Western Carolina 10, Davidson 2
Western Carolina 4, Davidson 3
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Needing just one victory in Friday’s regular-season-ending doubleheader to secure back-to-back Southern Conference regular-season championships, Western Carolina claimed both ends of its twin bill over the Davidson Wildcats to secure the crown and earn the top seed in next week’s championship tournament in Charleston, S.C.
Western Carolina (37-16, 20-6 SoCon) cruised to a 10-2 victory in game one of the doubleheader to win the league’s regular-season title outright before completing the sweep by rallying for a 4-3 win in the second game at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium. The weekend opened with an 8-6, come-from-behind victory on Thursday by the Purple & Gold.
WCU claimed its 13th SoCon regular-season championship all-time, matching The Citadel for the most seasonal crowns in league history. Combined with the program’s nine tournament titles, Catamount baseball now holds the SoCon record with 22 combined baseball championships – one more than The Citadel with 21 (13 regular season, eight tournament).
The Catamounts claimed back-to-back regular-season championships for the first time since the late 1980s and accomplishing the feat for the first time in the conference since Elon won back-to-back seasonal titles in 2008 and ‘09. The Catamounts posted a stellar 23-3 (.885) home record inside the friendly confines of Childress Field / Hennon Stadium, winning nine straight games at home to conclude the season.
Junior Jeremy Null tossed his first career complete game in game one, striking out nine batters over nine innings of work as Western Carolina disposed of Davidson, 10-2, to claim the 2014 Southern Conference regular-season championship, relegating the Wildcats to second place – their best finish in the SoCon standings since 1987.
Null (6-3) tossed five innings of scoreless baseball at the outset including retiring seven consecutive batters before a 30-minute rain delay. The Claremont, N.C., product limited the Wildcats to two runs on seven base hits with one walk.
Jacob Hoyle reached base four times for the Catamounts, finishing 2-for-3 with his 11th double of the season. Bradley Strong (1-for-5) and Dykota Spiess (1-for-2 with two walks) both had two RBIs.
Freshman Matt Smith drove home the game’s first run on a double off the fence in right field before J.D. Long lifted a sacrifice fly to center to hand the Catamounts a 2-0 lead. Aaron Attaway sparked a five-run fifth inning with a single deep in the hole at short. After senior slugger Adam Martin was intentionally walked, Hoyle delivered an RBI single to right-center. Spiess recorded an RBI in the frame, with Smith reaching on a fielding error at third base that allowed two additional runs to cross. Attaway capped the five-run frame with a bases-loaded, run-producing walk.
Davidson’s Lee Miller belted his second home run – and fourth extra-base hit – of the weekend with a solo shot to lead off the sixth, with Andrew Pope tripling before eventually scoring to make it a five-run deficit, 7-2.
Spiess drove in WCU’s run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly with Strong plating the final two runs of the game on a single down the third-base line.
After issuing a leadoff walk in the top of the ninth inning, Null tightened the screws to get both Becker and Sam Foy to strike out looking. Arkin was vying for a two-out single on a bouncing ball sent up the middle, but Bradley Strong made a leaping throw back across his body to nip the runner just shy of the bag, setting off a wild on-field celebration. WCU players dog-piled just behind the pitcher’s mound to celebrate the regular-season title.
WCU handed Davidson starter Nick Neitzel (7-1) his first defeat of the season, saddling the right-hander with three runs on three hits with a trio of walks against five strikeouts. Rob Bain gave up four runs – three unearned – on two hits with two walks and a strikeout in 2/3 of an inning.
Western Carolina plated a pair of runs in the decisive seventh inning in the night cap to rally past the Wildcats, 4-3, to complete the season sweep – the seventh by WCU over Davidson in Cullowhee since 1981.
WCU’s three victories represent the first time Davidson has been swept since dropping all three on the road at Elon in late March 2013 – a span of 13 straight league series. It was also the first SoCon series loss for the Wildcats since dropping 2-of-3 against Wofford in late April 2013.
Strong put the Catamounts on top in the bottom of the third inning, belting his sixth home run of the season on a two-run shot over the fence in right field. Davidson’s Nathan Becker trimmed the margin back to one with an RBI double to left field, scoring Brandt from first base.
Davidson took its lone lead of the finale in the sixth inning as Ben Arkin singled home two runs on a shot to left field, allowing Becker and Brandt to score for the 3-2 edge.
In the seventh, Attaway drew a leadoff walk before stealing second and taking third on a sacrifice bunt by J.D. Long. Strong drove his middle-infield mate home on a would-be sacrifice fly to left field. However, the ball was dropped in the outfield, allowing Strong to take second base. Cody Jones then drove home the go-ahead run with a two-base hit to right field, providing the final 4-3 tally.
Strong (2-for-3) led a trio of Catamounts with two-hit games, driving home three, including two on the home run to right field. Jones finished 2-for-4 with a double, while Jacob Hoyle also finished 2-for-3 for WCU.
