Saturday, April 11
Jags Win Fourth Straight Sun Belt Series
MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama baseball team captured its fourth consecutive Sun Belt Conference series with a 10-3 win over Appalachian State in game three of the series Saturday at Stanky Field.
Appalachian State (11-26, 4-14 SBC) took game one of Saturday's doubleheader in extra innings to even the series. South Alabama (24-13, 11-7 SBC) responded with a five-run first inning in the series finale en route to a 10-3 series-clinching win.
Game 1 – Appalachian State 6, South Alabama 5 (10 inn.)
Appalachian State left fielder Brandon Burris' one-out RBI single to center field in the top of the 10th inning helped the Mountaineers even the series with a 6-5 win in game one of the doubleheader.
ASU broke a scoreless tie with a four-run fifth inning. A leadoff double to left field by Matt Brill, followed by a single to center field from Carson Jones put runners at the corners with no outs. Chandler Seagle then doubled to right-center field to plate Brill for a 1-0 Mountaineer lead. Brian Bauk then delivered a two-run double down the right-field line to score Jones and Seagle for a 3-0 ASU advantage. Michael Pierson followed with a sacrifice fly to left field to score Bauk for a 4-0 Mountaineer lead.
The Jags answered in the bottom-half of the fifth inning to tie the game. USA loaded the bases in the inning and pushed four runs across on a sacrifice fly to left field from Bud Collura, an RBI single to left field by Matt Bolger, an RBI groundout to second from Danny Martinez and a two-out RBI double to right-field line by Cole Gleason to tie the game 4-4.
ASU pushed a run across in the top of the eighth inning on a two-out RBI double to left-center field by Brill, but USA rallied for a run in the bottom of the ninth to force extra innings.
Garrett DeGallier reached on a hit by pitch from ASU southpaw Ryan Ross to lead off the bottom of the ninth, and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Ryan Raspino. A wild pitch from Ross allowed DeGallier to move to third with one out. Jared Barnes later delivered a two-out RBI single back up the middle to score DeGallier and tie the game 5-5.
ASU right-hander Robert Whaley (1-1) earned the win with 1 1/3 innings in relief, and recorded one strikeout. Jag right-hander Ben Taylor (3-1) suffered the loss, allowing one run on three hits with six strikeouts in 2 1/3 relief innings.
Billingsley went 2-for-4 with a run scored and two stolen bases, and Gleason added a double and an RBI to lead the Jaguars at the plate. Noah Holmes went 3-for-5 with a double and two runs scored to lead the ASU offense.
Game 2 – South Alabama 10, Appalachian State 3
ASU jumped out to a two-run lead in the top of the first inning of the series finale on a one-out, two-run double down the left-field line by Brill.
But the Jags answered in the bottom of the first when Billingsley led off the inning with a solo home run – his second of the season – to right field to cut the USA deficit to one run. Collura singled to right field then stole second later in the inning before scoring on a one-out RBI single to center field by Martinez to tie the game 2-2. Gleason followed with a single to right field to put runners at the corners with one out in the inning. Bolger then delivered an RBI single to right field to score Martinez for a 3-2 USA lead. DeGallier reached on a hit by pitch to load the bases for Knapp who lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to plate Gleason for a 5-2 Jag lead. Bolger then scored on a passed ball to push the USA advantage to four runs.
USA manufactured a run in the bottom of the second when Collura reached on a one-out walk, stole second and third before scoring on a sacrifice fly to right-center field by Gleason for a 6-2 Jaguar lead.
ASU cut the USA lead in half in the top of the sixth on a two-out RBI single to left field by Jones, but the Jags pushed their lead back to four runs in the bottom of the sixth on a one-out RBI single to left-center field by Ben Gann. Collura followed with a two-run home run to right field – the first of his Jaguar career – to extend the USA lead to 9-3.
A two-out RBI single to right field by Martinez pushed the game's final run across in the bottom of the eighth.
Billingsley went 3-for-5 with a triple, a home run, one RBI and three runs scored to lead the Jaguar offense. Collura finished 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBI, three runs scored and three stolen bases. Martinez went 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run. Brill finished 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI to lead ASU at the plate.
