LEXINGTON, Va. – The Wofford College baseball team scored three runs in the eighth inning to take a 3-2 win over VMI at Gray-Minor Stadium on Saturday. The Keydets scored two unearned runs in the fourth inning and held the Terriers off the scoreboard until the eighth inning when Wofford scored three runs on one hit.
Wofford is 24-14 overall and 12-6 in the Southern Conference. VMI is 10-23 overall and 6-12 in league play. The Terriers win the weekend series against the Keydets by taking the first and third games.
NOTABLES
- The Terriers have played in eleven one-run games this season and are 9-2 in those games.
- In the Southern Conference, Wofford has now won five of the six weekend series played.
- Wofford had five hits in the game to four for the Keydets. Nolen Hester led the Terriers with two hits.
- Wofford starter Elliot Carney worked 5.2 innings with two unearned runs allowed on four hits and seven strikeouts. Clay Schwaner (3-0) did not allow a hit in 2.1 innings with two strikeouts. Dalton Rhadans earned his fifth save of the season by striking out two batters in the ninth.
- Tyler Bradt started for VMI and did not allow a run in seven innings on four hits with four strikeouts. Adam Jewell (1-6) gave up three runs on one hit in a third of an inning. Jack Thompson walked one batter. Ryan Huffman went the final 1.2 innings with one strikeout.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Jack Renwick doubled for Wofford in the first inning and the Keydets had a double in the second inning, but neither team scored.
- Wofford added two hits in the top of the third. In the bottom of the fourth inning the Keydets had runners on the corners with one out after a single and error. A sacrifice fly scored a run and with two outs an RBI single made it 2-0.
- Cameron Gill singled with one out in the top of the fifth and Matty Brown walked with two outs, but both were stranded.
- The Terriers had a pair of runners on base after walks in the top of the sixth, but the Keydets turned a double play to end the scoring chance. VMI left two on base at the close of the sixth inning.
- After both teams were retired in order in the seventh inning, Wofford drew a lead-off walk by Brennen Dorighi and a single by Nolen Hester. They advanced into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt and a walk to Lawson Hill loaded the bases. A walk to Trey Yunger scored a run and Zeb Roos was hit by a pitch to tie the game at 2-2. A sacrifice fly by John Dempsey gave the Terriers a 3-2 lead.
- In the bottom of the eighth, VMI had a lead-off walk before a double play and strikeout ended the inning.
- Shane Lussier walked to lead off the ninth and he stole second but was unable to score. The Keydets were retired in order in the bottom of the ninth on a fly ball and two strikeouts.
QUOTABLE
Pitcher
Clay Schwaner – "It was a really good day of baseball for both sides.
Elliot Carney gave us a great start and put some great pitches on the field. I really learned a lot about their hitters from Carney's aggressiveness and had a great game plan to attack their hitters right out of the pen. With how resilient our team is, I never had a doubt that we were going to score runs late in that game. Our mindset as a pitching staff was to come in and just keep the score where it was. It was a big series win for us on the road especially with how well VMI has been playing and how challenging it can be to play at their park. It was also a huge win for us keeping our momentum going forward into our upcoming SoCon series."
ON DECK
The Terriers will travel to Georgia State on Tuesday for a 4:00 p.m. contest before returning home to host Samford for a three-game weekend series.