Sophomore reliever Colton Davis (4-2) picked up the victory over starter Bryan Sammons, who struck out a career-high-tying seven in six innings of work. Davis used three strikeouts to retire a combined five hitters, allowing one hit in scoreless relief to earn the win. Junior Tyler Powell tallied his second save of the weekend – and 13th of the season – with a four-out outing, striking out one in hitless, scoreless relief.
Davidson reliever Matt Saeta (0-2) suffered the loss after allowing two runs – only one of which was earned – on two hits with a pair of walks and a strikeout. Becker (3-for-4) and Brandt (2-for-4) paced the Wildcats offensively with Becker doubling twice. Ben Arkin collected two RBIs for the visiting squad.
Prior to Friday’s regular-season finale, Western Carolina honored its nine members of its senior class with a special on-field ceremony. WCU recognized fifth-year senior Taylor Sandefur; four-year class members, Aaron Attaway, Luke Gragg, Cody Jones, Adam Martin, Jordan Smith and Dykota Spiess; with two-year class member John McClure and T.J. Fussell, who transferred prior to last fall, rounding out the honored class.
Top-seeded Western Carolina now turns its attention to the 2014 Southern Conference Baseball Championship, which will be held at Charleston’s Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park on May 20-25. The Catamounts await the winner of Tuesday’s (noon) No. 8 vs. No. 9 match-up with a 1 p.m. estimated first pitch on Wednesday (May 21).
Complete seeding and brackets will be made available on Saturday following the conclusion of regular-season play. As of Friday, The Citadel is the No. 10 seed, with the only other seeds that have been clinched are the third (Samford) and fourth (Georgia Southern). The tournament opens on Tuesday, May 20, at noon.
The Citadel 7, UNCG 5
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Tyler Griffin highlighted a five-run, seven-hit seventh inning with a three-run home run, powering The Citadel to a 7-5 victory over UNCG in the opening game of the final Southern Conference series of the year.
The Bulldogs (21-32, 6-18 SoCon) rallied from deficits of 2-0 and 4-2 to defeat the Spartans (21-25, 8-14) for the eighth straight time at Riley Park. The loss drops UNCG into one of the four spots in the SoCon tournament play-in round on Tuesday.
The series wraps up with a doubleheader on Saturday at noon. Preceding the game, The Citadel will recognize its seven seniors: Griffin, Hughston Armstrong, Logan Cribb, Drew DeKerlegand, Ryan Kilgallen, Calvin Orth and David Rivera.
Facing a two-run deficit at the stretch, the Bulldogs got hits from the first six batters in the bottom of the seventh to take the lead. Singles by Mason Davis, Armstrong and Bo Thompson brought in one run, and Griffin followed with a long blast that fell just short of the new video board in right center.
The homer was the seventh of the season for the Bulldog right fielder and upped his team-leading RBI total to 46. It was also his 24th career round-tripper, tying him with Thompson and Josh Stackley for 10th place in school history.
UNCG starter Ryan Clark allowed the first four hits of the inning, including the Griffin homer, before leaving. DeKerlegand, Johnathan Stokes and Kilgallen added singles against a trio of relievers to make it a 7-4 contest.
The Spartans scored a run in the eighth before Skylar Hunter worked a hitless ninth for his 12th save of the season. The sophomore closer is one shy of his save total from his freshman campaign and moved him into a tie for fourth with Randy Corn in The Citadel record book with 25 in his career.
The Bulldogs broke out of an offensive slump with 15 hits, including five for extra bases. Griffin added a double to his home run, Armstrong had a pair of two-base hits among his season-high four hits and Davis also doubled. The Citadel had accumulated only two extra-base hits over its previous seven games.
Zach Lavery was the beneficiary of the comeback, earning his third win despite allowing two hits and two runs (one earned) in the top of the seventh. Cribb and Austin Mason worked three innings each on limited pitch counts with the SoCon tournament just four days away.
Cribb allowed four hits and one unearned run, while Mason gave up one hit and one run while striking out three.
UNCG scored an unearned run in the first and made it 2-0 in the fourth on a solo homer by Jordan McDonald. An error opened the door for The Citadel in the bottom of the fifth, and the Bulldogs took advantage on the strength of doubles by Davis and Armstrong and a single by Thompson to tie the game.
An RBI double by Eric Kalbfleisch capped a two-run Spartan seventh to give the visitors a lead that was short-lived when the Bulldogs erupted in the bottom of the frame.
Samford 2, Wofford 0
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Four Samford pitchers combined to throw a two-hit shutout, defeating Wofford, 2-0, in the first game of a three-game Southern Conference series Friday night at Wofford’s King Field.
Samford pitchers Alex Ledford, Jared Brasher, Parker Curry and Andres Gracia combined for the shutout. The group took a no-hitter into the ninth inning before Wofford catcher Matt Ramsay broke it up with a single up the middle to lead off the inning.
