over five innings. Kyle Rowe (S, 2), who came on in the eighth inning, ran into some trouble in the ninth inning and allowed a pair of runs but earned the save.
Durand (1-0) picked up the win after throwing 3 1/3 scoreless frames in relief of Evan Challenger. Durand allowed just three hits and one walk and earned his first win of the season.
Stephen Leopard (1-3) suffered the loss after giving up four runs on three hits over an inning-plus. Leopard walked two batters and struck out one but was unable to record an out in the second inning after allowing the first two batters to reach on walks.
Georgia Southern tallied seven hits, with three coming off the bat of Garren Palmer. Chase Griffin provided three RBIs and finished with a hit and a walk. Charleston Southern tallied 14 hits, and three Buccaneers finished with three hits each. Drew Woodall drove in three of the team's six runs and tallied a pair of hits.
The Eagles started the scoring with a two-run first inning. Griffin plated a pair of leadoff base hits with a single up the middle.
After Charleston Southern got a run back on an RBI groundout by John Faircloth in the top of the second, GSU struck for five runs in the bottom half of the frame. The Eagles batted around in the second inning and scored the first run after four straight batters reached via walk. Palmer plated the second run of the frame with a base hit through the left side. Dodds grounded into a fielder's choice to score the third run, and Griffin hit a sacrifice fly to center field to plate the fourth run. T.D. Davis added the final blow in the frame with a double over the head of Bobby Ison in center field.
The Buccaneers answered back in the third inning, scoring three runs on three hits and two errors. Woodall drove in the first run with a single to right field, and Chase Shelton plated the second on an error by the first baseman Davis. Robbie Streett drove in the third run with a single through the left side of the infield.
Brian Welch led off the ninth inning with a walk and was one of two runs to score on Woodall's single to center field. After the second out was recorded on a fly out to center, Streett singled through the right side of the infield, but Dodds came up throwing and got the third out at the plate to end the game.
Georgia Southern returns home this weekend to host Furman. The three-game set begins with a 6 p.m. first pitch on Friday night and continues with a 10:30 a.m. game on Saturday and a 1:30 p.m. contest on Sunday.
Western Carolina 9, Kennesaw State 3
KENNESAW, Ga. – Three Catamounts drove in three runs apiece on Wednesday night as Western Carolina won the back-end of a two-game, midweek home-and-home, downing the Kennesaw State Owls, 9-3, in nonconference action at Stillwell Stadium.
WCU (31-17) swept the two-game series when coupling Wednesday night’s victory with last Tuesday’s 2-0 win over the Owls in Cullowhee. The Catamounts won their fourth straight game and collected their 14th win in the last 16 games overall.
Junior outfielder Julian Ridings keyed a five-run third inning for WCU, belting a three-run home run to right field to break a scoreless tie. Later in the frame, Dykota Spiess doubled to center field with two outs to bring home two more runs as the Catamounts led 5-0 through three complete.
Spiess stretched the lead to six in the fifth inning with his second run-producing two-base hit. The Morganton, N.C., native drove a 1-0 pitch to left field to bring home Tyler White, who was plunked twice in the win to move him into fourth in school history with 38 HBPs in his four-year career.
Kennesaw State (22-25) trimmed the Catamount edge back to four runs with a two-spot in the bottom of the fifth as Andy Almonte doubled home a run with Bo Way delivering a two-out run-scoring single to make it 6-2.
The rally was short-lived, though, as Western Carolina responded in the top of the sixth inning, stretching its lead to a game-high seven runs. Luke Gragg reached on a bunt single, with Cody Jones driving a single through the left side to put two aboard. Aaron Attaway then launched his team-high tying 10th home run over the fence in left to make it 9-2 in favor of the Catamounts.
Spiess, Gragg and Jacob Hoyle all collected two hits apiece in the winning effort for WCU. Spiess doubled twice, while Gragg and Hoyle both had two singles.
The Owls tacked on a run in the sixth inning on consecutive base hits to open the frame. Jacob Bruce led off with a triple to center field and was scored by the next batter, Kal Simmons, to provide the final tally.
