South Carolina sees big lead dwindle but still beats Morehead State to clinch series
This was on track to be a quick, clean evening. A blowout, at worst. A run rule, at best.
“It looked like it was going to be a walk in the park there for a while,” USC head coach Paul Mainieri said. “It got a little interesting. (We) wanted to keep everyone involved in the game for a long time, watching the game.”
The Gamecocks led Morehead State by 11 runs after three innings and Mainieri opted for the platoon in his dugout. He made five defensive substitutions, headlined by taking out top hitters Nathan Hall and Ethan Petry.
South Carolina (13-3) still managed a 16-11 victory over the Eagles, but not without added tension as the Gamecocks watched a lead dwindle with its top bats on the bench.
“They were throwing relief pitchers that didn’t look like they’d be able to stop us,” Mainieri said. “I thought it was gonna end up being a seven-inning game — it had the makings — and I wanted to get some guys in the game.”
After South Carolina’s lineup change, Morehead State (6-7) scored 10 runs over the next three innings. A game that once felt as a run-rule certainty was 14-11 USC going into the seventh inning.
Now, a few things:
First, on most days this isn’t even an issue. South Carolina was up big in a non-conference game against a mid-major opponent. Of course Mainieri is going to want some reserves such as shortstop Will Tippett and outfielders Cayden Gaskin and Blake Jackson to get at-bats ahead of SEC play.
Two, the reserves weren’t the reason for the close call. Yes, having Petry and Hall in the lineup increased the chances of extending a lead, but Tippett managed two walks, and Gaskin had an RBI single.
“A few guys, I wanted to get into the game,” Mainieri said. “But outside of Cayden (Gaskin) all the others have been starters for us. ... I wasn’t nervous about having them in the game. I was just concerned whether our bullpen could stop (Morehead State).”
The near-disaster falls on the pitching. After three solid inning, starter Jake McCoy lost his command. He walked the bases loaded (hitting one batter), and gave up back-to-back hits.
Reliever Ashton Crowther came in an inning later and gave up four straight hits, including a three-run home run that flew into the Morehead State bullpen. Then two errors brought home three more Eagles in the sixth.
The optics of Petry and Hall watching the game get incredibly tight aren’t great. But the bigger concern for South Carolina is just the number of mistakes. A night after committing three errors, USC made two more on Saturday.
Asked about it on Saturday, Mainieri didn’t seem ready to hit the panic button nor make any rash decisions after a slew of errors — especially on the left side of the infield.
But, Mainieri said, “We’re gonna need to play good defense as we go forward. ... We’ve gotta tighten it up.”
South Carolina baseball scores, schedule
- Friday: South Carolina 11, Morehead State 7
- Saturday: South Carolina 16, Morehead State 11
- Sunday: South Carolina 1, Morehead State 0
- Wednesday vs. Georgia State, 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
- March 14 vs. Oklahoma, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
March 15 vs. Oklahoma, 4 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
March 16 vs. Oklahoma, 1:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 7:26 PM.