Ledford (10-2) pitched four innings, allowing just two base-runners, both on errors, to earn the win for the Bulldogs. Ledford recorded one strikeout without allowing a walk. Brasher and Curry tossed two innings each, and Gracia pitched the ninth inning to pick up his Southern Conference-leading 13th save of the season.
The win marked Samford’s first shutout of the season. The last time the Bulldogs shut out an opponent was on March 1, 2013, when Samford defeated Purdue, 8-0.
At the plate, Samford center fielder T.J. Dixon went 2-for-4. Third baseman Tripp Martin drove in the game’s only two runs with a home run, going 1-for-3. Jared Watson, Brandon Powell and Frankie Navarrete added one hit each for the Bulldogs.
For Wofford, Ramsay and Eric Brenk had the Terriers’ only two hits in the game. Matthew Milburn (4-5) pitched 7 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on five hits to take the loss for Wofford. Milburn struck out seven batters without allowing a walk.
With two outs in the top of the fifth inning, Samford left fielder Brandon Powell struck out, but the ball got away from Ramsay, allowing Powell to reach base on a wild pitch and extending the inning. Martin then hit his team-leading 10th home run of the season to left field, giving the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead.
Wofford’s leadoff hitter reached base in the fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth innings. The Samford pitchers and defense, however, were able to hold the Terriers scoreless to earn the victory.
With the win, Samford improved to 32-22 overall and 15-10 in Southern Conference play. The Bulldogs secured the No. 3 seed in next week’s SoCon tournament. The pairings for the tournament will be announced later this weekend by the conference office. Wofford fell to 28-26 overall and 10-14 in league play.
The teams will wrap up the series with a doubleheader Saturday at 2 p.m.
Appalachian State 11, Furman 7
Furman 9, Appalachian State 2
BOONE, N.C. – The race between Appalachian State and Furman for a first-round bye in next week’s Southern Conference tournament will come down to the final day of the regular season after the clubs split a day-night doubleheader on Friday at Beaver Field at Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium. Appalachian State won the opener, 11-7, and Furman took the nightcap, 9-2.
The winner of Saturday’s regular-season finale between Appalachian State (19-32, 11-14 SoCon) and Furman (23-30, 11-14 SoCon) will earn one of the six automatic berths in the double-elimination portion of next week’s SoCon tournament. The loser will have to play in a single-elimination opening round on Tuesday to compete for one of the final two spots in the eight-team double-elimination field. First pitch for Saturday’s winner-take-all showdown is set for 3 p.m. at Smith Stadium.
Things didn’t look good for Appalachian early in Friday’s opening game, as Furman jumped out to a 4-0 lead after just 2 1/2 innings. However, sparked by a 4-for-4, four-run performance by Tyler Zupcic, the Mountaineers scored 11 runs over the next six innings to claim the come-from-behind win.
After falling into the early 4-0 hole, the Mountaineers still trailed 5-2 going into the bottom of the fifth inning. However, Appalachian pulled even with three runs in the fifth and plated three more in the sixth to take an 8-5 lead.
Furman cut App State’s lead to 8-7 with single runs in the seventh and eighth innings but, sparked by Zupcic’s career-high-tying fourth hit of the game – a double down the left-field line – and RBI by Preston Troutman, Dillon Dobson and Jaylin Davis, the Mountaineers scored three times in the bottom of the eighth to stretch their advantage to 11-7.
Robert Whaley made the lead stand up in the ninth and Appalachian closed out the all-important series-opening win.
Zupcic’s four-hit performance was his first since April 3, 2011, versus Wofford and highlighted the Mountaineers’ 11-hit effort. Davis chipped in with three hits and two RBIs, including his Appalachian State single-season-record-breaking seventh triple of the campaign in the fourth inning. Dobson and Tyler Stroup also drove in two runs apiece.
Despite the 11-run, 11-hit outburst by the Mountaineers’ offense, the key to victory was the performances turned in by Dallas DeVrieze and Whaley out of Appalachian’s bullpen. After Jamie Nunn lasted only 2 2/3 innings in his first start in three weeks, DeVrieze and Whaley combined to limit Furman to just three runs (two earned) over the final 6 1/3 innings of the ballgame.
DeVrieze allowed two runs over 4 1/3 innings to earn the first win of his collegiate career and Whaley surrendered only an unearned run over the final two frames to slam the door for his third save of the season.
In the nightcap, Furman led just 2-1 after four innings but scored four runs in the fifth and two more in the sixth to pull away and earn the split.
Chris Ohmstede went 3-for-5 with two home runs and five RBIs and Greg Harrison chipped in with four hits and three RBIs for the Paladins in the win.
Appalachian State managed only five hits in the loss, including just three in seven innings against FU starter Jacques de Gruy (4-3). Matt Brill led the Mountaineers with two hits in the defeat.