Davidson 6, North Carolina Central 4
DAVIDSON, N.C. – Home runs on consecutive pitches by David Daniels and Michael Zeblo secured a 6-4 victory for Davidson over North Carolina Central in the Wildcats’ home finale Wednesday evening at Wilson Field.
Eight of Davidson’s 10 hits went for extra bases, as the Wildcats (16-30) hit a season-high four home runs. Zeblo (2-for-4, 3 RBIs) went deep from both sides of the plate to lead the ‘Cats, while third baseman David Daniels (3-for-4, 2 RBIs) finished a single short of the cycle. First baseman Andrew Barna (2-for-4, RBI) hit his team-best 11th home run of the season and also doubled, while left fielder Ty Middlebrooks also doubled in a 1-for-3 day at the plate.
N.C. Central (25-27) took the first lead of the game, but the Wildcats answered each time the Eagles scored. The Eagles tallied the first run in the third inning on an RBI single by first baseman Luis Diaz (1-for-1, 2 RBIs), but Zeblo, batting from the left side of the plate, homered to left field following Daniels’ double with two outs.
Barna homered to right field in the fourth inning, but the Eagles tied the game, 3-3, in the top of the fifth on a double by left fielder Tyson Simpson (1-for-5, 2 RBI) and a sacrifice fly by Diaz.
Daniels’ triple in the bottom of the fifth drove in Middlebrooks to put the ‘Cats back ahead, 4-3, but NCCU tied the game again in the seventh on a run-scoring groundout by Simpson. Davidson answered in the bottom half of the inning to take the lead for good, though. Daniels’ third home run of the season went deep into the woods in left field, and then Zeblo, batting from the right side of the plate, sent the very next pitch well over the scoreboard in right field.
RHP Matt Saeta (3) pitched the final two innings of the game, surrendering just one hit, to close it out. The Wildcats used their top arms in advance of an eight-day break for exams, as Friday and Saturday starters RHP Ryan Lowe and RHP Danny Mooney split the first four innings. Sunday starter LHP Rob Bain pitched the fifth, while RHP Jip Richards (1-2) earned his first win of the season, working the sixth and seventh innings, allowing just one unearned run on a hit and a walk.
RHP Rueben Rios (3-1) suffered his first loss of the season after allowing the back-to-back home runs. He had given up just one hit in 2 2/3 innings of work prior. Rios had relieved LHP Jordan Quinn, who surrendered four runs on seven hits and a walk with two strikeouts in four innings.
Davidson will next play at Samford to conclude the regular season. The two teams will play a doubleheader starting Thursday, May 16, at 5 p.m. ET, before playing the regular season finale Friday, May 17, at 7 p.m. ET.
The Wildcats are currently tied for ninth in the Southern Conference standings with Wofford at 10-17, with the Terriers holding the tiebreaker. The top eight teams qualify for the Southern Conference tournament, so the ‘Cats are looking to move past Furman (12-15) and/or Samford (10-13). Crucial series this weekend include UNCG at Furman and Samford at Elon.
Georgia 5, College of Charleston 3
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – Georgia limited College of Charleston to just three runs and used to a three-run second inning to take a 5-3 win over the Cougars on Wednesday night at Patriots Point.
The Bulldogs (18-28) tallied 14 hits in the contest and did not allow a College of Charleston run after the fourth inning.
Freshman Nathan Helvey (4-3) made his return from a month-long injury but picked up the loss in 2 2/3 innings pitched. He surrendered three runs on six hits and struck out two. Redshirt junior Derrick Smith also made his first appearance of the season, pitching three innings and allowing one run and three hits.
Georgia’s Ross Ripple (2-1) picked up the win as he came in the third inning and pitched two innings, giving up one run. However, the rest of the Georgia bullpen thwarted CofC’s comeback efforts and Jarrett Brown (3) earned the save with two strikeouts in the ninth inning.
Gunnar Heidt had another big day at the plate for CofC (26-22), tallying a double and single with an RBI and a run. Blake Butler had two hits with an RBI, and Brandon Murray smacked a big double but was stranded at third.
The Bulldogs’ Zack Bowers and Daniel Nichols each hit home runs to left field. Hunter Cole and Brett DeLoach each registered three hits for the SEC visitors.
College of Charleston jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning with an RBI single from Heidt and then a groundout RBI from Carl Wise that scored Heidt.