Jaguar left-hander Jared Gates (3-1) allowed three runs on five hits in 5 2/3 innings in the win, and struck out a pair of Mountaineer batters while issuing three walks. Travis Holden (0-3) allowed five runs on five hits with one walk in two-thirds of an inning in the loss.
South Alabama will return to action Tue., April 14 when it travels to Thibodaux, La., for a 6 p.m. contest at Nicholls State.
Troy Sweeps Doubleheader on Saturday against Arkansas State
TROY, Alabama – The Troy University baseball team swept Arkansas State in a doubleheader on Saturday, winning the first game 3-1 before taking game two 4-2. The Trojans (19-17, 8-6 Sun Belt) have now won four straight Sun Belt Conference series. Arkansas State (14-19, 4-12) has now dropped all six league series they've played.
Troy 3, Arkansas State 1
Grant Bennett pitched a compete game while Reid Long launched a two-run home run in the fifth inning and David Hall singled home an insurance run in the eighth as the Trojans knocked off Arkansas State 3-1 in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader.
The Red Wolves could scatter just seven hits as Bennett struck out five in his second complete game of the season. The junior right-hander allowed one run on a sacrifice fly in the ninth. Bennett also tossed a complete game against Georgia Southern on March 14. The Hazel Green, Alabama, native has pitched at least seven innings in five straight outings and prior to the run allowed in the ninth, Bennett has tossed 13 consecutive scoreless innings.
Bennett improved to 7-1 on the season, the most wins in the Sun Belt Conference, and upped his conference-best strikeout total to 56. Bennett's season ERA dropped to 1.94, which would stand as the sixth lowest in Troy single-season history.
Troy could manage just five hits in the contest but drew five walks. Clay Holcomb walked to start the fifth and advance on Tripp Calhoun's sacrifice bunt. Long then blasted a full-count fastball over the wall in right; he leads the team with six home runs.
Arkansas State threatened in the third as Joe Schrimpf led off the inning with a single and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. Zack George then laced a liner up the middle but Nick Masonia made a diving grab and tossed to Peyton Fuller covering the bag for a double play to end the inning.
Troy 4, Arkansas State 2
Lucas Brown continued to pitch well as he moved to 3-1 on the season with 7 2/3 quality innings of work in Troy's 4-2 win over the Red Wolves in game two.
Brown struck out six batters as Arkansas State was just 2-for-14 off the junior with runners on base. Jeremy McGowan recorded the final four outs to pick up his third save of the season.
The Red Wolves got on the board first on a sacrifice fly from Matt Burgess in the first inning. The Trojans didn't pick up their first hit off ASU starter Jon Glidewell until the fourth inning when Logan Hill singled home Clay Holcomb, who had walked to start the frame. Trevin Hall later plated Hill on a double to give Troy the lead.
Zach George tied the game for the Red Wolves in the fifth on a bases loaded walk. Brown looked to be in serious trouble with the bags full and no one out, but the right-hander got a strikeout and a double play to end the threat.
Jo-El Bennett handed Troy the lead for good with a bases loaded single in the sixth, scoring Hill. Matt Sanders pushed across the game's final run with a squeeze bunt down the first base line.
Troy was out-hit in both games of the doubleheader but used clutch hitting to earn the series win. Logan Hill, who entered the weekend with five stolen bases on the season, swiped four bags in the two games. Clay Holcomb stole second in the fourth inning of game two; it was his 66th career stolen base tying him with Warren Arrington for fifth most in Troy history. Trevin Hall finished game two 2-for-3 to collect his 16 multi-hit game of the season.
The teams will play the finale of the three-game, Sun Belt series on Sunday at noon.
Georgia State Sweeps ULM Saturday, Burgee Sets Saves Record
ATLANTA -- Kevin Burgee saved both ends of a doubleheader to become Georgia State's career leader as the first-place Panthers swept UL Monroe, 7-6 and 5-3, Saturday at the GSU Baseball Complex.
Georgia State (21-15 overall) has won seven of its last eight conference games to improve to 10-3 in the Sun Belt Conference. The series concludes with a 1 p.m. game Sunday.
