Early Runs Help Baseball Clinch Series Win over LSU
April 21, 2018
COLUMBIA, S.C. ââ’¬” The University of South Carolina baseball team scored three runs in each of the first two innings and never looked back in an 11-4 win over No. 19 LSU Saturday afternoon (April 21) in front of 7,982 fans at Founders Park.
The Gamecocks scored 11 runs for the second straight day as Carolina put up 13 hits, three off the bat of senior Madison Stokes. He also drove in a career-high four runs. TJ Hopkins, LT Tolbert and Jacob Olson had two hits apiece while Tolbert and Justin Row both had two RBI.
Adam Hill earned the win on the mound, pitching six shutout innings and allowing four hits with seven strikeouts and four walks. He picked up his fourth win of the season. The Gamecock pitching struck out nine Tigers in the win.
In the bottom of the first, LSU pitcher Ma’Khail Hilliard got a strikeout to open the frame, but immediately ran into trouble as Carlos Cortes and Stokes singled and the former scored on an RBI double from Tolbert. Stokes scored on a wild pitch and Tolbert trotted home after Row’s sacrifice fly. The Gamecocks added three in the second on a two-run double from Stokes and a double down the left field line from Tolbert.
Carolina knocked Hilliard out in the third as Chris Cullen scored Noah Campbell on a sacrifice fly and Hopkins’ ball to third took a bad hop, allowing Jacob Olson to cross the plate.
Both teams were scoreless the next three innings. Carolina made it 9-0 in the seventh as Row doubled down the line in left to score Bride. LSU scored its first runs of the weekend in the eighth. Daniel Cabrera brought in Austin Bain with a single to right. Nick Coomes then hit a three-run home run to make it 9-4. TJ Shook came in and got a strikeout and groundout to keep the five-run lead.
The Gamecocks added insurance in the bottom of the eighth as a two-run double from Stokes made it 11-4. Shook induced a double play groundout in the ninth to clinch the series win.
GAME CHANGER
Carolina had seven hits and scored six runs in the first two innings as Stokes and Tolbert drove in two runs apiece in the first two frames.
KEY STAT
Madison Stokes set a career-high with four RBI in the win over the Tigers. Stokes had three RBI on two occasions, including this season against North Carolina A&T (March 7).
NOTABLE
- Carolina wins a series over LSU in Columbia for third time in school history. The 2002 and 2007 teams both took 2-of-3 games from the Tigers.
- Carolina held LSU scoreless for 16.1 innings before Cabrera’s RBI single in the eighth of game two.
- Carolina is now 19-7 at Founders Park this season.
- The Gamecocks have back-to-back double-digit run outputs for the first time this season.
- Adam Hill now has 14 career wins after his victory in Saturday’s game. Hill has 67 strikeouts on the season in 46.2 innings pitched.
- The attendance was 7,982 as the game was part of Alumni Weekend at Founders Park.
UP NEXT
The Gamecocks and Tigers wrap up the three-game set Sunday afternoon (April 22) with a 1:30 p.m. first pitch.
