Gamecocks tweak lineup. It pays off with run-rule win over USC Upstate

The mixed bag that’s been South Carolina’s 2025 baseball season continued Tuesday night in a 13-3 run-rule victory over USC Upstate at Founders Park.

Dalton Mashore hit a grand slam in the first inning and Ethan Petry added a two-run shot in the second to give the Gamecocks all the runs the five pitchers used would need in seven innings.

“Dalton certainly gave us a big lift there in the first inning with a grand slam and Petry with a two-run homer,” first-year USC coach Paul Mainieri said. “It was a good win for us to get to our 20th win of the year. I didn’t think it would take us this long to get to 20 wins, but we got there.”

Let’s break things down with six SEC series remaining and 22 games overall.

The good news: South Carolina improved to 18-4 in non-SEC games. The losses have come to a couple of ACC rivals — three to Clemson and one to North Carolina. Those two teams are ranked No. 4 and No. 16, respectively, in the latest D1Baseball poll.

It’s not where Mainieri wants to be, but it’s where the Gamecocks sit. Coming into Tuesday night, they were No. 39 in RPI and No. 12 in strength of schedule nationally.

Now the bad news: South Carolina sits at 2-10 in the SEC, only ahead of Florida and Missouri in the standings. They have yet to win a conference series, going 1-2 against Oklahoma and Mississippi State and 0-3 against Arkansas and Tennessee.

“They can shake things off pretty quickly,” Mainieri said of his club playing well in non-SEC games. “It’s a good thing to have a short memory as a young player. ... We had a disappointing ending to the weekend, but you just have to look forward.”

Game recap

It didn’t take long for South Carolina (20-14 overall) to take control against the Spartans (16-17) on Tuesday. Mainieri again juggled his lineup, with Petry hitting the No. 2 hole behind Nathan Hall and Mashore and Ryan Bakes in the starting lineup.

Mashore made it pay off in the first inning when he smashed a grand slam just left of the batter’s eye in centerfield. An inning later, Petry hit his ninth of the season and 53rd of his career, a two-run shot scoring Hall. He’s nine away from tying Justin Smoak for the most homers in school history.

It was Mashore’s first home run of the season.

“What better situation I could be put in with the bases loaded my first at-bat,” Mashore said. “I tried to stay loose and calm and squared up a ball pretty well.”

The Gamecocks salted it away with a six-run sixth inning. Jordan Carrion delivered a three-run double and KJ Scobey added a two-run single for the big blows of the inning. Cayden Gaskin walked it off with a solo home run in the seventh.

One game after collecting two hits in the loss to the Bulldogs on Sunday, USC banged out 12 hits and eight of the nine starters collected at least one hit.

Injury update: Dalton Eskew was able to throw a bullpen session on Tuesday, and Mainieri said it went as well as it could have. Eskew has been out after suffering a concussion and oblique strain a few weeks ago.

The news is not as good for catcher Talmadge LeCroy. The senior is likely done for the season due to a hip injury. There is a chance he could apply for a medical redshirt, but that is something that will be discussed later down the road.

USC baseball schedule: Upcoming games

• April 10 at Texas A&M, 8 p.m. (ESPNU)
• April 11 at Texas A&M, 7 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
• April 12 at Texas A&M, 3 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
• April 15 vs. The Citadel, 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
• April 17 vs. Ole Miss, 6:30 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
• April 18 vs. Ole Miss, 4 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
• April 19 vs. Ole Miss, 2 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)

This story was originally published April 8, 2025 at 9:55 PM.