Matt Rose his league-leading 10th homer of the season in Game 2 and had four hits and four RBI on the day, while Cam Sperry and Joey Roach homered in Game 1 as the Panthers rallied in both games after trailing early.
Saturday's Game 1 was the was the completion on Friday's series opener that was suspended after just two innings with the Panthers trailing 2-0. Georgia State took control of the game with a five-run fourth inning, highlighted by Sperry's three-run homer.
After Justin Jones led off the fourth with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice, Matt Rose drove him in with a double to left. AFter Roach was hit by a pitch, Sam Few delivered a run-scoring single to tie the game at 2-2, and then the left-handed hitting Sperry smashed the 2-0 pitch from lefty Trey Setzer over the right field fence for his second homer of the season and a 5-2 lead.
The Panthers added to their lead on Rose's run-scoring single in the fifth and Roach's solo homer in the eighth, the sixth of the season for the GSU catcher.
Right-hander Cole Uvila (1-4) started Saturday for the Panthers and earned his first victory by allowing just one run on five hits over 5.2 innings. ULM managed three unearned runs in the ninth, but Burgee struck out Dalton Todd to end the game and earn the save.
The Panthers also fell behind 2-0 in Game 2, and that was the score in the sixth inning when Rose crushed the 1-0 pitch from starter Keegan Curtis to left field for a two-run blast that tied the game.
One inning later, James Clements led off with a single that bounced over the third baseman. David Levy laid down a sacrifice bunt but reached base when pitcher Josh Leone threw wildly to first. Ryan Blanton drew a walk to load the bases, and then Jones delivered a single to right center to score pinch runner Trae Sweeting and put the Panthers ahead. After Caden Bailey grounded out and Rose was intentionally walked to load the bases again, Roach singled to right center to plate two more runs and put the Panthers ahead 5-2. Roach leads the Sun Belt with 34 RBI.
Danny Springer led off the top of the ninth with a solo homer to pull ULM (17-17, 5-9) within 5-3, and the Warhawks put two runners on with one out to bring on Burgee again. The senior righty struck out pinch hitter Nathan Pugh and then ended the game by inducing a ground ball from leadoff hitter Anthony Herrera for his 15th career save, surpassing the mark previously held by Justin Malone (2009-12).
Game 2 starter Kenny Anderson (3-2) pitch seven innings for the Panthers, allowing two runs on four hits.
UALR Offense Dominates in Series Win over Texas State
LITTLE ROCK – UALR baseball (13-18, 10-6) claimed the series against Texas State (16-17-1, 8-6) with a 13-7 win on Saturday at Gary Hogan Field. Sunday’s series finale has been moved up to noon due to Texas State’s travel needs.
Tanner Rockwell was a perfect 5 for 5 as he doubled twice, singled three times and ended the game with three RBIs. Rockwell’s five hits tied the UALR record for hits in a game which had only been done 11 times before today’s game.
James Gillean continued his hot streak as he went 4 for 5 with a triple and four RBIs, while Petr Sila went 3 for 5 with one RBI and a walk.
“I’m extremely proud of our offense and how they’re making adjustments,” head coach Chris Curry said. “What a great job by coach Russell Raley and coach Roland Fanning on adjusting.”
UALR got on the board in the bottom of the first after Sila singled through the right side before eventually scoring on a wild pitch. Texas State evened the score in its next set of at-bats, plating its first run on a RBI single by Jared Huber in the top of the second.
The UALR offense exploded for five runs on five hits in the bottom half of the second. Kyle Barret, Justin Steelmon and Gillean started the frame with three straight singles, the last of which drove in the Trojans’ second run of the game. Sila plated the next run of the inning after reaching on a fielder’s choice. Ryan Scott’s double to right field drove in a run to make it a 4-1 game while also extending Scott’s hitting streak to 10 games. Finally, Rockwell’s single up the middle drove in two runs to give UALR a 6-1 lead after two innings of play.
Gillean’s two-RBI triple made it an 8-1 lead for the Trojans in the bottom of the third. Drew Merten drew a walk to lead off the inning while Steelmon reached on an infield single to set the stage for Gillean’s big hit.
