Samford 14, UNCG 7
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Samford baseball team pounded out 20 hits on its way to a 14-7 Southern Conference win at UNCG Sunday afternoon. The win was the 300th of Samford head coach Casey Dunn’s career, with all 300 wins coming at Samford.
After Samford fell behind 5-2 in the second inning, Parker Curry (5-2) came in out of the bullpen to pitch five innings, giving up one run on four hits to earn the win. Curry, Mark Donham, Mikel Belcher and Andres Gracia combined to give up just two runs over the last seven innings to help lead Samford to the win.
For Samford at the plate, Jared Watson went 4-for-5 with a double, a triple and five RBIs. Drew McWhorter went 4-for-6 with a double, a triple and two RBIs. Caleb Bryson went 2-for-5 with a double, a triple and three RBIs. T.J. Dixon, Tyler Filliben, Heath Quinn and Tripp Martin had two hits each for the Bulldogs.
UNCG was led by Eric Kalbfleisch, going 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs. Zac MacAneney also went 3-for-4 for the Spartans. Dylan Thompson (2-4) pitched 2 2/3 innings, giving up seven runs on eight hits to take the loss on the mound for UNCG.
Samford jumped out to an early lead with three runs in the top of the first inning. Dixon doubled to lead off the inning and then moved to third base on an infield single by Filliben. Dixon scored on a ground out by McWhorter for the game’s first run. Quinn then singled to drive in Filliben for a 2-0 Samford lead. Bryson then doubled to drive in Quinn to make the score 3-0.
UNCG answered with three runs in the bottom of the first inning to tie the score. With two outs in the inning, Kalbfleisch hit a solo home run to right field to make the score 3-1. Hunter King then doubled and scored on a double by Tyler Long for UNCG’s second run of the inning. Jordan McDonald then singled up the middle to drive in Long to knot the score at 3-3.
The Spartans took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the second inning. With two outs, MacAneney and Sean Guite hit back-to-back singles. Kalbfleisch then drove in both runners with a single to give UNCG a 5-3 lead.
The Bulldogs plated four runs in the top of the third inning to take a 7-5 lead. McWhorter singled, and Quinn and Bryson walked to load the bases with no outs. Watson then tripled, driving in all three runners to give Samford the lead. Brandon Powell then hit a sacrifice fly to right field to drive in Watson for a two-run Bulldog lead.
Samford added two runs in the top of the fourth inning to push its lead to 9-5. McWhorter doubled to lead off the inning. Quinn then singled, moving McWhorter to third base. McWhorter then scored on a balk, and Quinn moved to second base. With one out in the inning, Watson singled up the middle to drive in Quinn to give Samford a four-run lead.
The Bulldogs plated three runs in the top of the sixth inning to make the score 12-5. McWhorter singled and Quinn was hit by a pitch to start the inning. Bryson then tripled to left-center field to drive in McWhorter and Quinn for the first two runs of the inning. Watson then singled to drive in Bryson for Samford’s 12th run of the contest.
UNCG added a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to cut the Samford lead to 12-6. MacAneney singled to right field to lead off the inning. With one out in the inning, Kalbfleisch singled, moving MacAneney to second base. King then singled to drive in MacAneney to bring UNCG to within six runs.
Samford plated a run in the eighth inning and another in the ninth to push its lead to 14-6. In the eighth inning, Watson doubled with one out, and moved to third base on a single by Powell. Martin then hit a sacrifice fly to score Watson. In the ninth inning, Filliben singled with one out. McWhorter then tripled to drive in Filliben for Samford’s final run of the game.
UNCG plated its final run in the bottom of the ninth inning. Kalbfleisch walked to lead off the inning. He later scored from third base on a sacrifice fly by McDonald to make the final score 14-7.
With the win, Samford improved to 28-20 overall and 12-9 in Southern Conference play and won the series over UNCG, two games to one. UNCG fell to 21-21 overall and 8-10 in SoCon play.
Samford will return to action when the Bulldogs play host to Alabama A&M on Tuesday, May 6. The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. CT start from Joe Lee Griffin Field.
