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Western Carolina wins all three games from Wofford
Western Carolina’s baseball team swept a three-game Southern Conference series from Wofford over the weekend at Childress Field/Hennon Stadium.
The Catamounts (15-9, 4-2) scored nine runs in the sixth to take a 20-10 win and complete the sweep Sunday. Jonathan Greene was three of three while Tim Hallam, Barrett Shaft, Steven Strrausbaugh, Blake Murphy, Ryan Wilson and Jason Haynes all had two hits.
WCU trailed 9-7 entering the bottom of the sixth but took advantage of four errors to claim a 16-9 lead. Hallam drove in runs with a double and single. Green and Wilson had RBI singles, and Shaft delivered a sacrifice fly. Strausbaugh drove in a run with a fielder’s choice, and Grey Gregory walked with the bases loaded. Two runs scored on errors.
Wofford’s Adam Wood homered in the eighth.
The Cats added four runs in the bottom of the eighth. Wilson had an RBI single, and Murphy had a sacrifice fly. Greene was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, and a run scored on a wild pitch.
Wofford took a 3-0 lead in the first on RBI singles by Shane Kirkley and Stephen Johnson plus a passed ball.
Zach Pittman’s homer made it 4-0 in the second.
Western cut the deficit to 4-2 in the bottom of the second as Murphy had an RBI double and scored on an error.
The Terriers scored on an error in the third, but Strausbaugh’s homer made it 5-3 in the bottom of the third.
Kirkley hit a two-run homer in the fourth, but WCU answered with two runs in the bottom of the frame as Hallam was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Shaft had a sacrifice fly leaving the score 7-5.
Gregory’s RBI ground out and Murphy run-scoring single tied it 7-7 in the fifth.
Wofford went up 9-7 in the sixth on home runs by Kirkley and Zach Pittman.
Brian McCullen (2-1) was the winning pitcher in relief. Chip Hunt took the loss.
Wood and Kirkley were both three of five while Steven Fusaro and John Brandt both went two of five.
Trey McDaniel had a career-high five hits in five at-bats leading Western to an 11-7 win Saturday.
Fusaro had a two-run triple in the Wofford first, but McDaniel’s three-run homer in the bottom of the frame gave the Cats a 3-2 edge.
Western went up 5-2 in the third on Gregory’s two-run double.
WCU extended the margin to 8-2 in the fourth. Shaft and Strausbaugh both had sacrifice flies and Murphy contributed an RBI double.
Bradford Eaves drove in a run with a ground out in the fifth, and Fusaro’s RBI single cut the gap to 8-4.
Strausbaugh’s two-run homer and Murphy’s sacrifice fly put the Cats up 11-4 in the sixth.
Brandt’s RBI single in the seventh and Eric Sturkie’s two-run homer in the eighth accounted for the final.
Tyler Sexton (5-1) pitched the first seven innings for the win. Terrier starter Reid McElveen was saddled with the loss.
Fusaro led Wofford’s offense by going four of five. Eaves, Brandt, Sturkie and Brent Pearce all had two hits.
McDaniel’s grand slam keyed a seven-run seventh as the Cats rallied for a 9-8 win Friday.
Western trailed 8-2 entering the frame. Hallam had an RBI double before the grand slam. Gregory added an RBI single, and Greene had a sacrifice fly.
WCU scored in the first on McDaniel’s RBI single.
Stephen Johnson’s homer tied it in the fifth.
The Terriers scored six times in the sixth to go up 7-1. Brandt and Johnson both walked with the bases loaded. Chuck Eller had an RBI single, and Eaves’ base hit drove in a pair. Another run scored on a passed ball.
A sacrifice fly by Murphy in the bottom of the sixth and Eller’s RBI ground out in the top of the seventh left Wofford on top 8-2.
Jeremy Ellenburg (2-0) was the winner in relief. Greg Holland picked up his first save.
Terrier reliever J.D. Melton took the loss.
McDaniel and Gregory both had two hits.
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