The Trojans added four more runs over the fifth and sixth innings. With two outs, Sila singled through the left side and Scott drew a walk to give UALR runners at first and second. Rockwell’s single allowed Sila to score from second and chased starter Scott Grist from the game. With Justin Dellinger on to pitch for the Bobcats, a wild pitch allowed Scott to score the inning’s second run and grow UALR’s lead to 10-1.
After Texas State scored four runs on three hits and two walks in the top of the sixth to cut the margin to 10-5, UALR answered with two more runs to push its lead out to 12-5. Jason Prevatt reached base after being hit by a pitch, and was able to come all the way around to score on a fielder’s choice, groundout and passed ball. Gillean’s RBI single to center plated Barret for the Trojans’ second run of the game and extended the UALR lead to seven runs.
In the bottom of the seventh, Rockwell doubled off the left field wall to tie the UALR record for hits in a game (five). He advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Prevatt, making it a 13-5 lead for the Trojans.
The Bobcats scored two runs on two hits, two walks and a hit batsman in the top of the eighth to pull within 13-7.
Cameron Allen came on to relieve Dyllon Brownmiller in the ninth inning after Brownmiller pitched 2.1 innings before relieving starter Cory Malcom in the sixth. Allen closed out the game for the Trojans on 17 pitches to give UALR the season series over Texas State.
“We’re in really good shape on accomplishing our goal which is making the conference tournament,” Curry said. “It’s obvious that we’re not only in the conference tournament hunt, but we’re in the conference hunt. That’s fun. A lot of these guys haven’t experienced that, so that’s a blast.”
The Trojans’ 13 runs and 17 hits were the second-most in a game this season.
“This team is relentless,” Curry said. “They do not stop, and they keep coming at you.”
The Trojans will go for the series sweep against the Bobcats at Gary Hogan Field on Sunday with the first pitch taking place at noon.
Three-Run First Inning, Sheppard Help Eagles Take Series from Mavericks
STATESBORO, Ga. – The first three batters to the plate all scored and Tripp Sheppard turned in another solid outing on the mound as the Georgia Southern Eagles took the series from the UT Arlington Mavericks with an 8-1 win at J.I. Clements Stadium.
The Eagles (21-15, 11-6) erased a 1-0 deficit and chased the Mavericks' (14-19, 5-9) starter Brad Vassar from the game after scoring three runs in the first inning.
"I was proud of the way we responded," Head Coach Rodney Hennon said. "I thought Tripp did a nice job of keeping his poise and gave us a strong effort to start the game. We made a few mistakes defensively, but we made some big plays as well to keep them from getting back into the ballgame."
Kody Adams was hit by a pitch to start the frame, and Aaron Mizell and Chase Griffin followed with back-to-back singles to load the bases.
Vassar (2-3) threw a pitch wide of the plate to score Adams before Hunter Thomas gave GS a 2-1 lead with a ground out to second base. Dalton Busby plated the third run with a double down the left field line.
The freshman lefthander was tagged with the loss after allowing all three runs and worked just two thirds of an inning.
Tripp Sheppard allowed an unearned run in the top of the first inning after Matt McLean reached on a leadoff error and Levi Scott delivered a one-out single to right field.
Sheppard (4-2) got a double play with the bases loaded in the second inning to strand a pair of hits before settling in to retire 13 of the next 14 batters he faced.
Sheppard picked up the win after limiting UTA to just four hits and one run. The senior righthander walked just one and struck out three batters in his seventh start of the season.
Dalton Busby tallied three of the team's 12 hits. Busby added a pair of singles to his RBI double. Kody Adams tallied two hits including his first home run of the season in the eighth inning. Chase Griffin and Kent Rollins also finished with two hits each.
The three-game conference series concludes Sunday with a noon first pitch. The Eagles will send freshman lefthander Connor Simmons (1-2, 2.38 ERA) to the mound. He will face sophomore righthander Joel Kuhnel (1-1, 3.16 ERA).
Cajuns Sweep Jackson State on Saturday to Win Series
LAFAYETTE, La. – The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns baseball team picked up a 7-6 walk-off win in 11 innings to open the day before rolling to a 15-2 victory in game two to sweep Jackson State in a doubleheader on Saturday at M.L. "Tigue" Moore Field.
