Five different College of Charleston batters hit home runs, including a three-run blast by sophomore right fielder Thomas Brittle in a five-run fourth inning, as the Cougars swept visiting Georgia Southern with an 11-8 victory March 4 at Patriots Point.
C of C improves to 23-7 overall and 8-4 in the Southern Conference, while the Eagles fall to 15-14, 7-5 in the SoCon.
Georgia Southern jumped to an early lead, scoring three runs in the opening inning off Charleston sophomore right-handed pitcher David Peterson. Kevin Bowles singled up the middle and Kyle Blackburn followed up with another single moving Bowles to second. A.J. Wirnsberger roped an RBI double to left center and Eric Phillips added an RBI groundout to third for a 2-0 lead. Michael Burress singled through the right side, bringing home Wirnsberger for an early 3-0 advantage.
Charleston got one run back in the second on a leadoff home run to right center by junior third baseman Matt Leeds, but the Eagles restored the three-run cushion on an RBI single to center by Steve Cochrane in the top of the third.
The Cougars used the long ball to knot the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the third, as junior first baseman Greg Blake put a 0-1 pitch over the wall in left center to cut the deficit to 4-2. With two outs, sophomore center fielder Cole Rakar doubled to left center and sophomore catcher Rob Kral tied the game with a two-run shot to left center on a 2-1 pitch from Georgia Southern starter Andy Moye.
Georgia Southern pulled ahead in the top of the fourth on an RBI double by Blackburn that made the score 5-4, but the Cougars dialed up the long ball again, crushing two more home runs in the bottom of the frame for a 9-5 lead. Sophomore second baseman Baker Knox ripped a solo shot to right center, his third of the season and junior designated hitter Kolby Epley walked and advanced to second on a wild pitch before Blake picked up a free pass on five pitches. Brittle then came to the plate and deposited a 3-1 pitch over the right-field wall for a three-run home run, his second round-tripper of the year.
Justin Hess relieved Moye and issued a walk to Rakar, who stole second and Kral picked up another free pass and Leeds singled through the right side to score Rakar and give the Cougars a four-run lead. Georgia Southern cut the Cougars’ lead to 9-7 in the sixth, plating runs on an RBI triple by Wirnsberger and an RBI double by Phillips.
The Eagles continued to chip away, pulling within one in the seventh on an RBI groundout by Arthur Owens, but Charleston added single runs in the seventh and eighth to secure the victory. Knox lined an RBI double down the left-field line in the seventh, while Rakar roped an RBI double to right in the eighth.
Peterson earned a hard-fought victory to improve to 3-2 on the season, allowing 13 hits and seven runs, five earned in six innings. Senior reliever Tom Schiller tossed 2.2 innings of hitless relief for his first save of the season. Brittle went 3-for-4 on the afternoon with two runs scored, while Rakar, Leeds and Knox each added two hits. Moye took the loss for Georgia Southern, allowing eight runs on six hits in 3.1 innings with four strikeouts.