April 25, 2016

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina went 4-0 last week with a win at Furman and a three-game sweep of Missouri. The Gamecocks are 33-8 and 14-4 in the SEC. The Gamecocks are in first place in the SEC, one game ahead of Florida.

Record: 33-8
SEC: 14-4
Home: 25-1
Neutral: 0-2
Away: 8-5

Last Week: 4-0
4/20/16 ââ’¬” at Furman ââ’¬” W, 14-4
4/22/16 ââ’¬” Missouri ââ’¬” W, 8-5
4/23/16 ââ’¬” Missouri ââ’¬” W, 5-1
4/24/16 ââ’¬” Missouri ââ’¬” W, 9-2

NOTES:
Junior outfielder Gene Cone went 10-for-12 (.833) at the plate this weekend in a sweep of Missouri with six RBI and seven runs scored. Cone capped the weekend going 5-for-5, just a homer shy of the cycle and drove in three runs in the 9-2 victory over Missouri while setting a school record with a 27-game hitting streak, surpassing the previous mark of 26 set by Whit Merrifield in the 2009 and 2010 seasons. Cone’s 27-game hitting streak is the longest active streak in Division I baseball and is two shy of the longest this season by a Division I player. He was 3-for-4 with two runs scored with three RBI including a key two-out two-run double to give the Gamecocks the lead for good in Friday’s 8-5 win over the Tigers. He was also 2-for-3 with two runs scored in the 5-1 win over Missouri. Cone’s 10 hits were the most in a weekend series by a Gamecock player since Christian Walker went 10-for-11 at Mississippi State April 22-24 and the most ever by a Gamecock player in Founders Park history (dating back to 2009).

For the season, Cone is batting .377 (49-for-130) with two homers, two triples, nine doubles, 18 RBI and 37 runs scored. He has 24 walks to 14 strikeouts, a .457 on-base percentage and a .523 slugging mark. Cone ranks fourth in the SEC in on-base percentage, fifth in batting average and tied for 10th in runs scored. In 18 SEC games, Cone has been even better as he owns a .457 batting average (32-for-70) with a pair of homers, a triple, seven doubles, 10 RBI and 26 runs scored. Cone’s league on-base percentage is .558 with a league slugging mark of .671. Cone’s SEC-only batting average is second-best in the conference as is his on-base percentage with slugging third-highest. Cone has scored the most runs in SEC games also.

Freshman right-hander Braden Webb improved to 8-2 with a victory in Saturday’s 5-1 win over Missouri. Webb allowed one run on four hits with 10 strikeouts. Webb is the only SEC pitcher this year to win five wins in league contests. Webb’s 55 strikeouts in six SEC games are also the most by a pitcher in the conference. For the season, he is 8-2 with a 3.28 ERA and has allowed 26 runs, 21 earned, on 40 hits in 57.2 innings. He has 76 strikeouts to 33 walks; opponents are hitting .193 against him. Webb is one of four pitchers in the SEC including teammate Clarke Schmidt with eight wins on the year. His .193 opponents batting average is fourth-best in the SEC as is his 76 strikeouts.

Junior outfielder Alex Destino hit .462 (6-for-13) in the Missouri series with six RBI. Destino went 2-for-4 with four RBI in Saturday’s 5-1 win and followed that up 3-for-5 with a double and two RBI in the 9-2 victory over the Tigers on Sunday. Destino is hitting .354 (51-for-144) for the year with four homers, 10 doubles, 23 runs scored and 38 RBI. He has a .390 on-base percentage and a .507 slugging mark. Destino ranks 10th in the SEC in both batting average and runs batted in. He has hit .377 (20-for-53) with 14 RBI in 15 SEC contests. Destino’s .377 league clip is seventh-highest in the SEC.

Freshman right-hander Adam Hill earned a win in Sunday’s 9-2 victory over Missouri as he pitched 6.1 scoreless innings with just four hits allowed, a walk and eight strikeouts. It was his longest outing of the season. He is now 6-0 on the year with a 2.57 ERA. Hill has allowed 14 runs, all earned, on 36 hits in 49.0 innings with 58 strikeouts to 17 walks. Opponents are hitting .209 against him. Hill ranks tied for sixth in the SEC in wins, ninth in opposing batting average, 12th in ERA and 13th in strikeouts.

Sophomore infielder Jonah Bride hit .500 (6-for-12) in the Missouri series. Bride was 3-for-4 with a RBI in the 8-5 win over Missouri and 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored in a 5-1 win over the Tigers. Bride has raised his season batting average to .281 (41-for-146) with six doubles, 18 RBI and 31 runs scored. He has a .409 on-base percentage with 18 walks and 15 hit by pitches. Bride has made just one error in 41 starts at third base and is fielding .987 at the hot corner.

Despite a no-decision in Friday’s 8-5 win over Missouri, sophomore right-hander Clarke Schmidt still sits atop many of the top categories in the SEC and the nation. Schmidt is 8-1 on the year with a 2.04 ERA. He has allowed 19 runs, 16 earned, on 62 hits with 12 walks and 85 strikeouts in 70.2 innings. Opponents are batting .235 against him. Schmidt leads the SEC in innings pitched and is one of four pitchers in the SEC with eight wins on the year including teammate Braden Webb. Schmidt also leads the SEC in strikeouts and is fourth in the SEC in earned run average. Schmidt’s four SEC wins is tied for second in the SEC with his 53 strikeouts, second-most by a pitcher in league games, just two behind teammate Braden Webb. His league ERA of 3.19 is 10th-best in the conference.

