April 7, 2014

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina went 2-2 last week with a 2-1 win vs. Appalachian State and a one win in three games at Arkansas. The Gamecocks are 26-5 and 7-5 in the SEC. South Carolina is tied for first place in the SEC Eastern Division and tied for second overall, just one game back of Alabama.

Record: 26-5
SEC: 7-5
Home: 22-1
Neutral: 1-0
Away: 3-4

Last Week: 2-2
4/1/14 – vs. Appalachian State (W, 2-1)
4/4/14 – at Arkansas (W, 2-1)
4/4/14 – at Arkansas (L, 4-1)
4/5/14 – at Arkansas (L, 7-0)

NOTES
Junior left-hander Jordan Montgomery improved to 4-2 with a victory in Friday’s 2-1 win over Arkansas. He pitched seven-plus innings and allowed one run on four hits with three walks and nine strikeouts. His nine strikeouts tied a season high he set vs. Clemson on February 28. Montgomery has 47 strikeouts in 44.2 innings pitched, a team-high. Opponents are hitting .249 against him. He owns a 3.83 ERA on the year.

Junior catcher Grayson Greiner delivered a game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning of Tuesday’s 2-1 walk-off win over Appalachian State. Greiner is hitting .327 (33-for-101) with 21 runs scored, four homers and 30 RBI. He has a .402 on-base percentage and a .495 slugging percentage as well.

Junior right-hander Joel Seddon is now 8-for-8 in save opportunities this year after a perfect ninth inning in the 2-1 victory. Seddon has not allowed a run in 13 relief appearances with just four hits and three walks in 17.0 innings pitched. He has 25 strikeouts with opponents hitting .073 against him.

Sophomore infielder Marcus Mooney recorded a game-winning two-out RBI single in the top of the eighth inning of the 2-1 victory vs. Arkansas. Mooney now has 10 of his 13 RBI with two outs this year. Mooney is hitting .279 (31-for-111) this season with 13 runs scored, six doubles and a triple. He is tied for a team-high as well in walks with 14 on the year.

Junior right-hander Cody Mincey had a scoreless inning of relief in the 2-1 win over Arkansas. Mincey is 2-0 with a 0.42 ERA in 21.1 innings with a team-high 16 relief appearances. He has 31 strikeouts with opponents batting .132 against him. He has allowed just one run on nine hits this year.

Junior outfielder Tanner English tallied a RBI double in the 2-1 win at Arkansas. English is batting .294 (30-for-102) with 14 runs scored and 18 RBI.

Junior infielder Joey Pankake’s season-high hitting streak ended at 16 games at Arkansas. Despite it being snapped, Pankake is hitting .330 (36-for-109) with a team-high 32 runs scored, three homers and 18 RBI. Pankake has a .415 on-base percentage and a .459 slugging percentage. He has 13 walks to 11 strikeouts. Pankake’s .362 average (17-for-47) in SEC games leads the team.

Junior right-hander Evan Beal pitched 5.1 scoreless innings in his second start of the year in Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Appalachian State. Beal has not allowed a run in two starts with just two hits and one walk allowed in 9.1 innings.

Junior left-hander Vince Fiori earned the win on Tuesday vs. Appalachian State with 1.1 scoreless innings of relief. Fiori is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 14.1 innings with 14 strikeouts. Opponents are hitting .189 against him.

South Carolina is outscoring opponents 60-8 from the seventh inning through extra innings on the year. From the sixth inning to the end, South Carolina is also outscoring opponents 90-19.

South Carolina is 12-0 on the year when scoring six runs or more and 24-2 when allowing five runs or less. In addition the Gamecocks are 24-2 when outhitting the opponent and 20-1 when scoring first. South Carolina is 19-0 when leading after six innings and 7-5 on the year when trailing or tied.

South Carolina’s pitching staff owns a 1.79 ERA in 281.0 innings pitched. The Gamecocks have allowed 72 runs, 56 earned on 209 hits with 264 strikeouts to 77 walks. Opponents own a .206 batting average. The Gamecocks are hitting .289 (305-for-1056) with a .362 on-base percentage and a .397 slugging mark. South Carolina is fielding .974 for the season.

NEXT WEEK
4/8 – at Furman at Fluor Field (7 p.m.)
4/11 – vs. Florida (7 p.m.)
4/12 – vs. Florida (4 p.m.)
4/13 – vs. Florida (1:30 p.m.)