The series win is the sixth of the season for the Cajuns as the squad improved its record to 20-13 overall. The Cajuns and Tigers (21-13) return to action tomorrow at 1 p.m. in the series finale at the "Tigue". Freshman right-hander Evan Guillory will take the mound as the Ragin' Cajuns go for the sweep.
"We did a good job of swinging the bat today and pitching," head coach Tony Robichaux said. "(Wyatt) Marks was great coming into the second game and limiting the damage and had a good outing."
Offensively, the Cajuns posted 22 hits on the day led by Tyler Girouard who went 6-for-8 with two doubles, two walks and two RBI. Junior Kyle Clement hit for the cycle in the second game of the doubleheader going 4-for-5 with four RBI and scored three times. Catcher Nick Thurman had a team-best five RBI including the game-winning RBI single in the opening game of the series.
Junior shortstop Blake Trahan equaled the school record hit streak of 23 games set by Chris Webb in 1996 with his RBI singled in game one, but saw the streak come to an end in game two going 0-for-4 with an RBI.
Reliever Dylan Moore earned his third victory of the year in game one throwing 0.2 scoreless innings to close out the contest. Chris Charpentier was solid in relief tossing 3.1 scoreless scattering five hits with a strikeout.
Marks improved to 3-0 on the season coming into the second game in the third inning to limit the potent JSU offense to one run on two hits in six innings with six strikeouts.
Garth Cahill was the losing pitcher of record in the morning contest for the Tigers falling to 2-1 after giving up the game-winning run in the 11th.
Rene Colon was handed his first lost off the year in the second game giving up seven runs (four earned) on seven hits in 4.1 innings. Colon walked two, struck out two and hit a batter in the outing.
In game one, the Tigers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the third on a two-run double to right center by catcher Jovany Felipe.
The Cajuns answered in the bottom half of the third on a two-run single by Thurman to tie the game at 2-all.
Trahan put Louisiana in front 3-2 on an RBI single back up the middle plating Jam Williams from second base. Two batters later, Stefan Trosclair extended the advantage to 5-2 on a two-run homer to left off of Jacobs. The home run is the sixth of the year for Trosclair as he has posted five in the last seven contests.
Jackson State cut into the lead in the top of the fifth on a RBI single up the middle by Melvin Rodriguez off of starter Gunner Leger to make the score 5-3.
The Tigers added three more runs in the top of the seventh to go in front 6-5. Both Lamar Briggs and Rodriguez scored on a throwing error by reliever Will Bacon to tie the contest. Jesus Sanchez singled in a run to give JSU a 6-5 edge.
Louisiana evened things in the bottom of the eighth as Evan Powell scored from first on a throwing error by pitcher Sebron Mackey the make the score 6-all. The Cajuns had Clement on third with no outs in the inning, but after a Joe Robbins strikeout, Rodriguez cut down Clement at the plate on a ball hit to second by Trahan to end the threat.
Following two scoreless innings, the Cajuns would load the bases with one out for Thurman. The junior catcher lined a single into right field to bring home the winning run of the game.
In game two, Jackson State got on the board first in the top of the third on an RBI groundout by Rodriguez to make the score 1-0.
The Cajuns evened the game at 1-all in the bottom half of the third as Clement doubled to lead off the inning then came home to score following a sac bunt by Robbins and a sac fly to right by Trahan.
Louisiana jumped out to a 5-1 lead in the bottom of the fourth scoring four runs on three hits and two Jackson State errors. A two-run homer by Clement highlighted the scoring in the inning. The home run is the first of Clements career with the Ragin' Cajuns.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Cajuns tacked on two more runs on a RBI groundout by Brenn Conrad and Evan Powell scored on a wile pitch to make the score 7-1.
Following a Rodriguez solo home run in the sixth, Louisiana posted an eight run inning in the seventh to take a 15-2 advantage. The Cajuns had five hits in the inning highlighted by a pair of 2-run RBI singled by Conrad and Thurman and a RBI triple by Clement. The triple by Clement gave him the cycle for the contest.
Sophomore reliever Reagan Bazar come on and threw a scoreless ninth for the Cajuns to close out the second game of the doubleheader.