Baseball Hosts Missouri In Weekend SEC Series

May 8, 2014

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina (36-13, 13-11 SEC) begins a three-game home series vs. Missouri (20-27, 6-18 SEC) on Friday night. First pitch is 7 p.m. with the game televised on SportSouth with Andy Demetra and Trey Dyson on the call. Saturday is Senior Day with first pitch at 3:15 p.m. It will also be televised on SportSouth with Demetra and Nick Belmonte handling the call. Sunday’s series finale is 1:30 p.m. and will be streamed live on the All Access Channel at GamecocksOnline. All three games can also be heard on the Gamecock IMG Network including flagship station, 107.5 FM, “The Game.” Derek Scott and Tommy Moody will call Friday and Saturday’s radio games with Demetra and Moody on the Sunday call.

A note to fans, the South Carolina baseball gameday shuttle location will be moved to Capital City Baseball Stadium for this weekend’s series vs. Missouri from Friday, May 9 – Sunday, May 11. The shuttle move is to alleviate anticipated parking problems associated with USC Graduation on Friday and Saturday and the Vice President’s arrival on campus on Friday. The change in location will ensure that the USC Baseball traffic does not coincide with the USC Commencement traffic. The street address for Capital City Baseball Stadium is 301 Assembly St., SC 29201. Shuttle operation and times will remain the same.

South Carolina is ranked No. 11 by the ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll, No. 12 by the NCBWA, No. 14 by Perfect Game, No. 17 by Baseball America and No. 19 by Collegiate Baseball.

LIVE COVERAGE
Radio: Gamecock Radio Network affiliates/Flagship WNKT FM 107.5 “The Game” in Columbia. Derek Scott and Tommy Moody will call the action on Friday and Saturday. Andy Demetra and Moody will call Sunday’s game.

Internet: Additional coverage on Twitter @GamecockBasebll and Facebook/Gamecocksonline

Television: SportSouth on Friday & Saturday. Andy Demetra and Trey Dyson will call Friday’s game. Andy Demetra and Nick Belmonte will call Saturday’s game.

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Live Stats

PROBABLE PITCHING ROTATION
Friday
South Carolina – Jordan Montgomery (Jr. LHP) 6-4, 3.33 ERA, 73.0 IP, 23 BB, 69 SO
Missouri – Brett Graves (Jr. RHP) 3-4, 3.25 ERA, 80.1 IP, 12 BB, 55 SO

Saturday
South Carolina – Jack Wynkoop (So. LHP) 6-3, 2.21 ERA, 73.1 IP, 9 BB, 52 SO
Missouri – TBA

Sunday
South Carolina – Wil Crowe (Fr. RHP) 6-3, 3.15 ERA, 68.2 IP, 18 BB, 42 SO
Missouri – TBA

THE MISSOURI SERIES
South Carolina won two of three games at Missouri last year in the first-ever meeting between the two schools on the diamond. South Carolina won game one 4-1 and split a doubleheader with a 2-0 win and a 4-0 loss.

In game one, right-hander Evan Beal struck out a career-high 10 batters on the way to the 4-1 victory. Grayson Greiner homered and scored a pair of runs. Tyler Webb worked 1.1 perfect innings of relief for his sixth save.

The Gamecocks won the series and first game of a doubleheader with a 2-0 win behind 8.1 scoreless innings from Nolan Belcher. He combined with Webb for a five-hit shutout. South Carolina broke ahead 1-0 in the third inning with an unearned run. Max Schrock reached base with a one-out single to center. With two outs and Schrock on first base, Joey Pankake belted a single into right-center on a hit and run. On the play, Missouri center fielder Logan Pearson mishandled his fielding attempt and Schrock kept hustling and scored all the way from first base to give the Gamecocks a one-run lead. Chase Vergason increased the lead to 2-0 in the fifth inning with a solo home run. On Brett Graves’ 1-0 pitch, Vergason turned on a fastball that went over the wall in right field.

In the series finale, Missouri raced out to a three-run lead in the first two innings with three pitchers combining for a five-hit shutout to defeat the Gamecocks 4-0. Missouri reliever Keaton Steele earned the win. He worked six scoreless innings and allowed just three this and one walk while striking out seven batters.

LAST TIME OUT
South Carolina belted out 11 hits and also reached base with 12 walks and three hit by pitches on the way to a 15-1 win over Wofford on Wednesday night at Carolina Stadium. The Gamecocks improved to 36-13 while the Terriers dropped to 25-25 for the year.

Five Gamecock pitchers combined to limit the Terriers to just five hits on the evening. Sophomore right-hander Curt Britt earned the win with two innings of relief allowing one run on three hits. He is now 3-0 on the year. Wofford starter Jordan Accetta suffered the loss and is now 3-3 on the year. He allowed five runs on four hits in 1.2 innings with four walks.

