Coming off an astonishing series win against No. 4 Vanderbilt, South Carolina looked to keep the momentum in a midweek game against Furman in Greenville Tuesday.
However, the Gamecocks continued their struggles at the plate and fell to the Paladins at Fluor Field for the second time in the last three years, 2-1.
The Gamecocks have struggled with consistency at the plate all season in what is shaping up to be a disappointing year. In the past eight games, the Gamecocks have totaled just 23 runs, going just 2-6 in that span.
Neither team recorded a hit until a Furman single in the bottom of the third inning, as both pitchers shined. The Gamecocks struck first as sophomore centerfielder Gene Cone scored on a sacrifice fly by junior third baseman DC Arendas in the top of the fourth inning.
Cone had two of South Carolina’s four hits, including a fourth inning triple.
Sophomore pitcher Reed Scott pitched well for the Gamecocks, giving up just two runs in 4.1 innings but still taking the loss. Sophomore reliever Josh Reagan entered in the fifth inning and gave up just three hits in 3.2 innings of work.
"We pitched well, played great defense,” head coach Chad Holbrook said. “(Our) pitchers were terrific, did all we could ask them to do against a really good hitting team. We just didn't do enough offensively, very disappointing performance by our position players from a hitting standpoint. We pitched well enough to win.”
Tuesday was the first time all season the Gamecocks gave up just two runs and still lost. While in the past South Carolina has gotten production from its top hitters even as the rest of the offense struggles, the top three Gamecock hitters let the team down Tuesday.
Seniors Elliott Caldwell and Kyle Martin have led the team all year. Junior Max Schrock has hit well in SEC play. Tuesday, the trio looked lost. The three combined to go 0-11 with six strikeouts against pitchers Matthew Quarles and Elliott Warford.
In the top of the ninth inning, Arendas hit a single to left field and moved to second on an error with no outs. However, Warford struck out Schrock, Martin and Caldwell in order to end the game. The game proved to be another setback in an up-and-down year for the Gamecocks.
South Carolina will travel to Knoxville to face Tennessee in a three-game series beginning Friday at 6 p.m.