Friday, April 3
Panthers Rally From Six Down to Defeat UALR
ATLANTA -- Matt Rose drove in the go-ahead runs in a seven-run eighth inning as Georgia State rallied from a 7-1 deficit for a 13-8 victory over UALR to remain in first place in the Sun Belt Conference.
The Panthers won their fourth straight conference game to improve to 18-13 overall and 7-2 in the Sun Belt.
Sam Few homered and drove in two for GSU, and Ryan Blanton and Trae Sweeting had two RBI each. David Levy collected three hits and an RBI.
After falling behind 7-1 in the fourth inning, Georgia State scored three in the sixth to pull within one run at 7-6. That was the score with one out in the eighth when the Panthers started their winning rally. Cam Sperry and Levy singled to put runners at first and second, and then Blanton tied the game with a single to center.
After Justin Jones' single loaded the bases, Caden Bailey's ground ball was snared by the first baseman, who threw home for the force and the second out.
That brought Rose to the plate with two outs, and the Preseason All-American delivered a sharp single past the third baseman to score two and give the Panthers a 9-7 lead. Joey Roach followed with a run-scoring single for his Sun Belt-leading 29th RBI of the season. Few's single through the left side plated another run, and then Trae Sweeting, who pinch ran for Sperry, smacked a two-run double to put the Panthers ahead 13-7.
"This is by far the most impressive thing we've done this season," head coach Greg Frady said. "We couldn't pitch our way into control of the game for the longest time. But we did finally settle down, and our relief pitching basically shut them down to give us time to catch up.
"The home run Sam Few hit gave us some confidence to fight back," Frady continued. "In that eighth inning, Ryan Blanton had a huge at-bat, Joey Roach had a huge at-bat, Trae Sweeting had a huge at-bat to give us a cushion. But no at-bat was more important Matt Rose's two-out, two RBIs to give us the lead. That was amazing."
UALR managed to load the bases with no outs in the top of the ninth on a single and two walks, but freshman Logan Barnette came on and rolled a double play and then recorded the final out for the 13-8 victory.
Georgia State starter Nathan Bates struggled, allowing seven runs on 12 hits, but he managed to throw six innings to help save the Panthers' bullpen.
"This was not the Nathan Bates that we know, but he pitched six innings, and that's a huge thing to not just demoralize your bullpen on Friday night. He just grinded and grinded," Frady said.
After UALR scored four runs in the third and two in the fourth to take a 7-1 lead, the Panthers began to chip away. Few hit a solo homer, his second of the season, in the bottom of the fourth, and then Bailey drove in a run with a groundout in the fifth.
Then Panthers mounted a two-out rally in the sixth. Will Johnson and Sperry singled to put runners at first and second, and then Levy singled through the left side to bring home Johnson. Blanton's single brought home Sperry, and with runners at first and third, Georgia State executed a double steal as Levy came home and pulled the Panthers within 7-6.
UALR (10-15, 7-5 Sun Belt) looked to add to their lead in the top of the eighth, loading the bases with two outs on a double, a walk and a hit batter, but Wayne Wages came on and struck out Ryan Scott to end the threat. Wages (3-0) was credited with the victory.
The series continues Saturday at 2 p.m.
Sac Bunts, Evan Challenger Helps Eagles Take Down Cajuns
LAFAYETTE, La. – Evan Challenger held the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns to just two hits and one run to help the Georgia Southern Eagles take the series opener 2-1 on Friday night at "Tigue" Moore Field.
The Eagles (18-13, 8-5) broke a 1-1 tie in the eighth inning after Dalton Busby dropped a sacrifice bunt to score Aaron Mizell.
Georgia Southern led 1-0 in the top of the first after Hunter Thomas also laid down a sacrifice bunt to score Kody Adams, who opened the game with a single.
Challenger (3-0) gave up a home run on the first pitch he tossed but settled in to hold Louisiana (15-12, 7-5) to two hits over seven innings. He retired 14-straight batters after the solo home run and did not allow another hit until the fifth inning when Tyler Girouard singled with two outs.
Challenger struck out a career-high nine batters, including the side in the second and fifth innings. He also struck out a pair in the seventh inning.
Gunner Leger struck out just one batter and allowed eight hits but limited the Eagles to two runs. Leger (3-2) stranded five runners in scoring position over his 7.2 innings of work but was tagged with the loss.
