The South Carolina baseball team defeated The Citadel 4-0 in a shutout win on Tuesday night.
Four Gamecocks pitchers held the Bulldogs to seven hits in the contest. Sophomore pitcher Tyler Pitzer earned his fourth win of the season in relief, giving up two hits and one walk in 2.1 innings
South Carolina jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning. Freshman infielder K.J. Scobey hit a solo home run, his fourth of the season. Junior infielder Henry Kaczmar doubled and later scored when junior outfielder Ethan Petry singled. Freshman infielder Beau Hollins was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, scoring another run.
"We made a lot of good pitches tonight and played good defense behind them," head coach Paul Mainieri said. "We didn't hit great, but we fortunately had the one good rally, and Scobey hit a ball into the bullpen, so it was enough."
The Gamecocks added a run in the third when freshman catcher Gavin Braland singled after back-to-back walks, scoring sophomore infielder Nolan Nawrocki. Braland's hit was the last for the Gamecocks, as it didn't record a hit in the final five innings it came to the plate.
Sophomore pitcher Parker Marlatt entered in the ninth and struck out junior infielder Robbie Lane for the final out, clinching the win for the Gamecocks.
Only one Gamecock recorded multiple hits on Tuesday. Scobey finished 1-3 with a home run, while Braland went 1-4 with an RBI.
Pitching limits Bulldogs
Junior pitcher Jackson Soucie started for the Gamecocks on Tuesday, giving up no runs and three hits in 3.1 innings. Soucie struck out five and walked one in his first start since a 14-4 win over Gardner-Webb on Feb. 25. Redshirt sophomore pitcher Ashton Crowther also appeared and struck out one in 2.1 innings.
"We pitched great right from the start," Mainieri said. "Soucie, Pitzer, Ashton, Marlatt, they all did a tremendous job to pitch a shutout and played good defense behind them. We hit just enough to make it work."
The Gamecocks recorded seven strikeouts to three walks and didn't give up any extra-base hits in the contest.
"I think tonight really gave us the boost that we needed going into Ole Miss," Crowther said.
Kaczmar keeps streak alive
Kaczmar went 2-3 with a double and two walks, extending his on-base streak to 20 games. While Tuesday's matchup was a non-conference game, Kaczmar leads the Gamecocks with a .378 batting average in SEC play. He's also tied for the team lead in home runs in SEC games with three.
"Once we started into SEC play, he's just been swinging the bat so much better with confidence," Mainieri said. "Early in the year, he wasn't even hitting the ball good in batting practice, and now he looks like the guy we saw when we decided to recruit him."
Kaczmar moved into the leadoff spot against the Bulldogs, filling in for junior outfielder Nathan Hall, who was injured.
"He really flourished in the nine-hole, but he's much better than being a nine-hole hitter," Mainieri said. "When Nathan went down, it seemed like the natural move to put him in the leadoff spot."
'They're not giving up'
The win over the Bulldogs ended a three-game losing streak for South Carolina, which was swept by Texas A&M last weekend. The Gamecocks were walked-off twice by the Aggies, including a 15-12 defeat in game three. Mainieri was impressed by his team's effort after the challenging series.
"The kids showed that they're not giving up," Mainieri said. "We came back again and played a good game after a difficult loss, after a difficult weekend, and we're going to go out there Thursday night against Ole Miss, and we're going to play as hard as we possibly can."
What's next?
South Carolina (21-17, 2-13 SEC) continues its home stand on Thursday when it faces No. 11 Ole Miss (27-10, 9-6 SEC). First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be streamed on SEC Network+.