The Spartans return to action next weekend when they travel to Spartanburg, S.C., for a three-game SoCon series at Wofford.
Western Carolina 7, Appalachian State 4
CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Senior Jordan Smith matched a career high with 11 strikeouts and Western Carolina received timely hitting including a go-ahead, fifth-inning home run by classmate Dykota Spiess as the Catamounts claimed Sunday’s Southern Conference series finale, downing archrival Appalachian State, 7-4, at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium.
The win, WCU’s sixth straight, completed the three-game SoCon sweep of the Mountaineers while representing the third three-game series league sweep for the Catamounts this spring.
Smith (8-3) scattered seven hits – five of which were singles – and limited the Mountaineers to four runs that all came in the top of the fourth inning. The Liberty, N.C., native recorded strikeouts in seven of the eight frames he was on the mound, including posting two or more punch outs three times, striking out the side in the first inning.
Junior closer Tyler Powell picked up his 10th save of the season – and second on the weekend – stranding a pair of base-runners in the top of the ninth inning and recording a series-ending strikeout.
Four Catamounts recorded multi-hit games in the Sunday afternoon victory. Spiess reached all four times he stepped into the batter’s box, collecting two hits including the solo homer in the fifth with a walk and an HBP. Junior Jacob Hoyle drove home a game-high three runs on a 2-for-4 day at the plate, belting his SoCon-leading 14th home run down the right-field line in the first inning. Senior Adam Martin added to his conference-pacing RBI total with a run-scoring first-inning base knock, finishing 2-for-4 with two runs scored.
Junior Bradley Strong again served as a catalyst for the home squad, dropping a leadoff single into left field in the bottom of the first before promptly stealing second to move into scoring position. Martin continued his productive work at the plate, driving the first pitch of his at-bat through the right side to allow the speedy Strong to scamper home from second base. The next batter, Hoyle, handed the Catamounts a three-run lead with a home run that hugged the right-field line.
WCU stretched its lead to four in the third as Spiess was plunked with two outs before Luke Gragg moved him into scoring position at second base. A third senior, designated hitter Taylor Sandefur, then doubled down the right-field line to plate Spiess, making it 4-0 in favor of the home squad.
Appalachian State (16-29, 9-11 SoCon) clawed back in the top of the fourth inning as Dillon Dobson delivered his second home run of the series with a two-run shot to left-center to make it 4-2. Jaylin Davis drove in a run on an RBI single up the middle before Zach Hummel reached on a fielder’s choice that plated the game-tying run.
Deadlocked at 4 apiece, Spiess put the Catamounts ahead for good with his one-out long ball to right field. WCU would tack on two more runs in the seventh on an RBI single up the middle by Hoyle to drive in Jones, with Gragg tallying an RBI on a ground out to account for the final score.
App threatened in both the eighth and ninth innings, but solid defensive plays kept the three-run margin on the scoreboard. The Mountaineers put runners at second and third with a one-out single by Dobson and double off the bat of Tyler Stroup in the eighth. However, Smith struck out Matt Brill looking before Bradley Strong made a tremendous play to ground out Davis to end the frame. In the ninth, Powell worked around a fielding error and single that put runners at the corners with two outs, striking out hot-hitting Michael Pierson on four pitches to end the game.
Mountaineer starter Jeffrey Springs (2-4) gave up seven runs on 11 hits through 6 1/3 innings in suffering the loss. Springs struck out four against three walks with one HBP. Taylor Thurber struck out three in tossing 1 2/3 innings of hitless, scoreless relief out of the bullpen.
Pierson, Dobson and Stroup collected three hits apiece for Appalachian State. Preston Troutman was held to a 1-for-5 showing with three strikeouts in the series finale.
Western Carolina now shifts its focus to final exams this week before returning to the diamond in league action at Georgia Southern next weekend in Statesboro, Ga. The Catamounts and Eagles open the three-game series on Friday, May 9, at 6 p.m. with a 2:30 p.m. start on Saturday, May 10, and 1:30 p.m. finale on Sunday, May 11.
