Gamecocks Rally For a 3-2 Win Over Davidson
April 18, 2017
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Jonah Bride broke a 2-2 tie with a RBI double in the bottom of the eighth inning and junior right-hander Tyler Johnson struck out three batters in the top of the ninth inning against the top of the Davidson batting order as 18th ranked South Carolina rallied to defeat the Wildcats 3-2 on Tuesday night at Founders Park. The Gamecocks are 23-13 on the year, with Davidson moving to 18-16 overall.
Carolina got two on the board in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the game up. Trailing 2-0 and being held hitless through six innings, Bride led off the bottom of the seventh with a double to center field after just missing a homer near the left field foul pole to record Carolina’s first hit of the game. Matt Williams followed with a walk and Madison Stokes moved both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. John Jones would be hit by a pitch to load the bases for Jacob Olson. Olson knocked in Bride and Williams with a two-run single to center to tie the game at 2-2.
Carolina took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning. Alex Destino led off with a walk. After LT Tolbert moved Destino over into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt, Bride doubled off the wall in left field to the Gamecocks a one-run lead. Bride led the Gamecocks at the plate after going 2-for-4 with two doubles and one RBI.
Senior right-hander Colie Bowers earned the win after allowing only one hit with two strikeouts in 1.2 innings of relief. He is now 3-0 on the year. Johnson picked up his fifth save of the season. He allowed just one hit with three strikeouts in one inning of work. Sophomore right-hander Austin Leonard suffered the loss and is now 0-1 on the season. He allowed one run on one hit with one walk in 0.2 innings.
Davidson went ahead 2-0 in the fourth inning on a pair of home runs. Will Robertston led off the top of the fourth inning with a solo homer to left center. Robertson has tallied six home runs in the last nine games. Two batters later, Brian Fortier launched a solo home run to left field, giving Davidson the two-run cushion.
GAME CHANGER
Jonah Bride’s one-run double in the bottom of the eighth gave the Gamecocks a lead they would not relinquish.
KEY STAT
Colby Lee, Reed Scott, Colie Bowers and Tyler Johnson combined for 5.1 scoreless innings of relief with just four hits allowed and eight strikeouts.
NOTABLES
• Jacob Olson has successfully reached base 25 consecutive games. He went 1-for-4 with a two-run single.
QUOTABLE
Head Coach Chad Holbrook
“We gave up one hit to an opponent earlier in the year, UNCG I think, and lost. Baseball has a way of getting some back. We got outhit 7-3, yet we found a way to win. Pitching kept us in the game. Jonah [Bride] had a big night for us, getting the game winning RBI. It was good to see Reed [Scott], Colie [Bowers], and Tyler [Johnson] throw a limited amount of work. We stretched Colie [Bowers] a little more than we wanted to; he may or may not be available on Thursday night. Everybody else should be fine. We didn’t have to go to [Josh] Reagan. All in all, there’s no such thing as a bad win. We’ll take it. We’ll get on the bus tomorrow and we’ll try to go play our best baseball of the year this weekend.”
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks are back in action on Thursday, April 20 as they head to Gainesville to face Florida in a three-game series. First pitch is set for 7:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU and is also available on the Gamecock IMG Network including flagship station, 107.5 FM, “The Game.”