Simmons led all hitters in the game with a 3-for-4 showing at the plate for Kennesaw State.
Taylor Sandefur tossed the first two innings in his first start since March 13, working out of a second-inning jam that saw Kennesaw State put runners at second and third with just one out. The Mechanicsville, Va., product held the Owls scoreless while giving up three hits.
Senior Adam Curtis (3-1) was credited with the victory, surrendering three runs – only one of which was earned – on six hits through four relief innings. Freshman Jonathan Waszak tossed two frames with one hit and two strikeouts while classmates Thomas Young and Colton Davis combined to finish the ninth, both striking out one.
Kennesaw State starter Nathan Harsh (1-3) suffered his second loss to WCU this season. He was tagged for five runs on four hits in three innings, walking two while recording six of the Owls’ 11 strikeouts as a staff.
The Catamounts outhit the Owls, 11- 10, on Wednesday night in the win. WCU was also able to take advantage of four hit batters and four walks issued by KSU pitching.
Western Carolina returns home this weekend to open a five-game home stand to wrap up the 2013 regular season. The Catamounts host Tennessee Tech (32-12), a front-runner in the Ohio Valley Conference baseball race for a two-game, nonconference set this Friday and Saturday before breaking for final exams. WCU hosts Wofford on May 10-12 in the final three-game home SoCon series.
Furman 6, Winthrop 1
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Greg Harrison homered and drove in three runs to power Furman past Winthrop, 6-1, in baseball action Wednesday evening at Latham Stadium.
The win improved Furman (24-19) to 8-3 in midweek games this year and gave the Paladins a season split with Winthrop (15-30).
Harrison, a junior designated hitter who saw his first action of the season two weeks ago following six months of rehabilitation with an injured knee, homered in his first at bat, singled in the third, and stroked a two-run double in the fifth on the way to a 3-for-4, three-RBI performance. In eight games since his return, the Hilton Head, S.C., native has hit .419 (13-for-31) with three home runs, five doubles, and 12 RBIs.
Taylor Johnson also homered, belting a two-run shot — his team-leading ninth clout of the season — in the third inning, and singled and scored in the fifth on Harrison’s double. He went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and scored twice.
Starting pitcher Elliott Warford (2-5), who was designated to throw two innings, was credited with the win on the strength of Harrison’s solo home run to left field in the second that give Furman a lead it would never relinquish.
The Paladins upped their advantage to 3-0 an inning later after Griffin Davis doubled to lead off and trotted home on Johnson’s home run, which came off of Winthrop reliever Mitchell Knox.
Furman made it 5-0 in the fifth on Harrison’ double into the right-center field gap that plated Will Muzika and Johnson.
The Eagles got on the board in the sixth on a Chad Smith RBI single, but he Paladins answered in the bottom of the frame after Chris Ohmstede drew a leadoff walk and scored on a sacrifice fly by Hunter Burton.
Seven Paladin pitchers combined to limit Winthrop to five hits.
Ohmstede joined Harrison and Johnson with a multi-hit performance, going 2-for-3 in Furman’s 11-hit attack.
The loss was charged to Eagle starter Tyler Klitsch (1-0), who allowed a run on four hits in two innings.
The Paladins return to action this weekend when they travel to Statesboro, Ga., to take on Georgia Southern in a three-game SoCon series beginning with Friday’s 6 p.m. opener. Saturday’s game will be played at 10:30 a.m. to allow Furman’s seniors to return to Greenville for graduation exercises, and Sunday’s finale is set for 1:30 p.m.
No. 1 North Carolina 13, The Citadel 0
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A quintet of North Carolina pitchers limited The Citadel to four hits as the nation's top-ranked team defeated the Bulldogs 13-0 on Wednesday night at Boshamer Stadium.
The Tar Heels (42-4) scored six times in the second, including a grand slam by Colin Moran, and never looked back in winning the first matchup between the two teams since the 2004 NCAA tournament and first in the regular season since 1999.