After a week off for final exams, sixth-place Appalachian State returns to action next weekend when it visits third-place Samford (28-20, 12-9 SoCon) for another key Southern Conference series. The three-game set begins Friday at 7 p.m. ET in Birmingham, Ala.
Davidson 7, Elon 5
ELON, N.C. – Forrest Brandt homered and drove in three runs and Ryan Lowe went 4-for-5 as Davidson won its 10th straight Southern Conference baseball series and clinched at least second place in the league with a 7-5 victory over Elon on Sunday afternoon at Latham Park.
The win improved Davidson’s SoCon record to 17-5, guaranteeing the Wildcats at least a runner-up finish in the regular-season standings and a berth against a play-in team in the SoCon tournament.
It will be Davidson’s highest conference finish since it finished second in the Big South in 1992. The Wildcats last finished as high as second in the SoCon when the league used a divisional format in 1987.
Davidson will return to Wilson Field for its final two home games of the season, hosting UNC Asheville Wednesday at 6 p.m., and N.C. Central on Thursday at 11 a.m., but will conclude the regular season vying for the SoCon regular-season title at first-place Western Carolina (32-14, 16-4). The teams will open the three-game series Thursday, May 15, at 5 p.m., and then conclude it with a doubleheader Friday, May 16, starting at 2 p.m. WCU will first play one more SoCon series at Georgia Southern this weekend.
Elon will wrap up the home portion of its 2014 season on Wednesday night as the Phoenix hosts North Carolina in a 6:30 p.m. contest.
The ‘Cats also improved to 27-14 overall for their most wins since winning a program-record 28 in both 1988 and 1992.
By winning back-to-back games over defending SoCon champion Elon (26-21, 12-12 SoCon) after dropping Friday’s opener, Davidson claimed its first series over the Phoenix since 2012 and its first at Elon since winning the lone game played in 2009. However, it was the ‘Cats’ first three-game series victory in Elon since the Phoenix joined the SoCon in 2004.
The Wildcats led by as many as six runs before Elon battled back in the late innings.
Davidson jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning, as Lowe and Brandt (2-for-4, BB, 2 SB) hit back-to-back doubles with two outs, scoring Lowe. Brandt then stole third base and catcher Chris Hall’s throw sailed into the outfield, allowing Brandt to trot home.
Elon halved the advantage in the bottom of the first, as left fielder Casey Jones (1-for-4) hit an RBI triple, but the Phoenix was unable to score in the second inning despite loading the bases. Second baseman Andrew Pope (1-for-3, RBI, BB) made a diving stop to keep a ball hit by second baseman Sebastian Gomez (1-for-5) in the infield, and Pope was then able to make the toss to shortstop Sam Foy (0-for-5), who was able to turn the double play and end the inning.
RHP Nick Neitzel (7-0) settled in from there for the ‘Cats, striking out the side the next inning and retiring nine of the next 10 batters total without allowing another hit. He finished allowing two runs on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts in five-plus innings, as he walked the first and only batter he faced in the sixth.
Meanwhile, the Wildcats continued to pad their lead, scoring in the third through six innings. Brandt drove in Pope on a fielder’s choice play, and first baseman David Daniels (1-for-4) added another run in the fourth on an RBI single, giving Davidson a 4-1 advantage.
Brandt led off the fifth inning with his 10th home run of the season, and then the ‘Cats added two more in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Pope and an RBI single by Lowe for a 7-1 lead.
Elon got back into the game with three runs in the bottom half of the sixth, as center fielder Ryan Cooper (1-for-3) drove in one with a sacrifice fly and pinch-hitter Chris King (2-for-2, 3 RBI) drove in two with a double, making it a 7-4 game.
The Phoenix turned to its closer, LHP Ryan Pennell, in the seventh inning, and he kept Davidson scoreless by striking out three and yielding just a hit, walk and hit batsmen.
King homered in the bottom of the ninth off RHP Michael Goldberg (7), but Goldberg allowed only one other batter to reach, and he struck out Jones, the leading hitter in the Southern Conference, with a full count for the final out and the save. Davidson’s 13 saves this season are a program record.
