5/1/2016 baseball Edit

Rain-soaked Sunday leaves Gamecocks, Gators in stalemate

Will Helms • GamecockScoop

Staff Writer

While Will has covered all aspects South Carolina football, basketball and baseball for six years, he has become known for his use of advanced statistics and analytics in his writing.

*** Game 3 Photo Gallery by Chris Gillespie ***

It was a wet and dreary afternoon at Founders Park, but the Gamecock dugout was in high spirits, despite the cancellation of Sunday’s decisive Game 3 against the Florida Gators.

The teams tried to work out a way to finish the game despite lightning and heavy rains, even offering to ignore the SEC’s 6 p.m. restart rule, but ultimately the consensus was to cancel the game and move on.

It’s poetic justice in its finest sense, that after an incredible weekend of baseball played at levels not often reached in college ball, the series was declared a draw.

After a 5-4 loss in which Florida took the lead with two solo home runs off of star closer Josh Reagan on Friday, the Gamecocks battled back to even the series with a hard-fought 2-1 win on Saturday. The win, which came in front of a sellout crowd and postseason-like atmosphere, was highlighted by Gene Cone’s solo homer and Tyler Johnson’s impressive five-out save.

The nation’s top-two teams looked evenly matched throughout the weekend, and though Mother Nature prevented the declaration of a winner, USC head coach Chad Holbrook was pleased with his team’s performance.

“That’s the most talented team and probably the best team in the country, so I feel good about how we competed,” Holbrook said. “I hope our players go forward with some confidence because of the way we competed against those guys. They’re a terrific team.”

Sunday’s game, which lasted just 3 ½ innings, was no less entertaining. Gamecock Adam Hill and Gator Alex Faeto dueled back and forth, allowing just one hit between them, a Jonah Bride single in the second inning.Hill surrendered two two-out walks in the first before retiring the next eight batters he faced. Though he pitched four hitless innings, they will not count toward any season totals.

Lightning struck in the middle of the fourth inning, and despite several attempts to continue play, the game was ultimately called around 5:30 p.m. Since the game was a 0-0 tie, the decision was made easier and both teams were content to split the hard-fought series.

South Carolina will be back in action against USC Upstate on Wednesday at Founders Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will air on the SEC Network.

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