Clemson and South Carolina Each Win Both Game of Doubleheader

Clemson, SC -

Richie Shaffer and Brad Felder both hit two-run homers and starter Dominic Leone pitched 6.0 scoreless innings of two-hit ball to lead #16 Clemson to a 6-1 win over UAB in the first game of a doubleheader at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on Saturday.  The Tigers improved to 1-1, while the Blazers dropped to 1-1.

Leone (1-0) allowed just two hits and one walk with four strikeouts to earn the win.  Three Tiger relievers combined to pitch the final 3.0 innings to close out the game.  Blazer starter Ben Bullard (0-1) gave up eight hits and five runs in 3.2 innings to suffer the loss.

The Tigers dented the scoreboard first in the first inning.  Thomas Brittle led off with his first hit as a Tiger, a double down the right-field line.  Two batters later, Shaffer belted a towering two-run homer down the left-field line, his first long ball of the season.

Clemson doubled its lead in the third inning in similar fashion.  Brittle led off with a bunt single and Felder followed with a line-drive, two-run homer to right field, his first hit and home run as a Tiger.

The Tigers added to their lead in the fourth inning.  Jason Stolz led off with a bloop single to left-center and stole second.  Three batters later with two outs, Brittle walked on six pitches, then Felder singled through the right side to plate Stolz, giving Clemson a 5-0 lead.

For the seventh inning in a row, the Tigers put their leadoff batter on base in the seventh inning when Shaffer led off with a double off the top of the fence in center.  Phil Pohl followed with a double down the left-field line to score Shaffer.

The Blazers finally reached home plate in the eighth inning.  Harry Clark led off with a single to left-center and advanced to second two batters later on pinch-hitter Ryan Prinzing’s single down the left-field line.  Two batters later with two outs, John Frost singled to left field to score pinch-runner Chase Davis.

Stolz paced Clemson’s 11-hit attack by going 3-for-4 with a run.  Felder went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs.

Frost and Tyler Mims had two hits apiece to lead UAB, who had eight hits in the game.

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Game Two -

The #16 Clemson Tigers scored five runs in the eighth inning to break a 2-2 tie and defeat UAB 7-4 in the second game of a doubleheader in front of 5,608 fans at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers, who won both games of the doubleheader and won the series 2-1, improved to 2-1 on the season, while the Blazers dropped to 1-2.

The Tigers tied the score 2-2 in the seventh inning on Phil Pohl's solo homer, then Clemson exploded for five runs in the eighth inning on two hits, three walks, and one hit-by-pitch to break the game open. Pohl added a two-run single in the eighth inning.

Kevin Pohle (1-0), the second of three Tiger hurlers, earned the win by tossing 4.0 scoreless innings of two-hit ball with three strikeouts.

Blazer reliever Dylan Munger (0-1) suffered the loss, as he yielded two runs on two walks in 0.2 innings pitched. Starter Michael Busby pitched 6.1 strong innings, allowing five hits, two runs (one earned), and two walks with two strikeouts. Busby also went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a run, and walk at the plate as the designated hitter.

Clemson was unable to score after putting runners at first and third with no outs in the first inning, then UAB took the game's first lead in the second inning. Busby led off with a double to left-center and advanced to third on Jeff Schalk's single through the right side. After Keith DePew loaded the bases with a hit-by-pitch, Jacob German singled up the middle to score Busby. Thomas Brittle's throw from center was in time to retire Schalk at the plate for out #1 on the play. Both runners moved up a base on a stolen base, but the next two Blazers were retired to keep Clemson within one run.

The Blazers doubled their lead in the third inning. Coy Arrowood led off with a hit-by-pitch, stole second, and advanced to third on Harry Clark's groundout to second. Arrowood then scored on Patrick Palmeiro's groundout to third.

In the fifth inning, Jon McGibbon led off with a single to right-center after Busby had retired the previous 11 batters. Two batters later, Jason Stolz reached on an error, then Garrett Boulware laced a single, his first career hit, through the left side to score McGibbon.

Pohl led off the seventh inning with a solo home run to left field, his first long ball of the season, to tie the score 2-2.

In the eighth inning, Jay Baum and Brittle led off with walks, then Brad Felder loaded the bases on a hit-by-pitch with no outs. Richie Shaffer then walked on five pitches to score the go-ahead run in Baum. Pohl followed with a single up the middle to score Brittle and Felder, then McGibbon lofted a sacrifice fly to left field to score Shaffer and move Pohl to second. Spencer Kieboom lined a single to right field to plate Pohl.

The Blazers put together a rally in the ninth inning. German led off with an infield single and went to third base on pinch-hitter Ryan Prinzing's double to left-center. Ivan De Jesus singled up the middle to score German, but De Jesus was thrown out at second after the throw came to home plate. On the play, Brittle was credited his third assist of the game. Two batters later with two outs, Clark reached on an error, but Palmeiro popped up to second for the game-ending out.

