GREENWOOD, S.C. – The USCA baseball team opened the three-game series at Lander with a 15-5 seven-inning victory Thursday evening.
The Pacers are now 26-10 on the year, including 14-5 in PBC play.
Head coach
Keith Gorman's team pushed across four runs in the second inning.
Salvatore Laimo led off the stanza with a walk and moved to second on a base hit by
Maverick Grigsby. With two down and two in scoring position,
Osmin Melendez roped a single to left field, making it 2-0.
Evan Harding extended the lead to 4-0 with a two-run shot over the left field wall.
Yariel Diaz and
Blake Martin posted back-to-back singles in the third frame. Laimo's base hit drove home Diaz before Martin scored on a wild pitch for the six-run cushion.
Leading 6-3 in the fourth, Martin was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, driving in Melendez. Laimo singled home Harding for an 8-3 score. Two batters later – and with the bases still loaded –
Johann Rodriguez drew a full count walk, plating
Chancellor Jennings.
Donovan Glisson's two-strike double allowed Martin and Laimo to score, extending the margin to eight, 11-3. After another pitching change, Rodriguez scored on a passed ball.
Up 12-3 in the fifth, Harding tripled and scored on Diaz's fielder's choice. Martin's base knock put runners on the corners and Laimo singled home Diaz, making it 14-3. Holding a 14-5 edge in the top of the seventh, Martin stole home on a double steal attempt for a 10-run advantage.
For the game, Harding had three hits, including a home run and a triple, drove in two runs and scored three times. Laimo tallied three hits, drove in three and scored twice. His final hit marked his 200
th career base knock. Martin and Melendez each tallied two hits. Melendez drove in two while Martin scored three times. Melendez and Diaz each crossed home twice while Glisson drove in two.
On the mound,
Joseph Rauscher worked five innings for the win. He had five strikeouts.
Luke Norman tossed the final two innings in relief and recorded a pair of strikeouts.
The Pacers return to action Friday at Lander at 5 p.m. Live stats and video will be available at PacerSports.com.
