South Carolina baseball (15-18, 2-10 SEC) dropped its fourth straight conference series over the weekend, this time to No. 2 Texas.
The Gamecocks dominated Thursday's series opener 9-1 after a strong offensive night, but dropped the last two games of the series, 5-2 Friday and 4-1 Saturday. In both losses, South Carolina had a combined six hits and struck out 28 times.
South Carolina earns 9-1 upset win on Thursday night
The Gamecocks upset No. 2 Texas 9-1 Thursday night at Founders Park. The South Carolina offense was 7-15 (.467) with two outs and hit .538 with runners on base. On the mound, South Carolina struck out 12 Longhorn batters and only walked three.
Junior left-handed pitcher Alex Valentin provided South Carolina with a quality performance in his first weekend start of the season. Valentin went 3.2 innings with five strikeouts, one walk and one earned run.
"We needed a good start out of Alex, and man, did he battle," interim head coach Monte Lee said. "He just battled, and battled and battled for us and gave us everything he could."
South Carolina took a 5-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning after a leadoff walk from fifth-year catcher Talmadge LeCroy, and a double from sophomore shortstop KJ Scobey quickly put runners in scoring position with no outs for the Gamecocks.
LeCroy scored off an RBI groundout from sophomore first baseman Beau Hollins, and Scobey scored on a single from freshman second baseman Will Craddock to take a 2-0 lead.
The rally continued with two outs for the Gamecocks, with sophomore third baseman Erik Parker doubling to put runners in scoring position once again. A two-RBI triple from junior outfielder Patrick Evans and an RBI double from junior centerfielder Tyler Bak contributed to the electric five-run inning.
Texas cut into the lead in the top of the third inning after a two-out solo home run from the Longhorns' top hitter, junior center fielder Aiden Robbins.
South Carolina continued to attack Texas’ starting pitcher, Ruger Riojas, in the bottom of the third after Scobey doubled for the second time with one out. Following a walk from Hollins, Craddock singled to score Scobey and pushed the Gamecocks' lead to 6-1 after three innings.
Sophomore right-hander Zach Russell entered in relief with two outs in the fourth inning and had his most dominant outing of the season. Russell tied his season high of 2.1 innings of work ,with a new season-high four strikeouts and no earned runs in his third earned win of the season.
The Gamecocks' two-out offensive production continued in the bottom of the sixth inning after Parker singled, and Evans homered to left field to give South Carolina an 8-1 advantage over Texas.
Junior right-handed pitcher Alex Philpott entered in the seventh inning and sat down the Longhorns in order. Philpott earned the save after finishing the last three innings with three strikeouts, no walks and no earned runs.
South Carolina extended its commanding lead over the Longhorns to 9-1 in the bottom of the ninth inning after LeCroy blasted his sixth home run of the season to tack on an extra insurance run and secure the Gamecocks’ upset win 9-1 over No. 2 Texas.
Longhorns even the series after Friday night win
The Gamecocks dropped the second game against Texas Friday night evening the series going into Saturday.
Junior pitcher Josh Gunther retired the first batter without any issues, but the Longhorns struck first off the bat of junior catcher Carson Tinney, who homered over the left field wall to take a 1-0 lead.
Gunther's outing ended after just 1.1 innings and resulted in two earned runs. Putting pressure on the Gamecocks' bullpen, Lee turned to junior right-hander Brandon Stone.
Stone was put into a jam and failed to field a bunt against the first batter he faced, making a throwing error towards first that allowed freshman Maddox Monsour to drive in a run and reach second base.
The Longhorns pulled off another bunt for an infield hit by junior infielder Ethan Mendoza, which allowed graduate infielder Josh Livingston to make the score 3-0 in the second inning. The Gamecocks responded, however, executing a 6-4-3 double play to end the frame.
Early offensive success proved to be the difference in game one for the Gamecocks. However, on Friday night, the team did not register its first hit until the fifth inning, when senior outfielder Luke Yuhasz hit a towering two-run shot, making the score 3-2 in favor of the Longhorns.
Texas starting pitcher sophomore Luke Harrison controlled the game for 5.2 innings, prior to being relieved by freshman right-handed pitcher Brett Crossland.
The Gamecocks continued to find success with two outs, and in the bottom of the seventh, Craddock managed a double, tightroping the left field foul line that put the tying run in scoring position. The opportunity did not garner a run but forced the Longhorns back to the bullpen bringing in junior lefty Haiden Leffew.
Stone shone throughout his performance, pitching seven scoreless innings and striking out six Longhorns. His biggest punchout ended the top of the eighth, leaving two runners in scoring position.
"Brandon Stone was phenomenal for us; we went to him early in the ball game, and man, did he give us a chance," Lee said.
In the top of the ninth, however, Mendoza added cushion to the Texas lead, taking Stone deep before Tinney hit a second straight home to give Texas a 5-2 advantage.
Craddock found the barrel in the bottom of the ninth following two Gamecocks striking out looking. Craddock added the fourth Gamecock hit, launching one into the left field bleachers for the final run of the game.
Offensive struggles plague South Carolina in series finale
The Gamecocks fell 4-1 to Texas on Saturday, posting just two hits and 15 strikeouts.
Starting pitching struggles cost the Gamecocks again in the final game of the series. Junior Amp Phillips gave up an early two runs off a double from Texas' freshman outfielder Anthony Pack Jr. as the Longhorns took a 2-0 lead in the first.
The Gamecocks' bats were active but to no avail early, as Longhorn starter sophomore left-hander Dylan Volantis got through the first two innings in just 15 pitches.
Philips was able to settle in and strike out eight batters through four innings. He also came up clutch in the fourth inning, getting out of a bases-loaded jam by striking out graduate first baseman Josh Livingston.
After an error on a fly ball to left field, which allowed Tinney to reach third, he was driven in by Robbins via a sacrifice fly. The sacrifice made it a 3-0 ball game in the fifth inning, ending Phillips' day and bringing in sophomore lefty Logan Prisco.
Volantis was perfect for Texas through four innings, but the Gamecocks' first hit of the day broke through on a solo home run from LeCroy to lead off the fifth.
The Longhorns managed to stay in control for the remainder of the game, allowing just one more South Carolina hit. Texas added an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning, sealing the series in 4-1 fashion.
What's next?
South Carolina wraps up its five-game homestand with a midweek matchup against the College of Charleston Tuesday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be streaming on SEC Network+.