Gamecocks batter Rams 23-2
Two down, two to go.
South Carolina smashed Rhode Island 23-2 Sunday afternoon at Founders Park to keep its season alive and advance to the championship game of the Columbia Regional.
The Gamecocks set a school record for runs in an NCAA tournament game and pounded out 22 hits in the win. Carolina will face UNCW at 6 p.m. Sunday (ESPN3) needing a victory and one Monday night as well to advance to a super regional.
“It was good to see us swing the bat the way that we did,” Carolina coach Chad Holbrook said. “Guys are feeling good about themselves in the batter’s box, and hopefully that will carry over to tonight.”
Carolina starter Adam Hill saved the bullpen for the Sunday game against the Seahawks, pitching a career-high seven innings and allowing only two runs on three hits with six strikeouts on 123 pitches.
Tyler Haswell, who has not been used much in close games this season, pitched the final two innings to polish off the win.
“Adam was terrific. He threw seven innings and gave us just what we needed,” Holbrook said. “We drew it up that way. ... If we’d have had to use a lot of pitchers today things would’ve gotten interesting tonight with how we’d have gone about trying to figure it out. It did give us a chance to have a few arms in the stable tonight.”
Key relievers Reed Scott, Taylor Widener and Tyler Johnson should be available to pitch Sunday evening.
USC will be without Jonah Bride, though, as he was ejected and suspended one game for not sliding and colliding with Rhode Island catcher Chase Livingston at the plate in the first inning. Bride drove in two runs with a single before being ejected and was replaced in the lineup by DC Arendas.
A new rule put into place by the NCAA this season states that a player will be ejected and suspended for one game if he does not slide on a play at the plate.
“I know who Jonah Bride is. There was nothing malicious there. Jonah wouldn’t hurt a flea,” Holbrook said. “It’s disappointing because when you know a kid works so hard and there’s not a bad bone in that kid’s body, and he gets a chance to play in the NCAA tournament, you hate that an in-between play costs him an opportunity.”
Arendas had a great game off the bench, going 4-for-4 with a triple, home run and three RBIs. The senior is expected to start at third base in Bride’s place.
“I had a feeling he was going to do something to help us win because baseball tends to reward good kids that do the right thing and work their tails off,” Holbrook said. “I’m glad the game rewarded him for a great attitude and the great kid that he is.”
Gene Cone, Alex Destino, Dom Thompson-Williams, LT Tolbert and Marcus Mooney each had multiple hits, while TJ Hopkins drove in five runs.
This story was originally published June 5, 2016 at 3:58 PM with the headline "Gamecocks batter Rams 23-2."