Gamecocks prevail in winner-take-all game, move on to Super Regionals
For the second time in the Chad Holbrook Era, South Carolina is headed to the Super Regionals.
Riding a five-run fourth inning and the positive energy from a boisterous Tuesday afternoon crowd of 7,004 mostly garnet-and-black clad fans, the Gamecocks outlasted UNC Wilmington, 10-5, in a winner-take-all game at Founders Park, propelling USC into an intriguing Super Regional matchup against Oklahoma State beginning Saturday at 3 p.m. in Columbia.
The Gamecocks, which have won five straight Super Regionals at home, rallied back from Friday’s deflating 5-4 loss to Rhode Island by winning four straight games, two over UNCW in the regional championship round.
After winning a tight 4-2 contest over Duke on Saturday afternoon, the Gamecocks outscored their opponents by an impressive 43-8 margin over the next three games.
“Things didn’t look good for us late Friday night," Chad Holbrook said after the Gamecocks secured their first trip to the Super Regionals since 2013 when they lost Game 3 at North Carolina. “Somebody told me after that game we had about a seven percent chance to win our regional based on the history of the tournament.
“I didn’t mention that to our team because I felt they felt pretty good about themselves when they showed up at the park on Saturday. I have a group of guys that won’t quit. They believe in the uniform they are representing. There is something special about that Gamecock spirit. They found a way to win this thing.”
T.J. Hopkins and Madison Stokes fueled the Gamecocks’ 13-hit attack Tuesday with three hits apiece.
The win-or-go-home victory occurred in front of an ear-splitting near-capacity crowd, many of whom took the afternoon off from work. Long lunch hour, anybody?
“Our fans were incredible,” Holbrook said. “That’s what a home-field environment is all about. That’s why every regular season game is important. When you get a chance to play at home and you get your fans behind you, atmospheres like that help you win. Our fans were awesome. We played our tails off. It was a true team effort.”
UNCW starter Ryan Foster, working on three days rest after throwing 114 pitches against Duke Friday night afternoon, sailed through the Gamecocks order in the first three innings by retiring all nine USC batters he faced with just two balls leaving the infield.
USC figured Foster out the second time through the order.
Gene Cone and Hopkins opened the top of the fourth with singles up the middle. Dom Thompson-Williams (DTW) laid down a sacrifice bunt but the UNCW first baseman’s throw to second was high, loading the bases.
Alex Destino gave the Gamecocks the lead for good with a bouncing two-run single through the right side, increasing his team-leading RBI total to 59. Bride’s sacrifice bunt led to Stokes (set career highs with three hits and three RBI) delivering a line drive 2-run single into left-center to give the Gamecocks a 4-1 lead.
Even a pitching change failed to improve UNCW’s fortunes. Hunter Taylor reached on an error by the Seahawks second baseman and DC Arendas scored Stokes with a well-executed sacrifice bunt. By the time the inning was over, the Gamecocks held a 5-1 lead and had succeeded in reversing momentum by knocking Foster out of the game for good.
Two more Gamecock runs in the top of the sixth gave USC a comfortable 7-1 lead. Stokes’ RBI single and a bases loaded walk to Cone did the damage. The first four Gamecock batters collected a double and three singles before consecutive walks to Marcus Mooney and Cone brought home the second run of the inning.
Arendas continued his torrid regional by blasting a solo homer over the left field fence leading off the top of the eighth.
From a pitching perspective, Holbrook said the winner-take-all game unfolded “almost” perfectly for the Gamecocks. USC allowed just one run and five hits in the first seven innings as they built a 7-1 lead.
Taylor Widener made his first start since May 10 vs. Presbyterian and worked four effective innings (3 hits, 1 run, 4 K, 3 BBs) before giving way to Josh Reagan in the fifth. The lefthander from Lexington worked three innings before departing with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth.
“It was almost perfect,” Holbrook said. “We wrestled with it. We came very close this morning to starting Reagan. We just wanted to get off to a good start and then have some power stuff at the end of the game. Taylor was special. It was one of his best outings with the season on the line. His velocity was great, his location was great. He has learned how to pitch this year instead of just throw.”
Reagan, who relies extensively on changeups, served as a stark contrast to the hard-throwing Widener. He threw 49 pitches with three strikeouts.
