Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 AIKEN, SC--Senior
Ashley Farr became the Pacers' all-time hit king and
Steve Dunham notched his first win wearing the cardinal and white as USC Aiken (14-14, 7-8 PBC) split a Peach Belt Conference doubleheader with 16th ranked Georgia College & State University (17-11, 5-7 PBC) on Saturday afternoon at Roberto Hernandez Stadium. The Pacers won game one 7-3 before falling in the night cap 9-7.
With game one's win, head coach
Kenny Thomas recorded his 150th victory at USCA. The Pacers also won their third PBC series in three tries at home, taking the series with the Bobcats for the first time since 2000. Farr, now with 227 career hits, breaks Kirby Langley's (1997-2000) old mark of 225.
In the first game, the Pacers charged ahead 5-1 after five innings and finally gave Dunham some run support as he held the Bobcats at bay for his first win. Dunham (1-6) entered the game with a 2.83 ERA, but was 0-6 thanks to just 1.67 runs of support per game in his six previous decisions.
Farr and
Robert Davis had RBI groundouts in the first inning to give USCA an early 2-0 lead.
Brandon Barenie added an RBI single up the middle in the second and Key doubled down the left field line to plate Davis in the third as the Pacers led 4-1.
Barenie finished 2-for-4 with three RBI to lead USCA. Davis was also 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI while
Daniel Quartararo, yesterday's hero, went 3-for-5 with one run scored.
Barenie doubled to left center in the eighth, pushing across
Ryan Steen and
Chris Sheehan to make it 7-2.
In the top of the ninth, Jamie Langham hit the second of his two home runs in the game, a solo shot to left field to set the final margin at 7-3. Langham was 2-for-2 with two RBI and three runs scored, but no other Bobcat managed more than one hit.
Dunham scattered seven hits, allowing three earned runs, walking two and striking out six in the complete game effort.
Billy Leigh (3-3) surrendered five runs, two earned, on eight hits, striking out six in the loss for GC&SU. Michael Buck gave up two earned runs on two hits in 1.1 innings of relief.
In game two, GC&SU woke up the bats and claimed an 8-3 lead after four of the seven innings. Dan Habel and Nick Waldrip had RBI singles in the first inning to give the Bobcats a 3-0 advantage.
USC Aiken quickly erased that deficit with three of their own in the bottom half of the first highlighted by
Ashley Farr's (3) two-run blast to right center. Barenie's RBI groundout plated Davis to knot it up at 3-3.
Jose Leger's sac fly, Habel's RBI single up the middle, and Langham's RBI double down the left field line again put the Bobcats up 6-3. Leger hit is first of two homers in the game in the fourth to make it 8-3.
Leger went 2-for-3 with four RBI and two runs scored. Habel added a 2-for-3 performance with two RBI and one run scored.
Trailing by five in the bottom of the fifth, the Pacers pushed across three runs. Barenie singled up the middle,
Tony Hanks reached on a fielder's choice, and
Mike Cunningham singled to center field, all driving in a run to pull within 8-6.
In their last at bats and down 9-6, Key (5) led off the seventh with a home run to left center to make it 9-7.
Bob Hatcher and Hanks singled, then Quartararo drew a two out walk to load the bases for freshman
Zach Cooper. Working against one of the Bobcats' aces, Matt Goyen, brought on to close the game in the seventh, Cooper battled the count to 3-2, but was caught looking on strike three.
Key went 3-for-4 with one RBI and two runs scored to lead USCA. He also extended his hitting streak to 19 games. Quartararo and Hatcher each had two hits while Farr and Barenie combined for four RBI.
Claussen (2-2) was chased after 1.0 inning of work giving up five runs, three earned, on four hits and one walk in the loss.
Peden Rucker and
Chad McMurray sandwiched an inning worth of work between
Nick Wandless who tossed 4.0 innings, allowing three earned runs on three hits, walking three and striking out six.
Spell (3-3) got the win for GC&SU surrendering six runs, five earned, on eight hits and four walks, striking out five. Goyen (1) notched his first save of the season by registering the final two outs of the game.
USC Aiken will host Saint Andrews on Tuesday, March 23 at 6:00 PM. GC&SU will play at Georgia Southwestern on Wednesday, March 24 at 3:00 PM.
GAME ONE
#16 GC&SU..........010 000 101 - 3 7 2
USC Aiken..........211 010 02x - 7 10 0
E - Serafin; Leigh. DP - Bobcats 1. LOB - Bobcats 6; Pacers 6. 2B - Caruso(5); Habel(5); Farr(5); Davis(5); Key(12); Barenie(4). HR - Langham 2(7). HBP - Langham; Steen. SH - Cooper 2(7). SB - Langham(12); Hanks(1). CS - Hanks.
Boxscore (Game One)
GAME TWO
#16 GC&SU..........330 200 1 - 9 9 1
USC Aiken..........300 030 1 - 7 12 2
E - Leger; Key; Claussen. DP - Pacers 2. LOB - Bobcats 4; Pacers 10. 2B - Benson(4); Langham(2); Stancil(1); Quartararo(6). HR - Leger 2(5); Farr(3); Key(5). HBP - Caruso. SH - Mills(3). SF - Leger(3). SB - Mills 2(9); Caruso(3). CS - Waldrip.
