South Carolina takes advantage of late inning blunders to win series opener
The crowd at Founders Park had been buzzing all afternoon, ready for something big to happen.
Then it did.
With two outs in the seventh inning, Ethan Petry hit a long fly ball into left center field. After continuing to carry, it looked like the ball would be tracked down for the final out. But instead, the ball went off Vanderbilt centerfielder Calvin Hewett’s glove. And unsurprisingly, the place erupted.
This would be the break through at-bat in a five-run inning for the Gamecocks (17-5, 2-2 SEC) that led to an 8-4 win over the No. 3 Commodores on Saturday.
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On the mound, Eli Jones was absolutely brilliant for the Gamecocks. He worked through the Vanderbilt lineup one time through without allowing any baserunners.
While Jones was shoving, South Carolina managed to break the stalemate. With two outs in the third, Will Tippett picked up the game’s first hit with a single into left. Parker Noland followed suit with a single into center and Cole Messina walked to load the bases.
On a 1-1 pitch, Kennedy Jones grounded down the third base line. Vanderbilt’s Davis Diaz had a beat on the ball, making a diving stop. But by the time his throw went across the diamond, Jones had reached first safely to drive in the first run of the game.
Looking to do more damage, Petry got ahead in the count 3-1 and worked a bases loaded walk to make it a 2-0 lead. South Carolina had broken the ice, all with two outs.
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Back out on the hill, Jones continued to wheel and deal. Vanderbilt had no answers for the right-hander as he worked through six perfect innings.
As Jones trotted back out to the mound for the seventh, the sun started to shine through the gray skies. Maybe this was a sign from the heavens. Maybe this was the day everything would align.
But with the shift on, RJ Austin singled through the right side to leadoff the frame. After giving up a walk to the next batter, Jones got a groundout that moved both runners into scoring position.
Without much hesitation, pitching coach Matt Williams came out to the mound to make a pitching change. Sitting at just 77 pitches, it was a move that seemed a bit surprising, but in a position to try and win the series opener, South Carolina was not taking any chances.
The Gamecocks turned to Chris Veach to get out of the jam and preserve Jones’ chance to get the win. He got a groundout to short, which brought home a run for the Commodores. Then, Diaz tied the game as he hit a hard grounder at short for an RBI single.
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With the game now tied, Jones could no longer qualify for the win. But it was still a tremendous start for him, his best of the year. He pitched 6.1 innings without allowing a run while striking out four and walking one.
But in the home half of the seventh, the Gamecocks had a prime opportunity to take the lead back. With two outs, Austin booted a routine grounder to first, allowing Noland to reach safely. One batter later, Messina hit a grounder to third, which couldn’t be fielded cleanly, resulting in another error and a 3-2 lead.
After Petry broke the game open with his big swing, Talmadge LeCroy went the other way and flicked a single into right, scoring another run.
In two-out situations, the offense went 5-for-14 (.357) and scored seven runs. After struggling so much in situational spots, this was a massive step in the right direction.
Moving to the eighth, the Commodores got a run back as Matthew Polk launched a solo homer into left. But South Carolina didn’t waste any time responding as Gavin Casas hit a single through the left side, scoring Dylan Brewer from second. This made it an 8-3 lead in the home have lf of the inning.
Looking to nail things down in the ninth, Veach came back out on 32 pitches. He quickly put two runners on to start things off. After getting the next two batters out, Polk ripped a single inside the third base line to bring home a run.
But only needing one more out, South Carolina called on Garrett Gainey to seal the deal. After hitting a batter, he induced a ground out to second to slam the door.
Up next: South Carolina is back in action for game two of the doubleheader on Saturday. First pitch is at 4:50 p.m. on SEC Network Plus. Though not confirmed, Dylan Eskew (2-2, 3.91 ERA) would be the probable starting pitcher on the mound.