Jason Richman tossed two scoreless innings and got a double play to end the game for his second save of the year. Richman (2) entered with a runner on base in the eighth inning and erased the runner at third base with a ground out.
The Eagles finished with eight hits. Chase Griffin and Hunter Thomas both tallied multi-hit games. Griffin singled in his first two at-bats of the game, and Thomas tallied a pair of base hits after his sacrifice bunt.
The series continues tomorrow with a 7 p.m. ET start on ESPN3. RHP Tripp Sheppard will take the mound for the Eagles. The Ragin' Cajuns will counter with righthander Greg Milhorn.
Troy Battles Back to Defeat Mountaineers, 6-3
Boone, N.C. – Troy erased an early 3-0 deficit to earn a 6-3 win over Appalachian State at Beaver Field on Friday.
The Trojans (16-15, 5-5 Sun Belt) stole eight bases in the game – the most since April 2, 2005, when the team swiped nine against Campbell.
Grant Bennett (6-1) turned in his seventh quality start in eight outings this season as he allowed one earned run in seven innings. Reid Long tagged his fifth home run of the season – a solo shot to leadoff the ninth.
Appalachian State (9-22, 2-11) opened the scoring on an RBI single from Chandler Seagle in the second inning. The Mountaineers were able to produce nine hits off Bennett, but the junior right-hander induced two double plays in the game to end threats in the first and the third.
A Troy fielding error with two outs in the third led to a pair of Appalachian State runs, but Bennett was able to settle down and pitch four straight scoreless innings.
Long saved a run for the Trojans in the third when he threw out Seagle at the plate after the App State catcher tried to score on Brandon Burris' single.
Clay Holcomb singled with two outs in the fifth and quickly stole second. Two pitches later, Reid Long singled him home to get the Trojans on the scoreboard. Logan Hill struck out in what appeared to end the inning, but the ball got away from the Mountaineer catcher and Long was able to score on the play courtesy of a throwing error. Matt Sanders delivered a two-out, RBI single in the sixth to tie the game.
In the eighth, David Hall reached base to start the frame after being hit by a pitch. Shaw Pinnell entered as a pinch runner and stole second. After a ground ball advanced him to third, Pinnell scored on a Peyton Fuller pinch-hit single to hand Troy a 4-3 advantage.
Long started the ninth inning by blasting a solo shot to right field, while Pinnell singled and later scored in the inning.
Jeremy McGowan pitched two scoreless innings to earn his third save of the season.
Troy and Appalachian State will play game two of the three-game series on Saturday at 1 p.m. (CT).
UT Arlington Comes Away with 10-6 Win over UL Monroe
MONROE, La. - A five-run eighth inning erased a late deficit for UT Arlington, as the Mavericks came away with a 10-6 comeback Sun Belt victory over ULM at Warhawk Field on Friday afternoon.
"It was a good comeback win," UT Arlington coach Darin Thomas said. "After they took the lead in the bottom of the seventh, we came right back and got a five spot and had the big home run by Levi [Scott]. He's a big, important piece to what we're trying to do and [Travis] Sibley had a big two-out hit. There were just some really good at-bats in that inning and I thought our pitching did a good job. It was a tough day to pitch, kind of windy, but we did a good job."
Clutch hitting helped push the Mavericks (14-14, 5-5) past the Warhawks (13-14, 3-7). UTA finished the day 3-of-5 with runners on third base, including six two-out RBI.
Sibley spurred the Mavericks offensively, going 3-of-4 with one run and one RBI. RJ Williams also came up big with a 3-of-4 performance that included a pair of runs.
Relief pitcher Jacob Moreland (2-1) picked up the win, pitching 3.2 innings while allowing five hits and two earned runs. Chad Nack was effective as the UTA starter, going 5.1 innings allowing 10 hits and four earned runs while striking out one.
After a scoreless first inning, the Mavericks got on the board first as they pushed four across in the top of the second. Darien McLemore got UTA off to a good start with a lead-off single to right field. Eric Tate moved McLemore to second base as he sent a line drive up the middle for a single. After Williams loaded the bases as he was hit by a pitch, a walk of Brady Cox brought in UTA's first run of the day.