However, the Bulldogs responded in the second when Bowers hit a two-run bomb to left field after an RBI single from Jeff Posey.
The two squads traded runs in the fourth inning with Georgia’s coming off an RBI groundout from Cole, and CofC’s run by way of a two-out RBI single from Butler that scored Morgan Phillips.
Both teams’ pitching staffs were solid until the seventh frame, when Georgia’s Nichols led off with a high-fly solo shot to left field, making it 5-3. Charleston was not able to respond and Brown earned the save with a perfect ninth inning.
The Cougars step back into conference play this weekend with a huge series at The Citadel at Joseph P. Riley Park in downtown Charleston. Only a half-game separates the local rivals for second place in the Southern Conference. Friday’s game begins at 4 p.m. because of a doubleheader with the Charleston RiverDogs.
Auburn 9, Samford 3
AUBURN, Ala. – The Samford baseball team dropped a 9-3 decision at Auburn in the Bulldogs’ final nonconference game of the 2013 season Wednesday evening at Plainsman Park.
With the loss, Samford dropped to 25-24 on the season. Auburn improved to 29-19 overall with the win.
Samford was led at the plate by Drew McWhorter, who went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Patrick McGavin went 3-for-5 with an RBI for the Bulldogs. Tommy Corbin went 2-for-4 at the plate for Samford.
Charles Terry (1-1) pitched 2/3 of an inning in relief, allowing six runs on seven hits to take the loss on the mound for Samford. Parker Curry, Patrick Maronde, Phillip Flach, Sean Handlan and Mark Donham also saw time on the mound for Samford.
For Auburn at the plate, Patrick Savage went 3-for-4 with two RBIs, while Jordan Ebert went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Reid Carter (1-0) pitched 2 1/3 innings in relief, giving up no runs on two hits to earn the win for the Tigers.
Auburn struck first with a run in the bottom of the second inning. With one out in the inning, Dan Glevenyak doubled to left-center field. Ebert then doubled down the right-field line to drive in Glevenyak for a 1-0 Auburn lead.
Samford took the lead with two runs in the top of the fourth inning. McGavin singled to right-center field to lead off the inning. With one out in the inning, McWhorter doubled to left-center field to drive in McGavin to tie the score. Corbin then singled to right-center field, and McWhorter scored on an Auburn error to give Samford a 2-1 lead.
The Bulldogs added a run in the top of the fifth inning to push their lead to 3-1. With one out in the inning, C.K. Irby and Christiaan Durdaller drew back-to-back walks. McGavin then singled through the right side of the infield to drive in Irby for a two-run Samford lead.
Auburn plated a run in the bottom of the fifth inning to cut the Samford lead to 3-2. Damek Tomscha led the inning off with a single to left-center field. After moving to second base on a groundout, Tomscha scored on a single by Hunter Kelley to bring Auburn to within one run.
The Tigers took the lead with six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Savage drove in two runs in the inning, while Kelley, Cullen Wacker, Ryan Tella and Blake Austin drove in a run each, giving Auburn the 8-3 lead.
Auburn added one final run in the bottom of the eighth inning to make the score 9-3. With one out in the inning, Wacker and Garrett Cooper both singled, and Savage walked to load the bases. Wacker then scored on a sacrifice fly by Glevenyak for a six-run Auburn lead.
Samford will return to action on Friday, when the Bulldogs open a three-game Southern Conference series at Elon. Friday’s series opener is scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. (CT) from Elon, N.C.
No. 12 South Carolina 9, Wofford 3
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Wofford baseball team was defeated 9-3 by South Carolina at Carolina Stadium on Wednesday night. The Terriers had a 3-2 advantage through six innings, but the Gamecocks scored six runs in the bottom of the seventh to put the game out of reach.
Wofford is now 20-31 on the season. South Carolina is 34-14 overall and ranked as high as No. 12 in this week’s national rankings. The Terriers were led by Alec Paradowski with three hits on the night. The Gamecocks had three hits from Chase Vergason and two RBIs each from Joey Pankake and Tanner English.
The Terriers had back-to-back singles by Paradowski and Josh Hyman in the top of the first inning. A single by Seth Neely drove in Paradowski for a run and a sacrifice fly by James Plaisted made it 2-0. South Carolina got one run back on a leadoff homer by Max Schrock for a 2-1 score after the first inning.