PICKED UP
Next Thursday’s South Carolina vs. Vanderbilt game will be televised on ESPNU, first pitch at 7:30 p.m. ET.

A LOOK BACK
South Carolina won one of three games last weekend at Georgia. South Carolina is third in the SEC East and tied for sixth overall in the league with six conference games remaining.

GREINER SHINES
Junior catcher Grayson Greiner was named the 2013-14 USC Co-Male Student-Athlete of the Year alongside Gamecock football/basketball standout Bruce Ellington. Greiner has been recognized in the baseball circles as well as he has been was named to the Johnny Bench Award Watch List for the top catcher in college baseball and is on USA Baseball’s Midseason Watch List for the Golden Spikes Award.

Greiner continues to impress going 2-for-3 with his team-leading eighth homer of the year vs. Wofford. He also had a solid weekend at the plate and behind the dish in the Georgia series. Greiner hit .444 (4-for-9) with a pair of homers, three runs scored and four RBI. He was 2-for-3 with a solo homer in the 3-1 loss and followed that up going 1-for-2 with two runs scored, a two-run homer and three walks in the 5-2 victory over the Bulldogs. Greiner leads the Gamecocks with a .345 average (57-for-165) with a team-high eight homers and 47 RBI as well as a .418 on-base percentage and a .552 slugging percentage. Greiner is doing well in the league with a .344 mark (31-for-90) in 24 SEC games with four homers and 22 RBI vs. conference foes.

Greiner was named SEC Player of the Week on March 31 after his play in the Tennessee series. Greiner hit a walk-off grand slam with two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning to lift South Carolina to a 9-6 win over Tennessee

His play along with Jordan Gore’s walk-off homer was No. 1 on ESPN’s SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays of the Day.

Greiner won the Tom Price award as the MVP for South Carolina in the weekend series vs. Clemson. Greiner hit .400 (4-for-10) for the weekend with four runs scored. His grand slam homer helped lift South Carolina to a 9-6 win. He had a team-high four walks on the weekend as well.

SOME SUPERLATIVES
South Carolina is 7-4 in one-run games this year as well as 16-11 in games decided by three runs or less. South Carolina is now 34-8 (.810) for the season when allowing five runs or less in a contest as well as 18-1 (.947) when scoring six runs or more. The Gamecocks are 31-4 (.886) when out-hitting the opponent.

SEDDON SEALS IT
Junior right-hander Joel Seddon picked up his SEC-leading 13th save of the year in Saturday’s 5-3 win over Georgia. Seddon also pitched a scoreless inning of relief in Friday’s 3-1 loss to the Bulldogs. Seddon is 2-1 on the year with a 0.56 ERA in 21 relief appearances. He has 40 strikeouts to seven walks in 32.1 innings with just 15 hits allowed, opponents batting .138 against him. Eight of Seddon’s 13 saves have come in SEC play. He is 13-for-14 in save opportunities this year. With 13 saves, Seddon is tied for seventh on the USC single-season list for saves in a year with Matt Price from 2012. He has been named to the NCBWA Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List.

USC Single-Season Top 10 Save List
1. Blake Taylor (2002) 21 *led the SEC and the nation in saves
T2. Matt Price (2011) 20 *led the SEC and the nation in saves
T2. Chad Blackwell (2004) 20 *led the SEC and the nation in saves
4. Lee Gronkiewicz (2001) 19 *led the SEC and the nation in saves
5. Tyler Webb (2013) 17 *2nd in the SEC and 7th in the nation in saves
6. Scott Barber (2000) 15 *1st in the SEC and tied for 6th in the nation in saves
T7. Joel Seddon (2014) 13 *currently leads the SEC, Tied for 6th in the nation in saves
T7. Matt Price (2012) 13 *1st in the SEC and 12th in the nation in saves
T9. Brian Beatson (1990) 12
T9. Brian Beatson (1988) 12

SOUTH CAROLINA BULLPEN
South Carolina’s bullpen is 16-1 with a 1.04 ERA in 182.0 innings pitched this year. The bullpen has 186 strikeouts to 60 walks, opponents batting .184 against the relievers. The relief staff has limited opponents to 26 runs, 21 earned, on 118 hits.

The numbers are very similar for SEC games with a 6-1 record along with eight saves and a 0.97 ERA in 83.1 conference innings pitched. The relievers have given up 13 runs, nine earned, on 57 hits with 80 strikeouts to 27 walks. Conference opponents are hitting .197 against the Gamecock relievers.