In the next at-bat, Christian Hollie reached on a fielder's choice that made room for Tate to cross the plate. The Mavericks' final runs of the inning came off the bat of Matt McLean, whose single to center field brought in a pair of runs to put UTA on top 4-0.
After the Warhawks combined to score four total runs in the second, third and fourth innings, the Mavs brought in a go-ahead run when a wild pitch cleared way for McLean to cross the plate for a 5-4 lead.
After a two-run seventh for ULM inning put UTA behind 6-5, the Mavericks stormed back late with a five-run eighth inning highlighted by a three-run shot by Scott over the left field wall. The equalizing run came across for UTA with a sacrifice fly to left centerfield by McLean that scored Tate. Sibley was able to return the lead to the Mavs with a shot just over the head of the first baseman for a RBI single. Scott then tacked onto the lead in the next at-bat with his three-run shot that extended his hit streak to 14 straight games and put UTA on top 10-6.
The Mavericks recorded their 10 runs off of 12 hits with no errors. The Warhawks six runs came with 15 hits and a pair of errors.
"We're just worried about Game 1," Thomas said of Saturday's doubleheader against ULM. "That's what we talked about. With it being an early Friday game, it's going to be odd. We'll have a little time and just need to worry about Game 1 and when Game 2 gets here we'll get after it then."
The Mavericks will return to action on Saturday as they square off with the Warhawks in a doubleheader scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.
Texas State Blanks Baylor, 5-0
WACO, Texas – Texas State senior pitcher Scott Grist put together his best outing of the season, stymying the Baylor Bears with just a two-hit shutout. Baylor had no answer for Grist as he controlled the game from the mound to secure a win and clinch the series. The Bobcat bats gave him support with five runs en route to a 5-0 victory for Texas State and improve the Bobcats to 14-15-1 on the year.
Grist gave up both of his hits allowed in the first two innings. From there, he retired 15 consecutive batters until walking two with two outs in the seventh inning. After that, he sat down seven consecutive batters to close out the game. He pitched a season-high 115 pitches in the dominating performance.
The Bobcats were first on the board Friday night when Cedric Vallieres scored the first run of the game. He tallied the first hit, a liner up the middle, and David Paiz knocked a double down the left line after that to put both runners in scoring position. Tanner Hill ran out an infield bouncing single to score Vallieres and put the Bobcats up 1-0 in the top of the first.
In the second, Baylor committed two errors to help the Bobcats to a few more runs. Luke Sherley legged out an infield single with two outs to keep the inning alive for Texas State. After that, Cory Geisler knocked a hit through the right side, but the Bears committed two errors on the play to allow Sherley to score and Geisler to get to third. A squeeze bunt from Vallieres after that scored Geisler and put the Bobcats up 3-0 after two innings.
After that, the game became a defensive battle. Bobcat centerfielder Derek Scheible made the most impressive play. With just a bit of momentum after consecutive two-out walks, Baylor sent a shot to left centerfield. Scheible went far to his right to make a diving catch and keep the Bears scoreless in the inning.
Scheible's defensive play helped Texas State carry the momentum offensively with the bats in the top of the eighth. Hill knocked his third hit of the night and Scheible reached on a fielder's choice. With runners at first and second base, Jared Huber came up big with a double down the right field line to score two and put the Bobcats up, 5-0.
Hill led the squad from the plate on a 3-for-4 night with an RBI and a run. Meanwhile, Vallieres, Paiz and Huber all tallied two hits apiece with Huber knocking two RBI. Seven of nine Bobcats in the lineup struck for at least one hit to help Texas State tally 12 hits in the win.
Texas State looks to sweep Baylor in the series finale at 3 p.m. Saturday. After that, the Bobcats will return home to host Incarnate Word before heading to UALR for another Sun Belt Conference series over the weekend.
Jags Take Series Opener from A-State, 13-10
JONESBORO, Ark. – The University of South Alabama scored 10 runs in the first three innings en route to a 13-10 series-opening win over Arkansas State Friday at Tomlinson Field.
