Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 AIKEN, S.C. – The University of South Carolina Aiken baseball team swept Francis Marion in a doubleheader Sunday, winning by scores of 12-4 and 9-8 (in 10 innings).
The Pacers improve to 18-7 on the season and 9-6 against league foes.
In the opener, head coach Kenny Thomas' team pounded out 12 runs on 15 hits with two errors.
TJ Costen led the way with four hits for USC Aiken. Matt Bosse, Sean Miller and Chaz Pal all had three hits apiece while Randy Luckett added a pair of base knocks. Luckett, Miller and Pal had two RBI apiece while Bosse, Cory Bryant and Costen each contributed one RBI.
Costen and Pal each crossed home three times while Bosse and Zach Moon scored two runs apiece. Douglas Ard and Luckett scored once each.
Trevor Hutto worked seven innings, improving to 6-0 on the young season. He gave up four earned runs on eight hits. He struck out six batters. Sam Daniel came in and worked the last two frames, giving up just a pair of hits.
USC Aiken trailed 1-0 in the bottom of the first, but Costen evened the contest when he blasted a round-tripper. Two innings later, the Pacers tacked on three runs. Luckett's single to left center scored Pal. Two batters later, Miller laced a double down the right field line, allowing two more to cross home for a 4-1 edge. Pal launched a two-run homer in the bottom of the third, making it a 6-1 advantage for the home team.
Thomas' team got on the board again in the fifth with three more runs. Pal got things started when he singled home Costen, who had reached on an infield single. A double steal allowed Zach Moon to score. Later in the inning, Luckett singled in Pal.
The Patriots plated two runs in the top of the sixth off a homer and one more in the seventh on a wild pitch. However, USC Aiken answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the seventh. When Bryant reached on a fielder's choice, Douglas Ard and Bosse crossed home. The Pacers tacked on their last run of the game when Bosse singled in Costen in the bottom of the eighth.
In the second game, the Pacers trailed 1-0 in the bottom of the first, but Thomas' squad answered with four quick runs. Pal smashed a single to left, plating Costen and Belcher, giving the team a 2-1 lead. After a quick pitching change, USC Aiken went back on the attack. Luckett singled in Pal and Moon for a 4-1 margin.
The Patriots continued to fight hard, scoring a run in the fifth and sixth innings, but the Pacers answered with a run in the bottom of the sixth stanza when Miller lifted a sacrifice fly to center field, allowing Luckett to trot home.
FMU scored five runs in the seventh, taking an 8-5 lead. However, Thomas' team never gave up.
Costen blasted a solo homer to lead off the seventh, making it an 8-6 game. Two innings later, Costen doubled to left center field. With one down, Pal sent a towering shot over the left field fence, knotting the contest at 8-8.
The Pacers loaded the bases, but Miller's well-placed shot to right field was caught on a spectacular play, sending the teams into the 10th inning.
Nick Yobbi stepped in for the Pacers and quickly shut down the visitors as he struck out the side.
Kody Belcher led off the 10th with a sharply hit single to right field and quickly scampered to second on a wild pitch. Costen put down a well-executed bunt, allowing Belcher to reach third.
The Patriots countered by walking Moon and Pal to load the bases for Max Schoen, who had come in for Bosse as a pinch runner. Schoen lifted a fly ball to left field that the player caught. However, Belcher tagged and scored before the ball was thrown into the infield for the game-winning run.
For the game, Pal registered three hits and four RBI while Costen had three hits and scored three times. Miller, Moon and Luckett all had two hits apiece.
USC Aiken tallied nine runs on 16 hits with one error while the Patriots had eight runs on 13 hits with no miscues.
Matt Hissong struck out five. Joe Marlow, Cole Lee and James Lynch also saw time on the mound before Yobbi pitched a perfect ninth to get the win.
The Pacers return to action Wednesday when they host Newberry in a 6 p.m., game. Live stats, video and audio are available at PacerSports.com.