LOOKING CLOSER AT GAMECOCK RELIEVERS
2014 – 17-1, 1.07 ERA, 187.0 IP, 121 H, 27 R, 22 ER, 61 BB, 193 SO, Opp BA .184
2013 – 19-10, 3.24 ERA, 225.1 IP, 219 H, 104 R, 81 ER, 69 BB, 221 SO, Opp BA .249
2012 – 21-10, 2.76 ERA, 250.2 IP, 197 H, 83 R, 77 ER, 105 BB, 270 SO, Opp BA .217
2011 – 23-4, 2.42 ERA, 249.1 IP, 201 H, 81 R, 67 ER, 115 BB, 241 SO, Opp BA .223
2010 – 26-5, 3.37 ERA, 264.2 IP, 207 H, 117 R, 99 ER, 105 BB, 289 SO Opp BA .216

MINCEY WITH AN APPEARANCE
Junior right-hander Cody Mincey pitched 2.2 scoreless innings in Saturday’s 5-2 win over Georgia. Mincey is 4-0 on the year with a 0.61 ERA in 29.2 innings. He has 41 strikeouts to 14 walks in 29.2 innings pitched with opponents batting .176 against him.

K-MART
Junior first baseman Kyle Martin tallied a pair of four-hit games two weeks. Martin had four hits in the 6-1 win over USC Upstate and went 4-for-5 with a run scored and two RBI in Sunday’s 9-3 win over Alabama. Martin owns a .330 average (63-for-191) with 31 runs scored, eight doubles, four homers and 26 RBI. Martin leads the Gamecocks with 19 multi-hit games. He owns a .391 on-base percentage and a .435 slugging percentage. Martin is hitting .293 (29-for-99) in league games.

MONTGOMERY GETS IT STARTED
Despite a loss on Friday, junior left-hander Jordan Montgomery delivered a quality start. Montgomery allowed three runs, one earned, on seven hits in seven-plus innings with no walks and a pair of strikeouts. Montgomery is 6-4 with a 3.33 ERA in 73.0 innings with 23 walks to 69 strikeouts.

JACK OF ALL TRADES
Sophomore left-hander Jack Wynkoop earned a win in Saturday’s 5-2 win with six innings of work allowing two runs on five hits with a walk and three strikeouts. Wynkoop improved to 6-3 on the year. He has a 2.21 ERA in a team-high 73.1 innings pitched with just nine walks and 52 strikeouts as well. Opponents are hitting .255 against him.

A LITTLE BIT OF ENGLISH
Junior outfielder Tanner English hit .500 (5-for-10) in the Alabama series as well with two runs scored and two RBI. English is hitting .203 (49-for-168) for the year with a team-high 12 stolen bases. English’s .310 average in SEC games (26-for-84) is second-best on the team as well.

CLUTCH CONE
Freshman outfielder Gene Cone had two of the biggest hits in the weekend series vs. Alabama. Cone reached base in all four plate appearances in Friday’s 9-3 win with three walks and a key three-run triple. He followed that up with two-out two-run single that would give the Gamecocks a lead they would not relinquish in Sunday’s 9-3 win. Cone had a team-high five RBI and two runs scored vs. the Crimson Tide.

Cone came through for the Gamecocks in both victories at Auburn two weeks ago. He belted a career-high three hits including a game-tying RBI double in the top of the ninth inning to help South Carolina rally for a 3-2 win at Auburn on Saturday. He then followed that up on Sunday going 1-for-3 with game-winning RBI sacrifice fly in the eighth inning of South Carolina’s 4-3 win at Auburn. Cone tied his career-high with three hits in Wednesday’s 6-1 win over USC Upstate. He is batting .213 (14-for-67) with a .244 average (10-for-41) in SEC games. He also has a .341 on-base percentage.

DC DELIVERS
Sophomore infielder DC Arendas hit .444 (4-for-9) in the Alabama series with a team-best five runs scored as well as a pair of RBI. He was 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a RBI in the 9-3 win on Sunday and scored two runs and drove in another in the 9-3 win on Friday. Arendas is hitting .276 (37-for-134) with a .382 on-base percentage.

A JOLT FROM JORDAN
Freshman infielder Jordan Gore tallied his first career multi-RBI game going 3-for-4 with a RBI and a sacrifice in the 9-3 win on Sunday vs. Alabama. Gore came up with his second game-winning hit of his career with a RBI single in the ninth inning of South Carolina’s 3-2 win over Auburn. Gore also had a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 14th in a 3-2 win over Tennessee.

AT THE PLATE, ON THE MOUND AND IN THE FIELD
South Carolina is hitting .282 (470-for-1669) as a team with a .360 on-base percentage and a .381 slugging percentage. The Gamecocks own a SEC-best 2.07 ERA in 443.0 innings with 382 strikeouts to 130 walks, opponents batting .221 against the squad. South Carolina is fielding .975 on the year, second-best in the league.

