Gone Country
4/24/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 24, 2008
A-Sun.TV
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The USC Upstate baseball team will make the six-hour trek to Nashville this weekend as it plays its second straight Atlantic Sun foe from the Music City, facing off against Belmont after taking two of three from second-place Lipscomb last weekend. The Spartans, at 13-11 in the conference, will look to stay in the conference's top half while the Bruins, at 11-13 in the A-Sun, are looking to climb into the top half of the league.
Upstate is looking to stop a two-game skid after dropping mid-week games at Presbyterian and A-10 leading Charlotte. The Spartan offense will look to continue its current hot streak, having scored 28 runs in the last four games.
The Bruins have also dropped two games in a row, falling against Tennessee Tech and No. 10 Vanderbilt during the midweek after taking two of three games against ETSU last weekend. The games are a renewal of a 21-year-old rivalry, as then-USC Spartanburg swept the Bruins in a doubleheader on April 18, 1987, in the only games between the schools.
Tanning The Rawhide
Sophomore Jimmy Tanner has become one of Upstate's most reliable offensive producers this season, after struggling out of the gate. After going 9-for-42 in his first 11 games, the Spartan catcher has hit .385 (45-for-117) with 21 runs in 20 RBIs in the last 31 games. In the process, he has moved to the top of the lineup and has risen to second on the Spartans with a .340 average.
Dempsey's Due
Sophomore Brian Dempsey has started to shine in the Upstate lineup, as the left-handed hitting outfielder/pitcher has started eight of the last 10 games for the Spartans. In that time, the Montverde, Fla., native has hit .367 (11-for-30) with five runs scored, a double, a triple and five RBIs. He is currently riding a four-game hitting streak, which started in Saturday's first game against Lipscomb when he lifted a game-winning bases loaded triple in the eighth inning to help the Spartans to a 9-5 win.
Home Run Runion
Senior Andrew Runion hit his ninth homer of the season in the ninth inning of the Spartans' 10-7 loss to Presbyterian on Tuesday. The Mauldin High product has hit as many homers this season (9) as he had in his first three years in an Upstate uniform. Making his power numbers even more impressive, Runion is just one homer shy of becoming the first Spartan to hit 10 homers in a season since Callhan Morden hit 11 in 1999.
Last Time Thru
The Bruins and then-Rifles played a doubleheader on April 18, 1987, as part of a USC Spartanburg swing through Tennessee that also included games at Vanderbilt and Tennessee. Upstate swept both ends, winning 16-1 and 3-2. In the first game, Ken Penland threw a three-hit complete-game and Steve Hanvey hit two homers to lead the Rifles. In the second game, four pitchers worked to earn a 3-2 win and complete the sweep. Chris Hawkins, the Spartans current softball coach, pitched 2/3 of an inning in relief. Scott Coleman went 2-for-3 with a run to lead Upstate.
