March 21, 2011
Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina (14-4) returns to action on Tuesday night hosting College of Charleston (15-6) at Carolina Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. with the game televised on SportSouth. Andy Demetra and Larry Conley will call the action. The game is also available on the Gamecock Radio Network with Derek Scott and Tommy Moody handling the broadcasting duties. Live Gametracker stats are also available at GamecocksOnline.com. Carolina is ranked No. 4 this week in the Baseball America Top 25 and USA Today/ESPN baseball coaches poll as well as No. 7 by Collegiate Baseball.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Tuesday
South Carolina Colby Holmes (So. RHP) 1-0, 5.00 ERA, 9.0 IP, 3 BB, 9 SO
CofC Robert Jeroszko (Sr. RHP) 2-1, 3.13 ERA, 23.0 IP, 3 BB, 24 SO
This will be the first of two meetings this season between South Carolina and College of Charleston. Both schools will also meet at Patriots Point in Charleston, S.C. on April 19 as well. South Carolina leads the all-time series history 42-5 vs. the Cougars.
College of Charleston head coach Monte Lee served as an assistant for South Carolina head coach Ray Tanner from 2003-2008 and was on staff when the Gamecocks made a pair of CWS appearances (2003, 2004).
NOTES:
All three games last weekend were near-capacity crowds at Carolina Stadium. Friday’s game drew 8,069 fans, Saturday’s game the attendance was 8,105 and Sunday was a 8,012 mark. The three-game total was 24,186. That is the second highest three-game series total in Carolina Stadium history.
Senior infielder Adrian Morales was 5-for-11 (.455) in the Georgia series with a pair of RBI as well as a run scored. He was 3-for-4 with a run scored in the 2-1 win over Georgia on Saturday. His run was the game-winner in that victory. Morales currently leads the team in hitting with a .386 average (22-for-57) with a pair of HR and 14 RBI as well as 14 runs scored. His .513 on-base percentage is fourth highest in the SEC.
Junior left-hander Steven Neff had his second consecutive quality start in Saturday’s victory over Georgia. In a no-decision, Neff worked a career-high seven innings and allowed one run on three hits with four strikeouts and one walk. For the year, Neff is 2-0 with a 2.49 ERA in 21.2 innings pitched. He has 18 strikeouts to just six walks as well.
Sophomore right-hander Matt Price made three scoreless relief appearances this week including two appearances in both the Saturday and Sunday wins vs. Georgia. Price earned his first win of the year after hurling a scoreless ninth inning in the 2-1 victory over Georgia with a pair of strikeouts. He then earned his fifth save of the year with two scoreless innings and four strikeouts in the 8-3 win over Georgia. For the season, Price has five saves and has struck out 14 batters in 11 innings pitched. He is tied for second in the SEC in saves. He has not allowed a run in nine of 10 relief appearances for the season. With 15 career saves, Price is tied for eighth on the all-time list at Carolina.
Senior infielder Scott Wingo tallied the game-winning RBI single in the 2-1 victory over Georgia. Wingo is hitting .263 (15-for-57) on the year with seven RBI and 12 runs scored. He was 2-for-3 with a run scored and a RBI in the 8-3 win over Georgia on Sunday with his third double of the season. Wingo holds several career records that he continues to add to in his final season with the Gamecocks. Wingo is the 15th player in school history to play 200 or more games. Wingo played in his 200th in the 8-4 win over Wofford and now has played in 203 career games heading into Tuesday night.
Junior outfielder Adam Matthews was 3-for-3 with two runs scored and a RBI in the 8-3 win over Georgia. His three hits was a season-high. Matthews is hitting .292 (19-for-65) with 16 runs scored. He also leads the team with four stolen bases.
Senior right-hander John Taylor has been stellar out of the bullpen and is 1-0 on the year with a 0.55 ERA in 12 relief appearances. Taylor leads the SEC in appearances and has struck out 20 batters to just four walks in 16.1 innings. He made relief appearances in all three games vs. Georgia this weekend.
Four South Carolina relievers combined to limit Georgia to just one run on three hits in eight innings of work and six different Gamecocks tallied at least one RBI as South Carolina defeated Georgia 8-3 winning the rubber game of three-game SEC baseball series on Sunday afternoon. Gamecock freshman right-hander Forrest Koumas allowed just one run on two hits in 3.1 innings of work to earn the win. He is now 2-0 on the year. Senior right-hander John Taylor worked 2.1 hitless innings and tallied a strikeout, junior left-hander Bryan Harper struck out the lone batter he faced and sophomore closer Matt Price worked two scoreless innings with four strikeouts to pick up his fifth save of the year. The four relievers along with Gamecock starter Adam Westmoreland combined for 14 strikeouts, a season-high in a game for the Gamecock pitching staff.
Junior left-hander Michael Roth had a quality start despite the loss on Friday vs. Georgia. Roth allowed three runs, two earned, on six hits with eight strikeouts and two walks in the 4-2 loss to Georgia. For the season, Roth is 4-1 on the year with a 1.34 ERA in a team-high 33.2 innings. He has 38 strikeouts to just nine walks. He is currently third in the SEC in strikeouts, tied for third in earned run average, tied for third in victories, tied for fifth in innings pitched and 11th in opposing batting average.
Sophomore first baseman Christian Walker had a game-tying double in the 2-1 win over Georgia. Walker is third in the SEC in slugging percentage at a .672 clip. He is also tied for second with four home runs and is tied for ninth with 45 total bases. On the year, Walker is hitting .358 (24-for-67) with 18 RBI and 19 runs scored. He has a team-high nine multi-hit games and a team-high five multi-RBI games as well.
South Carolina’s pitching staff ranks third in the SEC with a 2.76 earned run average. The staff has allowed just 130 hits in 160 innings pitched with 160 strikeouts to 57 walks. Opponents are hitting just .223 against the staff, also third best in the SEC.
South Carolina is hitting .286 (166-for-581) as a team. The Gamecocks are second in the league with 16 home runs. Carolina has a .448 slugging percentage, fifth best in the conference. The team has a .381 on-base percentage as well. South Carolina is fielding .968 on the year.