WIDENER SHOWS VERSATILITY
Freshman Taylor Widener pitched a perfect inning of relief with a strikeout in 15-1 win over Wofford. He also had 0.2 perfect innings at Georgia and added a single and a run scored as well in his lone plate appearance in Sunday’s game. Widener is 3-0 on the mound with a 0.89 ERA in 17 appearances. He has 29 strikeouts in 30.1 innings; opponents are batting .144 against him.

PANKAKE AT THE PLATE
Junior infielder Joey Pankake is hitting .292 (50-for-171) with a team-high 43 runs scored. Pankake’s on-base percentage is .386 with a .415 slugging mark. He is fourth in the SEC in runs scored. He has 13 of his 23 RBI this year in SEC games.

MOONEY IN THE MIDDLE
Sophomore shortstop Marcus Mooney was a spark plug in Sunday’s 9-3 win over Alabama going 3-for-6 with a RBI and a run scored. He is up to a .273 average (45-for-165) at the plate. He has scored 22 runs and driven in 18 runs as well. Mooney has 12 of his 20 RBI with two outs this year.

CARDIAC GAMECOCKS
The Gamecocks have won six games this season when trailing entering the seventh inning including four wins when trailing entering the ninth inning. South Carolina is outscoring opponents 89-22 from the seventh inning through extra innings on the year. From the sixth inning to the end, South Carolina is also outscoring opponents 140-35.

GREAT SCOTT
Freshman right-hander Reed Scott has been effective in a middle relief role for the Gamecocks. Scott pitched six scoreless innings of relief to earn his first career win in a Gamecock uniform and kept the Gamecocks alive in a 9-6 come-from-behind victory vs. Tennessee.

Scott is 1-0 with a 0.83 ERA on the year. He has allowed just three runs on 23 hits in 32.2 innings, opponents hitting .205 against him.

HOME SWEET HOME
South Carolina has eight sellouts this year and 38 in school history at Carolina Stadium. South Carolina has totaled 248,360 in attendance in 33 home games for an average of 7,526 per contest.

South Carolina is 183-37 in all-time games at Carolina Stadium, a winning percentage of .832. That is the best winning percentage of all 14 SEC schools since opening the facility.

CROWE MAKES AN IMPACT
Freshman right-hander Wil Crowe was effective in a no-decision in Sunday’s 9-3 win over Alabama. He allowed three runs in five-plus innings of work. Crowe is 6-3 with a 3.15 ERA in 68.2 innings pitched.

Crowe was honored twice by the Southeastern Conference in the first two weeks of the regular season. On February 24, he earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors after working 6.1 scoreless innings in a 6-0 win over Eastern Kentucky with just four hits allowed and one walk to pick up his second win of the season.

The first week, Crowe was SEC Pitcher of the Week. He had an impressive debut as he hurled 6.1 hitless innings in his first career start. Crowe walked just one and hit one batter while finishing with five strikeouts to earn his first career win in a Gamecock uniform. Bucknell had just one runner reach second base and none reach third base while Crowe was on the mound. Crowe retired 13 consecutive batters in a row before coming out of the game as he reached his pitch count total.

VINNY
Junior left-hander Vince Fiori pitched one scoreless inning of relief in 15-1 win over Wofford. Fiori has a 0.00 ERA in 17.0 innings pitched with 17 strikeouts to seven walks. Opponents own a .177 average against him.

REAGAN SUPPLIES RELIEF
Freshman left-hander Josh Reagan pitched 2.2 scoreless innings of relief in Sunday’s 5-3 loss to Georgia. Reagan has been very effective this year with a 3-0 record and a 0.37 ERA in 24.1 innings with 23 hits allowed. He has 20 strikeouts to four walks as well.

STARTERS
Two Gamecock players have started all 49 games this year, junior first baseman Kyle Martin and junior center fielder Tanner English.

HARRINGTON HIGHLIGHT
Junior outfielder Patrick Harrington had a career-high three RBI in the 15-1 win over Wofford. He also tallied a key RBI single in the 5-2 win at Georgia and followed that up with his first two-hit game of his career including a RBI double in the 5-3 loss vs. the Bulldogs.

Harrington recorded his first hit and had a RBI in the 8-0 win over Davidson. In his first start vs. Florida, Harrington walked twice and drove in a run as he started in left field for the Gamecocks. He also walked twice and scored a run in Tuesday’s 4-1 loss vs. Charleston Southern.

MAX IT OUT
Sophomore infielder Max Schrock had a flair for the dramatic in the Ole Miss series. Despite a sprained ankle, Schrock came on in a pinch-hit role and without taking batting practice before the game, launched a two-out two-run homer to right field in the bottom of the 9th to help the Gamecocks rally to a 5-4 10-inning win over the Rebels. The previous day, Schrock tied a career-high with four hits including a homer as well as two RBI and two runs scored in the 6-4 loss.

Schrock has five homers and 15 RBI.