After a scoreless first inning, USA sent 10 batters to the plate and exploded for five runs in the top of the second. Cole Gleason singled to center field to lead off the inning, and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Matt Bolger. Ben Gann followed with an RBI double down the left-field line for a 1-0 Jaguar lead. Ryan Raspino then extended his hitting streak to 10 games with an RBI single to right field that plated Gann and doubled the USA lead. The Jags loaded bases two batters later after a bunt single by Cole Billingsley, followed by Jared Barnes reaching on a fielding error by ASU right-hander Tyler Zuber. Bud Collura then drew a walk to force home Raspino with the third run of the inning. Adam Ballew followed with an RBI fielder's choice to second that allowed Billingsley to score for a 4-0 USA lead. Danny Martinez then delivered a two-out RBI single to right-center field to score Barnes to extend the Jag lead to 5-0.
ASU answered in the bottom of the second when Tanner Ring reached on a leadoff single, stole second and scored on an RBI double to left field by Stuart Levy to cut the Jag lead to 5-1 and snap right-hander Kevin Hill's consecutive scoreless-innings streak at 16 1/3 innings.
The Jags pushed their lead to nine runs in the top of the third after sending 10 batters to the dish for the second straight inning. Bolger and Gann reached on consecutive singles. A sacrifice bunt by Raspino moved both runners into scoring position with one out. Billingsley followed with an RBI infield single to first base to score Bolger and push the USA lead to 6-1. A passed ball charged to ASU catcher Stuart Levy allowed Gann to score for a 7-1 USA lead. Consecutive walks by Zuber to Barnes and Collura loaded the bases with one out. Ballew then delivered a sacrifice fly to right field to allow Billingsley to score for an 8-1 Jag advantage. Following an ASU pitching change, Gleason singled to shallow center field to score Barnes and Collura and push the USA lead to 10-1.
"We were up 11 runs after four-and-a-half innings," head coach Mark Calvi said. "Our guys did a good job with arguably one of the better Friday-night guys in the league. We jumped on him, but the problem is that Arkansas State still had five innings left to hit. I give them credit. Trying to swing the bat against Kevin Hill wasn't working for them, but we didn't play our best defense behind him.
"Our guys have played exceptional for the last month-and-a-half, but we made some mistakes and they got some hits and the next thing you know they started creeping back into it. This is a very hard game, and when you don't make routine plays it gets even harder. But our guys were ready to play. We came in here on the road against one of the better Friday-night guys in the league, and we did what we needed to do. I'm proud of our guys for getting a win on Friday night."
An RBI double to right-center field by Bolger in the top of the fifth extended the USA lead to 11-1. Gann followed with an RBI groundout to shortstop to push the Jag advantage to 11 runs.
But Arkansas State scored nine unanswered runs from the fifth to the eighth to cut the Jaguar lead to two. ASU scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth, highlighted by a two-run home run by Austin Baker to cut the South Alabama lead to 12-5. An RBI double by Ty White cut the USA lead in half at 12-6 in the bottom of the sixth and an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh by Ring cut the ASU deficit to five runs.
Arkansas State plated three runs in the bottom of the eighth to cut the USA lead to two runs. The Red Wolves loaded the bases with one out in the inning, but Ben Taylor induced a 5-3 inning-ending double play to Collura at third off the bat of Ring to escape the jam.
"That double play was huge," Calvi said. "That was one heck of a play Bud Collura made; that was unquestionably our biggest defensive play of the game. I feel very thankful that it was hit to a senior who is in his third year with the program. He knew exactly what to do with it. He knew how fast the runner was and that he had time to go to the bag and then make the throw. Bud Collura has been huge for us, and he was big for us tonight. He's been exceptional for us this year."
South Alabama added its final run of the game on a two-out RBI single to center field by Bolger in the top of the ninth.
The Red Wolves brought the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the ninth after a leadoff single from Collin Massanelli and a hit by pitch from Taylor to Eric Wilcoxson with two outs. But Taylor ended the game with a strikeout of ASU pinch-hitter Ty Michelotti.
Every Jaguar starter recorded at least one hit in the game, led by Bolger who tied a career high with three hits and finished 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a run scored. Gann added two hits, including a double, two RBI and two runs scored. Baker went 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored to lead the Red Wolves offensively.
Hill (4-0) allowed seven earned runs on 11 hits and struck out six while issuing one walk to earn his fourth consecutive win in as many starts. Taylor tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings, and allowed just one hit with one strikeout and a walk to earn his third save of the season.
South Alabama will attempt to clinch the series in game two Saturday at 6 p.m.