After both teams were retired in order in the second, Paradowski added a two-out single in the top of the third and Plaisted singled in the top of the fourth, but both were stranded. The Gamecocks had two runners on base in the bottom of the fourth after walks but were unable to plate a run.
In the top of the sixth, Paradowski led off with a single. A single by Neely, along with a fielding error, allowed Paradowski to score for a 3-1 lead. In the bottom of the sixth, South Carolina loaded the bases with a walk, double and hit by pitch. A hit by pitch to Sean Sullivan allowed one run to score, but three runners were stranded to end the inning with a 3-2 score.
South Carolina had a single from Chase Vergason in the bottom of the seventh. Joey Pankake then hit a home run over the right-field wall for a 4-3 lead. An RBI double by Grayson Greiner pushed the score to 5-3. Greiner moved to third and scored on two wild pitches for a 6-3 advantage. With two runners on base, a single by Tanner English made it an 8-3 game after seven innings.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Gamecocks added a run on an RBI single from Vergason for a 9-3 score. South Carolina had the bases loaded with two outs when a strikeout ended the scoring chance. Wofford was retired in order in the top of the ninth to end the game.
Wofford starter Matt Milburn went four innings with one run allowed on two hits along with six strikeouts. Will Stillman (2-2) went an inning and gave up two runs on three hits.
South Carolina starter Curt Britt threw three innings and allowed two runs on four hits with two strikeouts. Adam Westmoreland (6-1) threw 1 2/3 innings with one hit allowed and two strikeouts. Joel Seddon threw the ninth inning and did not allow a hit with two strikeouts.
Wofford will begin the final Southern Conference series of the season at Western Carolina on Friday night at 6 p.m. in Cullowhee, N.C.
No. 14 Clemson 14, Furman 2 (game one)
No. 14 Clemson 12, Furman 2 (game two)
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Clemson swept Furman in day-night doubleheader baseball action Wednesday at Fluor Field, posting a 14-2 win in game one and a 12-2 verdict in game two.
The wins improved the 14th-ranked Tigers to 34-15 on the season, while Furman fell to 26-21 with the two losses.
In the first game, Clemson starting pitcher Brody Koerner (1-1) hurled six innings of one-hit shutout ball and Steve Wilkerson went 3-for-4 and drove in four runs to power Clemson to the 14-2 win.
Koerner, who worked around three walks in the first inning, allowed only a third-inning triple to Furman’s Jake Jones and survived six walks in the contest by allowing only the lone hit and striking out seven.
The Tigers provided Koerner with ample offense, building a 6-0 lead through six innings before Furman got on the board with two in the top of the seventh. Clemson responded with six runs in the bottom of the seventh, highlighted by Wilkerson’s two-run double.
Clemson banged out 14 hits in the game and was aided by Paladin pitching that issued nine walks and hit three batters.
Thomas Brittle also had three hits, part of a 3-for-4 performance, driving in two and scoring three runs. Steven Duggar had a two-run single in the sixth and finished with three RBIs.
Furman managed only four hits against Tiger pitching.
The loss was charged to Furman starter Ryan DIttmar (2-2), who allowed two runs on two hits over 2 2/3 innings. He walked three and struck out one.
In game two, Clemson broke open a one-run game with four runs in the sxith en route to the 12-2 victory.
The Tigers led 3-2 after five innings before combining four hits with four stolen bases and a walk in the sixth to extend their advantage to 7-2. Tyler Krieger, Jon McGibbon and Maleeke Gibson all stroked RBI singles, stole second, and scored in the inning, which included an RBI single by Steve Wilkerson, whose base hit drove home Gibson for the frame’s final run.
Clemson added three more in the seventh and finished their scoring onslaught with two more in the eighth.
The Tigers collected 14 hits, matching their first game hit total, and registered a season-high seven stolen bases.
McGibbon led Clemson offensively, going 4-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored.
Furman finished with nine hits, including two each by Griffin Davis, Greg Harrison and Alex Arbams.
Kyle Schenll (2-0) earned the victory in relief, tossing 2 1/3 innings of scoreless, hitless relief.
The loss was charged to Furman starter Nate Smith (4-4), who allowed gave up a Shane Kennedy solo home run in the second inning and three hits over two innings.
The Paladins open their final Southern Conference series of the season on Friday when they entertain UNCG in a 6 p.m. game at Latham Stadium.