The South Carolina baseball team was swept by the No. 1 Tennessee Volunteers over the weekend at Ray Tanner Field Founders Park.
The Gamecocks dropped the first game on Friday by a score of 11-7 after Tennessee scored six runs in the first two innings. In the game on Saturday, South Carolina found itself losing 7-5 despite a tied game heading into the ninth inning. The final game of the weekend saw the Volunteers beating the Gamecocks 7-2, making this the second straight series that South Carolina has been swept in.
Here is a recap of all the weekend games:
South Carolina falls short of late-inning rallies to defending national champions
The Gamecocks lost the first game of the series on Friday night againstTennessee 11-7.South Carolina gave up nine runs across two major innings to allow the Volunteers to dominate most of the game.
The Volunteer offense struck first after junior utility Dalton Bargo hit a home run to take an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first.
Junior outfielder Nathan Hall extended his hit streak to 17 games with a leadoff single in the bottom of the first inning. Junior outfielder Ethan Petry quickly gave the Gamecocks their first lead of the series, notching the 51st home run of his career, putting the Gamecocks in front 2-1 after the first inning.
An error by senior infielder Jordan Carrion quickly put two runners on with no outs for the Volunteers in the second. A sacrifice fly from sophomore infielder Ariel Antigua and an RBI single from sophomore infielder Dean Curley put the Vols back in front 3-2. A two-out RBI single from Bargo and a two-run home run from senior outfielder Hunter Ensley pushed the Volunteers out 6-2.
“Nobody feels worse than Jordan Carrion, you know, but that play was a tailor-made double play, and, you know, it’s hard to make mistakes like that against a team of this caliber because when you make those mistakes, good teams will pounce on that,” head coach Paul Mainieri said.
The Gamecocks looked to come back from the four-run deficit in the bottom of the third inning. Despite their best efforts, the Gamecocks found themselves unable to score again until the fifth inning.
Sophomore pitcher Jake McCoy was substituted out for sophomore pitcher Tyler Pitzer after a walk and hit-by-pitch from McCoy in the fifth inning. Pitzer was able to get two outs quickly but ultimately gave up four runs before ending the fifth inning to give the Volunteers a commanding 10-2 lead.
A leadoff single from senior outfielder Kennedy Jones got the Gamecock offense started again in the sixth inning with freshman infielder KJ Scobey earning a walk to once again put runners on with no outs. Back-to-back two-out RBI singles from Carrion and junior infielder Henry Kaczmar cut the Gamecocks' deficit to five.
The Volunteers added one more run to their lead in the top of the ninth inning after a sacrifice fly from freshman infielder Manny Marin.
Carrion continued his solid night at the plate with a leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth inning to help the offensive efforts with Kaczmar hitting his second home run of the season to score two more runs for the Gamecocks. The Gamecocks would add two more runners on base but would fall to the Volunteers 11-7 in the end.
“Right when I got on the mound, it was like a breath of fresh air,” senior pitcher Caleb Jones said. “I knew I could do it; I just got to show the coaches, and then more opportunities would come, and I knew it was going to be alright against this team. Just pound the strike zone, and that’s what I did.”
McCoy received the loss for the Gamecocks after he pitched for four innings. McCoy gave up eight runs on six hits along with three strikeouts and three walks.
Gamecocks drop the series on Saturday afternoon
The Gamecocks lost the second game of the series 7-5 on Saturday afternoon in a close game to Tennessee, giving the Volunteers the series win in two games.
Tennessee threatened immediately after Bargo was hit by a pitch, and a double by Ensley gave the Volunteers two runners in scoring position with only one out. Junior pitcher Jarvis Evans Jr., however, battled back and got out of the first inning without allowing a run.
The game remained scoreless until the fourth inning when Tennessee junior outfielder Reese Chapman hit his seventh home run of the season to score freshman utility player Levi Clark and junior infielder Andrew Fischer, giving the Volunteers a 3-0 lead.
The Gamecock offense found its footing in the bottom of the fourth inning off the bat of junior fielder Jase Woita, who sent a solo homer into left field to give the Gamecocks their first run of the game.
Carrying the momentum into the fifth inning, the Gamecocks used freshman infielder Beau Hollins' base hit followed by two infield singles to load the bases with no outs. A sacrifice fly off the bat of Kaczmar and a Hall fielder's choice tied the game 3-3.
Tennessee redshirt sophomore reliever Brandon Arvidson managed only four batters before the Gamecocks saw themselves with the bases loaded and just one out in the sixth. Despite the jam, junior pitcher Nate Snead allowed just one run, a Carrion fielder's choice that gave the Gamecocks their first lead 4-3.
The Volunteers took the lead right back in the eighth when junior first baseman Andrew Fischer hit a two-run home run to give the Volunteers the 5-4 lead, scoring Bargo.
In the bottom of the eighth, Hollins notched his fourth hit of the game on an RBI single that tied the game 5-5.
Following a go-ahead two-run home run by junior pinch-hitting catcher Cannon Peebles in the top of the ninth, the Gamecocks went down in order to finish the game, falling to 1-7 in SEC conference play.
“I thought we played a great game virtually in every phase, and it just wasn’t enough,” Mainieri said.
Gamecocks swept by Volunteers for second straight series sweep
The Gamecocks struggles continued into game three of the weekend series, losing the final game of the series 7-2. With the loss, South Carolina is now 1-8 in conference play.
The Gamecocks took an early 1-0 lead after Hall walked, stole second and scored on Woita’s RBI single. The second and third innings were about strong pitching and solid defense, as both teams failed to produce any offense.
South Carolina had a brief chance in the third after Hall reached on an error, but a double play quickly ended the threat. The Gamecocks remained in control with a 1-0 lead.
In the top of the fourth, Tennessee seized the lead with a big three-run rally. Curley was hit by a pitch, and Bargo doubled to set up runners at second and third. Ensley then delivered with a two-RBI single, and Fischer kept the momentum going with another single. Marin then brought another run, extending the Volunteers’ lead to 3-1.
Tennessee struck again in the top of the fifth, scoring two more runs. After Curley doubled, Bargo singled him in, and Chapman doubled to add another run, putting the Volunteers up 5-1.
South Carolina had a chance in the bottom of the fifth, with Kaczmar and Hall getting singles and Petry getting hit by a pitch to load the bases. But a strikeout and a double play ended the threat, leaving three Gamecocks on base and still trailing by four runs.
"I've been coaching for 40 years; nothing has changed ... the teams that rise up and come through in the clutch situations generally are the teams that win," Maineri said.
South Carolina answered in the bottom of the sixth with Hollins doubling and scoring on freshman catcher Gavin Braland's RBI single. Despite loading the bases, the Gamecocks couldn't capitalize further, leaving the score at 5-2.
In the top of the seventh, Tennessee added two more runs with back-to-back home runs from Ensley and Fischer, pushing its lead to 7-2. Neither team would score for the rest of the game, with the Volunteers going on to win 7-2.
South Carolina's pitching staff showed flashes of promise but struggled to contain Tennessee’s offense. Junior pitcher Brendan Sweeney battled, and while the bullpen had its moments, no one could shut down the Tennessee offense.
What's next?
The Gamecocks (17-12, 1-8 SEC) stay home to face the Presbyterian Blue Hose (14-15, 6-3 Big South) on Tuesday night at Ray Tanner Field at Founders Park. First pitch is at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on the SEC Network.