In a weekend where things haven’t exactly gone right for South Carolina, their bats came to life in their second must-win game. The Gamecocks eliminated the Rhode Island Rams 23-2, setting the record for the most runs scored in a postseason regional.
As they have the previous two games, the Gamecocks jumped out to an early lead. Jonah Bride tried to add on in the first, but collided with Rhode Island pitcher and was ejected. A new rule to the NCAA this year states that if a player is ejected, they are also suspended for their next game. Therefore, Bride is unavailable for Sunday’s Game 2.
D.C. Arendas replaced Bride at third base and ended up having one of his best games. He went 4-4 with a two-run homer, triple, walk and 3 RBI. Arendas and Hunter Taylor, who hit the go-ahead run in Saturday’s game, have been two of the biggest heroes this weekend.
The Gamecocks had 22 hits in Sunday's contest, with five players having a multi-hit game. They left six men on base, which could still use some improvement in the final games.
The fifth inning was where they really took off. They scored eight runs to take a 14-2 lead. Bases were loaded twice, and the Gamecocks were able to take advantage of that. Alex Destino hit a 3-run homer, his tenth of the year, while Arendas tripled to score one.
Gene Cone also had a good day, going 3-4 with 3 RBI, as well as L.T. Tolbert who went 3-5 with a double and 2 RBI.
RHP Adam Hill was dominant while getting his seventh win of the season. He held the Rams to two earned runs on three hits over seven innings, walking four while fanning six.
With such a strong lead, the Gamecocks were able to save some of their powerful bullpen arms for the later game. Tyler Haswell pitched two perfect innings of relief with two strikeouts. Saving the big arms in the bullpen is important, as they could potentially face UNC Wilmington twice. The Seahawks are a good offensive team, who have scored 22 runs in their first two games in this regional.
First pitch between South Carolina and UNC Wilmington is set for 6 p.m. The Gamecocks must win to force another game between the two on Monday.