Baseball Faces NC State to Continue Columbia Regional

– The Gamecocks opened NCAA Tournament play with a resounding 19-1 win over Central Connecticut State on Friday night (June 2).

– Carolina had 11 runs in the fourth inning, sending 17 men to the plate. It’s the most runs scored in an inning by the Gamecocks since Carolina put up 14 runs in the second inning of a 38-0 win over Charleston Southern on Feb. 14, 2004.

– Will McGillis, in his return from injury, was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and three RBI. McGillis belted his 11th home run of the season and first since March 24 in the third inning.

👋, @wpmcgillis! 💣 #Gamecocks | #ForeverToThee pic.twitter.com/oJmocCLPJK

— Gamecock Baseball (@GamecockBasebll) June 3, 2023

– Ethan Petry hit his 23rd home run of the year in the fifth inning of the win. Petry now is tied for second with Wes Clarke (2021) and Nick Ebert (2009) on Carolina’s single-season home run list. Yaron Peters is the single-season record holder with 29.

– Petry now also has 75 RBI on the year, which is tied for seventh on Carolina’s single season list with Jim Curl (1981) and Jeff Morris (1986). Petry needs two more RBI to move to a tie for fifth.

𝐆𝐎𝐍𝐄! 🤯@ethanpetry23 | #Gamecocks pic.twitter.com/z2nnxsG3Ib

— Gamecock Baseball (@GamecockBasebll) June 3, 2023

– James Hicks had his second straight dominant performance on the mound, striking out six and allowing just one hit with no walks and no runs in five innings of work to move to 8-1 on the year. Hicks has a 3.32 ERA, currently sits him in fifth in the SEC in that category.

. @_jameshicks09 HAD. A. NIGHT. 👏

5.0 IP | 1 H | 6 K#Gamecocks | #ForeverToThee pic.twitter.com/55wANhcTlU

— Gamecock Baseball (@GamecockBasebll) June 3, 2023

– Gavin Casas led Carolina with three hits in win. Casas has 52 RBI on the year, which is third on the team.

– Will Sanders made his return on the mound, pitching for the first time since May 5 with a scoreless sixth inning.

– Carolina moved to 138-71 all-time in NCAA Tournament play.

– The 19 runs are tied for second most by Carolina in NCAA Tournament history. The Gamecocks scored 23 runs in a win over Rhode Island in 2016 and had 19 runs in a win over Liberty in 2013.

– Carolina will face North Carolina State for the first time since 2019. Jacob Olson hit a walk-off home run for Carolina in a 10-8 win on April 2 at Truist Field in Charlotte.

– Wesley Sweatt is the only current Gamecock to play in that game. He earned the win on the mound, striking out a pair in two innings of relief.