Junior outfielder Dom Thompson-Williams has stayed among the top hitters in the SEC. Thompson-Williams is hitting .329 (49-for-149) with four homers, three triples, 12 doubles, 32 RBI and 35 runs scored. He has a .439 on-base percentage and a team-best .530 slugging mark. Thompson-Williams tied a school record with three doubles and added a triple to go along with three RBI in the 14-4 win at Furman on Wednesday. He also had a RBI in Friday’s 8-5 win over Missouri and doubled and scored two runs in the 5-1 win vs. the Tigers. He has walked a team-high 28 times, sixth-best in the league and ranks tied for seventh in the SEC in doubles as well as tied for 12th in runs scored and 14th in on-base percentage. His 15 stolen bases tie him for seventh in the SEC as well.

Junior left-hander Josh Reagan picked up his 11th save of the year with 2.1 scoreless innings of relief and just one walk allowed in the 5-1 win over Missouri. Reagan leads the SEC in saves and is 1-1 with a 0.82 ERA in 20 relief appearances. Reagan has allowed just three runs on 16 hits in 33.0 innings with 10 walks and 28 strikeouts. Opponents are batting .144 against him.

Sophomore catcher John Jones is hitting .316 (50-for-158) with 33 runs scored, 10 doubles, six homers and 39 RBI. He is at a .420 on-base percentage and a .494 slugging percentage. Jones’ 39 RBI leads the team and ninth-best in the SEC. Jones was-2-for-5 with a double and a RBI in the 8-5 win over Missouri and 2-for-5 with a RBI in the 9-2 win over the Tigers.

Sophomore right-hander Tyler Johnson had a pair of quality relief outings out of the bullpen this weekend vs. Missouri. Johnson allowed just a solo home run and struck out four in 2.2 innings to earn his third save of the year in the 8-5 win over the Tigers and pitched 1.1 perfect innings of relief with two strikeouts in the 9-2 victory over Missouri. Johnson is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA in 17 relief appearances. He has 33 strikeouts to four walks in 28.0 innings, opponents hitting .212 against him.

Freshman outfielder TJ Hopkins was 4-for-5 with two RBI and three runs scored as well as a double and two stolen bases in the 14-4 win over Furman. Hopkins’ four hits were a season-high. He would also go 3-for-5 with two runs scored, two stolen bases and three RBI in the 9-2 victory over Missouri. Hopkins is hitting .352 (25-for-71) with 17 runs scored and 19 RBI in 26 games played with 19 starts.

Junior right-hander Taylor Widener tied a career-high with seven strikeouts and allowed three runs, two earned, on six hits in 4.2 innings in the 14-4 win over Furman. Widener has struck out 32 batters in 30.1 innings with opponents batting .248 against him.

Senior infielder Marcus Mooney hit 3-for-3 with three runs scored and three RBI in the 14-4 win over Furman. Mooney added four runs scored in the Missouri series including a pair in the 9-2 win on Sunday. Mooney owns a .304 batting average (38-for-125) with 28 runs scored and 22 RBI. He has 15 walks, eight hit by pitches to 10 strikeouts and a .407 on-base percentage.

Junior right-hander Reed Scott earned two victories in relief this week. Scott pitched 2.1 scoreless innings of relief with two strikeouts in the 14-4 win over Furman and had 0.2 scoreless in the 8-5 victory over Missouri. Scott is 3-1 with a 3.30 ERA in 19 relief appearances with 30.0 innings pitched on the year.

The Gamecocks own a team ERA of 3.21 on the year, fifth-best in the SEC with a .227 opponents batting average, third-best in the league. South Carolina has allowed 149 runs, 131 earned, on 308 hits with 139 walks to 397 strikeouts in 367.0 innings pitched.

South Carolina is hitting .296 (420-for-1417) as a team with a .386 on-base percentage and a .412 slugging percentage. The Gamecocks have hit 24 homers. Carolina is fielding .980 as a team with just 30 errors on the year, second-best in the conference.

South Carolina has outscored its opponents this year 270-149 including 66-26 in the first two innings of play. The Gamecocks are 25-2 on the year when scoring first and 16-2 when scoring in the first inning. South Carolina is 24-1 when out-hitting its opponent and 16-2 when hitting at least one home run. The Gamecocks are 31-0 when leading after the sixth inning. South Carolina is 12-4 in games decided by three runs or less. Carolina has reached double-digits in hits in 18 games this year with a 18-0 record with 10 hits or more. Carolina’s 18 hits last Wednesday at Furman was one shy of the season-high by the team with the 16-hit performance vs. Missouri on Sunday tied for the most in a league game this year.

NEXT WEEK
4/29/16 ââ’¬” Florida ââ’¬” 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
4/30/16 ââ’¬” Florida ââ’¬” 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
5/1/16 ââ’¬” Florida ââ’¬” 1:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)