USC bounced back to win another series
No. 9 South Carolina got back in the win column on Saturday, blowing out Mississippi State 14-5 to lock up another series victory.
The Gamecocks wasted no time getting on the board, with Braylen Wimmer and Gavin Casas hitting back-to-back jacks to start the game off with a 2-0 lead. USC tacked on another run in the next inning, thanks to a leadoff solo shot from Dylan Brewer that made it 3-0. That score held until the fifth, when the Bulldogs made it a 3-1 game on a double by Lane Forsythe.
MSU took the lead in the next inning, going up 4-3 after one run scored when Hunter Hines hit into a double play and Dakota Jordan followed with a two-run homer. The Cocks tied it up in the seventh, when Wimmer walked and later came home on a single by Cole Messina to make it 4-4. Carolina regained the lead in the eighth, making it a 7-4 game. Brewer got hit by a pitch to start things off, Evan Stone reached on an error, and Wimmer got hit to load the bases. With one out, Ethan Petry then doubled to clear the bases. The Bulldogs got one of those runs back in the bottom of the inning, making the score 7-5 on a double by Hines.
The Gamecocks broke things wide open in the ninth, doubling their run total. Brasweel reached on an error to start the inning, Brewer walked, and Stone singled to load the bases again. Wimmer, Casas, and Petry each knocked base hits after that, bringing in a total of four runs and making it 11-5, then Messina doubled for another run, pushing the lead to 12-5. Talmadge LeCroy grounded out to get another run in and make it a 13-5 game, and the final run scored on a Caleb Denny double.
South Carolina starter Jack Mahoney worked five innings and allowed five hits and three runs. He also walked one batter and struck three out. Chris Veach and James Hicks also took the mound in this game, and Hicks got the win, making him 5-0. Mississippi State starter Nate Dohm went 5.2 innings and gave up eight hits and three runs. He also issued two walks and struck out nine batters. Reliever KC Hunt took the loss and is now 0-1.
Wimmer, Casas, and Petry led the Cocks with three hits apiece, and Petry also tallied four RBI. Three different Bulldogs had two hits each, and Jordan recorded two RBI.
USC is now 26-3 on the season and 8-1 in conference-play, while MSU is 16-13 overall and 1-8 in the SEC. The Gamecocks will be back in action on Tuesday, when they travel to play UNC in Charlotte. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m.