LHP Jake Stalzer (5-4) suffered the loss allowing all seven Davidson runs (five earned) on seven hits and four walks with three strikeouts.
Wofford 11, The Citadel 1
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Luke Leftwich blanked The Citadel on three hits over eight innings and the Wofford offense produced 12 hits in a 11-1 victory in the rubber game of a Southern Conference series Sunday at Riley Park.
The Terriers (25-23, 7-13 SoCon) won a series from the Bulldogs (19-28, 5-18) for only the second time in 17 tries since joining the SoCon in 1998. The eight shutout innings by Leftwich capped a 19-inning scoreless streak by Wofford pitching that included a 1-0, 10-inning win Saturday.
The Terriers have won back-to-back SoCon series for the first time since 2004.
Bret Hines singled in a run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth off reliever Jacob Condra-Bogan as The Citadel avoided consecutive shutout losses for the first time since April 10 and 12, 2002.
Leftwich retired the first 11 batters before allowing consecutive singles to Bo Thompson and Tyler Griffin with two outs in the fourth. The only other Bulldog hit off the Terrier right-hander was a two-out single by Hughston Armstrong in the eighth.
Leftwich, who eclipsed his previous season-long outing of 7 2/3 innings, walked three and struck out four in raising his record to 4-5. Austin Livingston started for The Citadel and surrendered six hits and three runs (two earned) in four innings to drop to 2-6 on the year.
Wofford scored a run in the third and added two in the fourth for the only runs it would need. The Terriers broke it open with four in the sixth and added two-run frames in the seventh and ninth. Seth Neely drove in three runs for Wofford, and Conor Clancey scored three times.
On Monday, Wofford will travel to Presbyterian College for a 3 p.m. game that was added to the schedule. The Terriers will visit South Carolina on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. for their final nonconference game of the season.
The Citadel plays at Charleston Southern on Tuesday at 6 p.m. before taking on UNCW in a three-game set. The Bulldogs and Seahawks play at Riley Park Thursday and Friday and in Wilmington, N.C., on Sunday.
Georgia Southern 7, Furman 2
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Georgia Southern Eagles scored six unanswered runs and Matt McCall and Jason Richman combined to throw 5 2/3 scoreless frames in a 7-2 win over the Furman Paladins on Sunday.
Georgia Southern (31-19, 13-11) swept Furman (18-28, 7-13) for the first time since 2011 and posted its second series sweep in Southern Conference play. Both series sweeps have come on the road for the Eagles, who also took three games from The Citadel at the beginning of April.
McCall (3-2) scattered four hits and walked just one batter over 3 2/3 scoreless innings to earn his third win of the season. The senior right-hander entered in the fourth inning and worked around a pair of base hits in the fifth inning and two more in the seventh.
GSU took an early 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly by Aaron Mizell in the first inning and rallied from the first deficit all weekend with two runs in the third inning. Mizell doubled in Kody Adams and later scored on a double by Stryker Brown.
The Eagles got two more runs, scoring on a Dalton Busby two-out double to right field in the fourth inning, and on a ground out in the fifth inning before Paladin starter Tyler Wood was lifted.
Wood (5-2) allowed five runs on eight hits, walked a batter and struck out five over five innings. Wood was tagged with the loss, his second of the season.
GSU starter Ryan Frederick allowed five hits, two walks and one earned run over 3 1/3 innings. Frederick left with a lead in the fourth inning.
Furman tied the game in the first inning on a Chris Ohmstede single through the middle of the infield.
The Paladins took a 2-1 lead on a throwing error by the third baseman Garrett Chapman in the second inning.
Jason Richman entered in the eighth inning and tossed two scoreless frames to extend his streak to 30 2/3 innings with just one earned run allowed.
GSU will have the midweek off before returning to J.I. Clements Stadium for its final Southern Conference series of the season. First pitch in the series opener against Western Carolina on Friday is set for 6 p.m.
Furman entertains East Tennessee State this Wednesday in a 4 p.m. game at Latham Stadium.