April 2, 2008
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Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina scored seven runs in the first inning and Justin Smoak and Phil Disher hit back-to-back homers in the eighth inning as the Gamecocks defeated Davidson 9-2 on Wednesday evening in non-conference baseball action at Sarge Frye Field. Carolina improves to 20-7 on the year while the loss drops Davidson to 8-15 on the year. Senior right-hander Sean Wideberg struck out a career-high nine batters to pick up his second win of the season. The Gamecocks travel to Athens, Ga. this weekend for a three-game set with Georgia beginning on Friday night.
In only his third start at Carolina, Wideberg went a career-high 5.2 innings to improve to 2-0 on the year. His nine strikeouts were the highest total by a Gamecock pitcher in a single game on the year. He allowed just two runs on two hits. Davidson starter Andy Bass lasted only 0.2 innings and gave up seven runs on six hits with two walks. He is 0-3 on the year.
The Gamecocks gave Wideberg all he needed in the first inning sending 11 batters to the plate to take a 7-0 lead. After a Reese Havens double and a walk to Whit Merrifield, James Darnell hit a three-run homer to left center to put USC on the scoreboard. It was Darnell’s team-leading ninth home run of the year. Parker Bangs and Harley Lail each added RBI hits with Havens getting his second hit of the evening, a RBI double to put Carolina on top by seven runs.
Davidson would score single runs in the third and sixth inning off Wideberg. Chase FitzPatrick had a two-out RBI base hit to score Matt Ray in the third inning. Ray would also drive in a run in the sixth inning as he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to allow FitzPatrick to score the second run of the game for the Wildcats.
With the Gamecocks up by five runs, Carolina struck for two more in the bottom of the eighth inning on the back of Justin Smoak and Phil Disher’s consecutive home runs. Smoak launched his sixth of the year to right field putting him at a tie for third on the USC All-Time list at 45 career homers, three short of the school record. Smoak’s 45 home runs put him past Landon Powell, who had 44 career homers from 2001-04 in a Gamecock uniform. Disher then connected with his fourth hit of the game, a homer to right center. It was his eighth home run of the year. Smoak and Disher have gone back-to-back twice this season, the first time since Opening Day vs. East Carolina.
South Carolina out-hit Davidson 14-3 with Disher’s four hits leading the way. Harley Lail had three hits with Havens and Bangs finishing with two apiece. Andrew Crisp’s hitting streak ended at 19 games.
