Gamecocks battle to 3-2 series-clinching win over Vanderbilt

Staring at a fifth straight SEC series loss after Thursday’s blowout loss to Vanderbilt – something that had never happened in the South Carolina baseball team’s 24 seasons in the conference – the Gamecocks refused to flinch.

They battled back for two straight wins over the No. 5 Commodores – capped by Saturday afternoon’s 3-2 victory at Carolina Stadium.

“I don’t know if I can put into words what it means to our team and the morale in the locker room,” USC coach Chad Holbrook said. “It’s been a tough stretch, and our guys didn’t give up. After Thursday night (a 12-0 loss), it didn’t look so hot. But, boy, they responded the right way and played with some energy and emotion these last 18 innings.”

Behind a three-run rally in the sixth inning keyed by Max Schrock’s RBI triple and RBI singles from Alex Destino and Logan Koch, USC halted a serious slide in conference play, which included four consecutive series losses.

“On top of that, we beat a great team, a team that has a chance to win the national championship again,” Holbrook said. “We battled pitch-for-pitch and at-bat-for-at-bat, and we found a way to win a big-time series here at home.”

With right-handers Cody Mincey (2-2) and Taylor Widener, who earned his ninth save, combining for 5 2/3 scoreless innings, this weekend’s team resembled the one that played well to start the season instead of the one that was outscored 50-10 in the four SEC games prior to the victories. Widener’s strikeouts of Dansby Swanson and Bryan Reynolds, Vandy’s best hitters, with two runners on base in the seventh proved to be crucial.

“Cody kept them at bay, and Taylor was spectacular,” Holbrook said.

The comeback improved USC’s record to 25-16 (8-10 in the SEC), while Vanderbilt fell to 29-12 and 12-6. The Gamecocks travel to Greenville’s Fluor Field to play Furman on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Schrock hopes the team can carry the momentum forward, especially after knocking off a Vanderbilt team that has spent six weeks at No. 1 in the Baseball America Top 25 this season.

“Vanderbilt’s a big-time program with a big-time pitching staff,” Schrock said. “Hopefully, some guys at the plate are feeling good about the swings they put on the ball this weekend and we can take some confidence into the next game.”

Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin called the USC staff’s execution of its pitches the difference in the games. He wasn’t surprised by the way the Gamecocks fought back under Holbrook.

“They get on you for not winning baseball games, but at the same time there are streaks that exist throughout the season,” Corbin said. “You’re not defined by what happens in the middle of the season. You’re defined by how you respond to those moments and where you go from there. That’s where you see the best teams at the end.”

Vanderbilt took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Jeren Kendall blasted a solo home run over the right-field fence off Clarke Schmidt. USC’s freshman right-hander lasted into the fourth inning, when he gave up a leadoff double to Kendall, who later scored on a wild pitch by Mincey for a 2-0 lead.

But Holbrook felt a good vibe about his team in the dugout even when it trailed. He saw some carryover from the Friday victory.

“We battled and competed and gave ourselves a chance to win,” he said.

Widener said he was angry about the Thursday loss, and the players showed up the next day with a chip on their shoulders.

“I knew we were going to turn it around and come back to have a lot of fight in us the next day,” Widener said.

Holbrook liked how he players didn’t give in after losing 10 of their past 13 SEC games following the Thursday defeat.

“The situation we were in magnified the importance of the series, and they performed at a high level. I couldn’t be more proud of our guys,” he said.

This story was originally published April 18, 2015 at 4:08 PM with the headline "Gamecocks battle to 3-2 series-clinching win over Vanderbilt."