No. 17 USC 9, Florida 6

Baseball: Homers help USC save the weekend

By CHRIS DEARING - Special to The State

The Gamecocks’ big hitters deliver in the rubber game of a key series in the SEC standings

South Carolina and Florida matched each other hit for hit Sunday afternoon, but a trio of two-run homers helped the Gamecocks pull out a 9-6 series-clinching victory.

Justin Smoak, James Darnell, and Phil Disher — the No. 3, 4 and 5 hitters in the USC order — went deep. Add in the workman-like relief outing from senior Nick Godwin, and the Gamecocks gained a much needed win with two weeks remaining in the regular season.

“You’re supposed to win games when the guys in the middle of the order hit home runs,” USC coach Ray Tanner said. “I know they were three two-run shots, but you get seven, eight or nine runs and you’re supposed to win. We had to hang on for dear life, but everything is important right now.”

The win moves USC (33-15, 13-11) into a tie for third place with the Gators (28-18, 13-11) in the SEC standings with six conference games remaining. South Carolina had lost four in a row, including being swept at LSU last weekend, before taking the final two against Florida. The Gamecocks are 3-1 in Sunday games after splitting the first two games of the series.

“Saturday’s game was a good little bounce back,” USC outfielder Andrew Crisp said. “That’s always a good feeling after you get beat, and we’ve been pretty good on Sundays so far. We feel confidence with the pitching and hitting that we have on this team.”

Six teams remain within 2.5 games of third place, and the two teams the Gamecocks finish with — Arkansas on the road and Tennessee at home — trail the Gamecocks but are within striking distance in the standings.

Only the top eight teams make the SEC tournament in Hoover, Ala.

Disher was the first to connect for USC. His 16th home run of the season gave the Gamecocks a 3-0 lead in the first inning.

Florida, known for its small-ball approach, flexed its power for the first time during the weekend. Bryson Barber and Riley Cooper hit back-to-back home runs to tie the score in the third.

The Gators went ahead 5-3 in the top of the fifth, but Smoak tied the game in the bottom half of the inning with his team-leading 19th home run of the season. It was Smoak’s 58th career home run, moving him into a tie for ninth on the SEC career list.

Crisp gave USC the lead with a sacrifice fly later in that inning, and DeAngelo Mack added an RBI single to push the lead to 7-5.

After Florida pulled within a run, Darnell hit his 15th home run to give the Gamecocks some insurance.

That was enough for Godwin (5-2), who relieved Blake Cooper with two outs in the fourth and pitched five innings. He allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks. Cooper walked five during the first three innings.

The right-hander helped his cause by picking off two runners. In addition, the Gators ran themselves into an inning-double play in the eighth. With the tying run at the plate, Scott Wingo snagged a line drive at second and doubled the runner off first.

Parker Bangs recorded the final out by striking out Riley Cooper, and the Gamecocks earned the series win for the eighth time in the past nine seasons against Florida.

“Nick Godwin was rested and ready to go,” Tanner said. “I think he was eager to perform in a SEC game, and he got that chance and did a good job for us. At this point in the season, it’s tremendous (to have someone like Godwin in the bullpen).”