“Reagan got a little tired at the end, but he kept them off-balance,” Holbrook said. “It’s hard to see 96 (miles per hour) and then all of a sudden the next guy is throwing 75 mile per hour changeups. He gave them a totally different look. It worked perfectly because the guys threw well. The coaches look smart when they do that.”
At that point, Holbrook turned to ace starters Clarke Schmidt and Braden Webb to finish off the Seahawks rather than bring sidewinder Reed Scott into the game. Schmidt allowed two run-scoring hits and a RBI groundout before escaping the eighth inning with a flyout and popup into shallow right.
“We wanted power stuff at the end of the game,” Holbrook said. “It wasn’t like we didn’t have confidence in Reed. It’s hard to hit 96 miles per hour. I’m sure Wilmington saw it at some point this season, but they saw a lot more guys like Reed Scott. We have a few power guys. It takes a lot of pressure off your defense when they are throwing well. They get strikeouts and swings and misses. We had Reed ready if Webb had walked the first or second guy.”
Gamecock pinch-hitter John Jones, mired in a slump for most of the second half of the season, came off the bench and shook off his recent hitting woes by ripping a two-run double off the right-center field wall.
“I’m extremely proud of him because he has been through a lot,” Holbrook said. “He has handled it like a pro. I know he is one of our better hitters. He has been through a tough stretch. This game will humble you, and it has humbled him. But it was great to see him help us win that game today.”
Webb guaranteed a Super Regional matchup against one of his home state schools by needing just 10 pitches to close out UNCW. In two games, the Gamecocks held the Seahawks to six runs and 15 hits.
Five of those hits – 33.3 percent of UNCW’s total – came in the final two innings of Tuesday’s game.
LINESCORE
USC (46-16) – 000 502 012 = 10-13-0
NCW (41-19) – 001 000 040 = 5-10-3
WP – Josh Reagan (3-2)
LP – Ryan Foster (13-2)
SV – None
HR – USC, DC Arendas (8th, none on)
LOB – USC 7, NCW 8
A – 7,004
TIME – 3:23
RBI – Madison Stokes (3), Alex Destino (2), DC Arendas (2), Gene Cone (1),
Gamecock Pitchers: Taylor Widener (4.0 IP, 66 pitches), Josh Reagan (3.0 IP, 49 pitches), Clarke Schmidt (1.0, 19 pitches), Braden Webb (1.0, 10 pitches)
HOW THE RUNS SCORED:
NCW 3rd - Thorburn singled to center, McDowell sacrificed (U-3), Linkous singled to left, Mims grounded to shortstop (RBI), Stupienski walked, Feight flied to left. 1 RUN, 2 HITS (NCW 1-0)
USC 4th - Cone singled to center, Hopkins singled up the middle, DTW reached on fielder's choice and Hopkins advanced to second on throwing error by 1B (Cone advanced to third), Destino singled to right (2 RBI), Bride sacrificed, (1-3), Stokes singled to left-center (2 RBI) and advanced to second on throw, Taylor reached on an error by 2B, Arendas sacrificed to pitcher (RBI), Mooney struck out looking. 5 RUNS, 4 HITS (USC 5-1).
USC 6th - Destino doubled to left, Bride singled to pitcher (bunt), Stokes singled to second base (RBI), Bride picked off at second (2-6), Taylor singled to right-center, Arendas struck out swinging, Mooney walked, Cone walked (RBI), Hopkins struckout swinging. 2 RUNS, 4 HITS (USC 7-1).
USC 8th – Arendas homered to right, Mooney flied to center, Cone struck out swinging, Hopkins singled through the right side, Hopkins caught stealing (2-6). 1 RUN, 2 HITS (USC 8-1).
NCW 8th - Mims singled to right, Stupienski singled to left, Feight walked, <Schmidt for Reagan>, Golden doubled to center (2 RBI), Austin (PH) grounded to second (RBI), Canada singled to right (RBI), Thorburn flied to left, McDowell popped up to second. 4 RUNS, 4 HITS (USC 8-5).
USC 9th - DTW grounded out to first unassisted, Destino flied to center, Bride hit by pitch, Stokes hit by pitch, Jones (PH) doubled to right-center (2 RBI), Scolamiero pinch ran for Jones, Arendas grounded to 2second. 2 RUNS, 1 HIT (USC 10-5).