Pohl went 2-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs, and two runs to lead Clemson. De Jesus went 3-for-5 with an RBI to lead UAB, who outhit the Tigers 12-7.

Clemson will return to action on Friday when it hosts Maine, Head Coach Jack Leggett's alma mater, in the first of three games at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 4:00 PM.

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COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Dante Rosenberg went 2-for-4 with two doubles including a game-winning RBI double in the bottom of the sixth inning and Matt Price and Ethan Carter combined for 13 strikeouts as South Carolina (2-0) defeated VMI (0-2) 3-2 in game one of a doubleheader at Carolina Stadium. The series finale is scheduled for 2:45 p.m. and can be heard on the Gamecock IMG Network at the conclusion of the men's basketball game.

With the score deadlocked at 2-2 in the bottom of the sixth inning Joey Pankake singled with two outs and would score all the way from first base on Dante Rosenberg's double. Rosenberg launched a deep fly to left field that went off the top of the wall, just missing a homer, and scoring Pankake to give the Gamecocks a one-run cushion.

That was all that Carter needed in relief of Price as he picked up his first win of the year. Carter hurled four scoreless relief innings and allowed just two hits while striking out six batters. VMI reliever Reed Garrett suffered the loss after going four innings and allowing one run on four hits.

South Carolina held the early lead as they took advantage of a VMI miscue in the bottom of the first inning to take a 1-0 advantage. Evan Marzilli led off with a walk, stole second base and reached third on a muffed throw by first baseman George Piccirilli. With runners at the corners, Christian Walker grounded into a 6-4-3 double play scoring Marzilli. That lead extended to 2-0 in the third inning as Rosenberg doubled to lead off the frame and scored on Tanner English's RBI base hit to right field.

Price, in his first start since 2009, was pretty solid through five innings as he did not yield a hit and struck out seven batters. The junior right-hander ran into a little trouble in the sixth though as he walked a pair of batters and hit one as well to load the bases. VMI would score a run on another walk and also added a RBI base hit to tie the game. Tanner English had a big play on the one-out single though as he gunned out George Piccirilli, who was trying to score from second to home on the play. English threw a laser to home plate that catcher Dante Rosenberg corralled and they tagged Piccirilli out to keep the game at 2-2.

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Game Two - South Carolina's bats exploded for 16 hits in game two of Saturday's doubleheader and six pitchers combined for 12 strikeouts as the Gamecocks defeated VMI 13-1 to sweep the doubleheader and the three-game series vs. the Keydets. LB Dantzler tallied a three-run homer and TJ Costen added a two-run shot as five players tallied multi-hit games in the series finale. South Carolina is now 3-0 on the year with VMI 0-3 after the first weekend of play.

After a tight 3-2 win in game one of the doubleheader, South Carolina's offensive output was plenty for the Gamecocks in game two. Junior right-hander Colby Holmes earned the win with five scoreless innings of work. He allowed just one hit and struck out six batters. VMI starter Jeremy Brown suffered the loss after allowing one run on four hits in three innings of work.

South Carolina broke ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning. With one out and Tanner English on first base, Christian Walker drilled a single into the gap in right-center to give the Gamecocks runners on the corners. English would eventually score on LB Dantzler's RBI sacrifice fly to the warning track in left field.

Carolina batted around in the fourth inning to extend the lead to 8-0. Freshman catcher Grayson Greiner led off with a double and scored on freshman first baseman Kyle Martin's RBI base hit. After loading the bases, Martin scored on a bases loaded walk to freshman second baseman Connor Bright. With two outs and runners on second and third base, Walker drilled a two-run single to plate home Bright and Tanner English. Dantzler followed with a three-run bomb to right field, his first homer of the year that gave the Gamecocks an eight-run cushion. Dantzler finished the afternoon with four RBI as well as five for the entire series.

South Carolina added three more runs in the seventh inning as well as two more in the eighth inning. Evan Marzilli would connect with a two-run triple with English driving him home with a sacrifice fly. TJ Costen stepped up in the eighth and drilled a two-run homer as well.

Kyle Martin's 3-for-5 day at the plate with two runs scored led the Gamecocks. Marzilli, Walker, Greiner and Adam Matthews all had two hits as well. South Carolina hitters looked good at the plate with a .347 average (35-for-101) for the series. Marzilli was solid in the leadoff role the entire weekend batting .500 (6-for-12) with a pair of RBI and three runs scored.

The Gamecock pitching staff picked up where it left off last season with a strong effort the entire first weekend on the mound. South Carolina had 11 pitchers that saw action. They combined for 36 strikeouts and just four walks allowed in 27 innings pitched along with a 1.33 ERA. The VMI hitters hitting just .121 for the weekend with only one extra base hit and 11 total hits.

South Carolina returns to action next Friday as the Gamecocks begin a three-game series with Elon. First pitch for the opener at Carolina Stadium on Friday is set for 3 p.m. with Saturday and Sunday's contests at 1:30 p.m. All three games can be heard on the Gamecock IMG Network with live video broadcast available at GamecocksOnline.com