The last time Wil Crowe pitched in a game at Founders Park, back in March of 2015 against Georgia, it was still Carolina Stadium. His battery mate Chris Cullen was still in high school. He had seven different fielders standing behind him, although junior left fielder Alex Destino did appear in that game as a pinch hitter.
In the Gamecocks' 5-1 win Saturday, the junior right-hander completed his 22-month comeback from Tommy John surgery by starting UNCG's Ben Spitznagel with a called strike on the edge of the plate. It was an encouraging start, but Spitznagel would make Crowe labor a little bit, drawing a full count before grounding out to South Carolina first baseman Jacob Olson.
Crowe tossed five shutout frames, striking out seven batters and allowing just one walk in his return. Still, UNCG's veteran lineup made Crowe work, as he needed 82 pitches and had to deal with baserunners in each of his first three innings.
"He [Crowe] had a lot of nervous energy — and rightfully so, because he's put a lot into this," said South Carolina head coach Chad Holbrook.
In the fourth inning, Crowe began to spot his fastball on both sides of the plate while incorporating all of his pitches to generate swings and misses. Controlling the tempo of the at-bats, he stuck out the side.
"In the middle innings there, right before he came out, probably from pitch 45 to 80, he really started locating all his off-speed pitches and I think that when he settled in — that was the real Will Crowe," Holbrook said.
"The first two innings I think I still had some jitters — emotions — after that I think I really settled in," Crowe said.
Crowe retired the last nine batters he faced.
The Gamecocks were twice thrown out trying to advance bases in the bottom of the third inning. Despite the harmful effects of their aggressive base running, South Carolina still managed to give Crowe a 1-0 advantage when sophomore TJ Hopkins scored on a Spartans' error.
South Carolina scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth to cushion their lead. Sophomore outfielder Danny Blair, who has recorded multi-hit games twice already this series, lined a single to right to score first baseman Jacob Olson. Destino would plate two more with a bases-loaded single to left center.
Highly-touted freshman Carlos Cortes earned his first collegiate hit with an RBI-single in the eighth to extend South Carolina's lead to 5-0 before the Spartans broke up the shutout in the top of the ninth. Senior reliever Reed Scott logged four innings to secure Crowe's first win since 2015.
"Seeing him [Crowe] go out there and do his thing today — the success he had — it's a pinnacle on what he's been working for lately," Destino said. "We all had to watch him go through his rehab, and when he told us he was going to have to get Tommy John — seeing him cry — that was hard for a lot of us."
Next Up
South Carolina will look to complete the series sweep with sophomore right-hander Adam Hill on the mound Sunday at 1:30. The Gamecocks will take Monday off before embarking on a busy mid-week slate.