Noah Hall’s impressive outing, 4 Gamecock HRs fuel series-clinching win over Missouri

The formula has been much of the same for South Carolina baseball through the first 24 games of the season.

The No. 11 Gamecocks are leading the country in home runs and near the top in ERA, and both of those factors were on display again Saturday afternoon in an 8-1 victory over Missouri in game one of a doubleheader. The win gives USC the series victory, improves the Gamecocks to 22-2 overall and a 5-0 start in the SEC.

Ethan Petry, Evan Stone and Gavin Casas each hit home runs, but it was the power display by Stone that was most surprising.

In the fourth inning, Stone powered one off the batter’s eye in centerfield that traveled approximately 414 feet. Stone wasn’t a power hitter in his prep career at Dutch Fork, and that was the first career long ball in a Gamecocks uniform for the sophomore.

If that wasn’t enough, he hit a two-run shot just over the wall in left field in the eighth inning.

Petry staked USC to a 2-0 lead with a home run into the bleachers in left field in the first inning. Casas added a home run into the Missouri bullpen to lead off the fifth inning.

The Gamecocks have hit 62 home runs, which is more than they hit all last season (58). Casas has 13 and Petry now has 11, which ranks both of them near the top of the individual home run lead nationally.

That was more than enough support for starting pitcher Noah Hall. The senior right-hander allowed one run on five hits in seven innings of work. He struck out 10 and walked one. After giving up an RBI double to Ty Wilmsmeyer with one out in the fourth inning, Hall retired the final 11 batters he faced. He lowered his ERA to 2.35 and improved to 5-0.

Chris Veach stuck out three in his one inning and Cade Austin pitched the ninth with two strikeouts to close it out.

The series finale will start at approximately 7:15 p.m. Saturday (streaming on SEC Network Plus).

This story was originally published March 25, 2023 at 6:33 PM.