The Bulldogs had only one base-runner over the first four innings and threatened only once when Drew DeKerlegand and Calvin Orth singled to lead off the fifth. But starter Hobbs Johnson retired Johnathan Stokes on a fly out to right and struck out Bailey Rush and Brett Bullard to keep The Citadel off the board.
Orth also singled in the seventh to extend his hitting streak to a career-long 10 games. Hughston Armstrong matched Orth's streak when he singled in the ninth.
Johnson (3-0) worked the first five innings and struck out nine, setting down the first seven Bulldogs before Bret Hines reached on a one-out error in the third. Kent Emanuel, normally a weekend starter for the Tar Heels, allowed one hit in two innings, and Chris McCue, Mason McCullough and Trent Thornton combined for four strikeouts in two shutout frames.
North Carolina pitching struck out 13 in the game while handing the Bulldogs their first shutout since an 8-0 loss at South Carolina on April 10, 2012. The Tar Heels entered the game ranked third in the nation with a team ERA of 2.33 and recorded their eighth shutout of the year.
Citadel starter Austin Livingston struck out two in the first before North Carolina took advantage of an error and a close play at first in the second. Cody Stubbs doubled and Michael Russell reached when Mason Davis misplayed his grounder to second. Mike Zolk drove in the only run the Tar Heels would need with a bunt single on a squeeze play.
Livingston retired the next two batters on infield popups before Chaz Frank hit a grounder into the hole. Stokes made a nice backhanded stop but his strong throw to first just missed getting Frank, plating Russell to make it 2-0.
A walk loaded the bases and Moran followed with his 12th home run of the season, upping his RBI total to an NCAA-leading 74. The lead grew to 7-0 in the fifth, Russell hit a three-run homer in the seventh to give him four RBIs on the night and the Tar Heels added three more in the eighth for the final margin.
The Citadel returns to Southern Conference action this weekend when Davidson visits Riley Park for a three-game series beginning Friday at 6 p.m.
Wake Forest 17, Elon 6
ELON, N.C. – Late runs by the Wake Forest offense broke a 6-6 tie as the Demon Deacons knocked off the Elon Phoenix 17-6 at Latham Park on Wednesday night.
Wake Forest (26-23) scored a single run in both the second and third to claim an early 2-0 lead. The Phoenix (23-25) then came back with two in the last of the third to tie it up. With a runner on third and one out, Ryan Kinsella drove home the first run with a single through the right side. After two walks loaded the bases, Antonio Alvarez worked a walk on a 3-2 pitch to tie the game.
The Maroon and Gold then jumped in front thanks to a three-run fourth. Wil Leathers got it started with a single to right, went to second on a balk and scored on Quinn Bower's bunt single to third. With runners on second and third and no outs, Kinsella drove home his 62nd and 63rd runs of the season with a double down the left-field line.
The Demon Deacons rallied for the first time in the top of the fifth. With the bases full with one out, Brett Armour singled to left to score one run to make it a 5-3 contest. Grant Shambley's sacrifice fly pulled Wake within one and was deep enough that all runners were able to move up one base. That was followed by a walk and a Conor Keniry single through the left side that plated two as Wake edged in front, 6-5.
Elon quickly responded with a run of its own in the last of the fifth as Alex Swim lifted a sac fly to left that scored Chris Bresnahan.
Wake grabbed the lead for good in the sixth, scoring four more runs. The first came in on a Pat Blair sac fly. Shambley later drove in two with a two-out single to right and later scored on a Mark Rhine single.
The Demon Deacons put the game out of reach in the ninth, scoring seven runs on four hits and a pair of Phoenix errors.
The loss went to Danny Lynch (0-1), who was charged with four runs (three earned) on three hits in an inning. Phoenix starter Tyler Manez went four and allowed three runs on four hits while fanning a career-best six hitters.
Colin Egan (3-0) was the winning pitcher. Egan gave up one run on three hits in 2 2/3 innings out of the bullpen.
At the plate, Elon knocked 11 hits, including three from both Bower and Leathers.
The Phoenix will be back in action this weekend with a three-game Southern Conference series at Appalachian State. Friday's first pitch is at 6:30 p.m.