March 9, 2012
Box Score | Quotes | Photo Gallery 
March 9, 2012
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Princeton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| South Carolina | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | X | 2 | 10 | 0 |
| M. Roth, C. Bright, K. Martin, E. Marzilli |
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Senior left-hander Michael Roth carried a shutout into the ninth inning with a career-high 10 strikeouts and Kyle Martin and Evan Marzilli each had three hits apiece as second ranked South Carolina edged out Princeton 2-1 on Friday evening in non-conference baseball action at Carolina Stadium. The victory marked head coach Ray Tanner’s 700th win at South Carolina. The Gamecocks are 11-1 on the year while Princeton drops to 2-3 for the season. Game two of the series is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Saturday. Live video broadcast is available at GamecocksOnline.com with the game also on the Gamecock Radio Network from IMG College including flagship station 107.5 FM.
Roth was in control the entire night as he limited the Tigers to just one run on six hits with no walks. His 10 strikeouts were the most by a Gamecock pitcher since Blake Cooper tallied 10 on June 28, 2010 vs. UCLA in the CWS Championship Series. Roth is now 2-0 on the year. Freshman right-hander Evan Beal came on with two outs and a runner on second base in the ninth inning and struck out the lone batter he faced for his first career save. Princeton starter Zak Hermans was effective despite the loss. He allowed one run on five hits with six strikeouts and three walks. He is 1-1 for the season.
Martin put the Gamecocks on the scoreboard with a solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning. He drove a 2-1 pitch from Hermans over the right field wall to give the Gamecocks a one-run cushion. The home run for Martin was his first in a Gamecock uniform.
The lead increased to 2-0 in the sixth inning with a run off of Princeton reliever Kevin Link. The Gamecocks got a leadoff single by Adam Matthews followed by Martin’s third hit of the game, a base hit into right field. With one out, Connor Bright knocked a RBI base hit through the left side scoring Matthews.
Princeton made things interesting in the ninth inning with a leadoff single by Matt Bowman and after a wild pitch advanced Bowman and Sam Mulroy into scoring position, Mike Ford drove in Bowman with a RBI ground out to Bright at shortstop. With Mulroy still on second base, the Gamecocks summoned Beal, who set down pinch hitter Ryan Albert in five pitches with a strikeout to preserve the Gamecock victory.
Marzilli tallied three doubles tying a single-game record at South Carolina. It was the 25th time in school history and the first since Adrian Morales on April 2, 2011 vs. Kentucky. He finished the day 3-for-4 and has reached base in all 12 games this year. Martin tied his season-high with three hits as well with a RBI and a run scored. Bowman led Princeton with a 2-for-4 day at the plate.
