Spartans Set for A-Sun Championship Appearance
5/20/2013 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: David Beall, dbeall@uscupstate.edu
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. – After securing a bid to postseason play in walk-off fashion last Saturday, the USC Upstate baseball team is set to take on Mercer Wednesday at 1:15 p.m. in the opening round of the 2013 Atlantic Sun Baseball Championship in DeLand, Fla., at Melching Field.
The Spartans will depart campus Monday afternoon and practice Tuesday on the campus of Stetson University in preparation for the program's second straight trip to the conference championship.
Every contest of the tournament can be seen live on ASunTV, while the championship game(s) will be televised on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN App.
Leading Off
Despite dropping eight of their final nine conference games, the Spartans earned a win on the final day of the regular season to sneak into the 2013 A-Sun Championship.
Trailing 3-2 heading to the bottom of the ninth against North Florida Saturday, Upstate rallied with a pair of runs, including a walk-off single by Tyler Lesch to earn a 4-3 comeback victory. Coupled with a loss by Jacksonville, the Spartans grabbed the No. 8 seed in the tournament.
The Spartans make their second consecutive trip to postseason play since being eligible to complete for championships after moving to the Division I level in 2008.
Upstate has struggled mightily to its first-round opponent, dropping 11 straight games to Mercer, including a three-game sweep at the hands of the Bears at Harley Park April 26-27.
The Spartans are in search of their first Division I postseason victory in program history after going 0-2 in the A-Sun Championship last season. Upstate scored just two runs in falling 11-2 to Mercer and 1-0 to Stetson. Oddly enough, Upstate could face those same two opponents on the first two days of competition this year as well.
The Spartans will face either ETSU or Stetson Thursday in the second round. Upstate dropped two of three to both clubs in 2013.
Quick Hits
The Spartans rank fourth in the A-Sun in batting average (.294) and fewest strikeouts (288).
Out of the top six ERA's in the league, Upstate ranks sixth, but has allowed the most unearned runs in that group with 65.
In conference-only games, Brandon Lee leads the league with 52 strikeouts in 66.1 innings of work.
The Spartans lead the A-Sun with 62 hit by pitches, led by Jordan Stampler with 15 and Luke Weber with nine. On the flip side, the Upstate pitching staff has hit the most batters in the league at 75.
The Spartans hold the A-Sun season mark for most runs scored in a game with a 19-7 victory over Jacksonville on March 24.
BUMGARDNER'S TORRID FINISH: Gaither Bumgardner hit .632 in the final four games of the year, recording 12 hits and scoring four runs. He opened the week with four hits at No. 14 Clemson and then came back with eight hits in three games against North Florida. Bumgardner opened the series with three hits and two runs scored and followed that up with two hits Friday and three more Saturday. He also pitched 7.0 innings and allowed one run to lead Upstate to a walk-off victory in a must-win to advance to the A-Sun Championship.
BRODY'S HOT-STREAK CONTINUES: Brody Greer saw his hitting streak come to an end at 20 games in the series opener against North Florida on May 16, but his reached base streak has reached 23 games heading into postseason play.
DOUBLE DIPPING WEBER: Luke Weber not only hit safely in 14 of the final 15 games of the year, but he added 10 multi-hit games over the final 15 contests. He also recorded 10 multi-RBI games and 19 multi-hit games throughout the year.
SOBOTKA IN THE RECORD BOOKS: After recording 12 saves a season ago, Chad Sobotka jumped to the top of the record books, tying Bradley Banks for the most saves in a single season in program history. With seven more saves during the 2013 season, Sobotka now has 19 for his career and sits just one save shy of Chris Fowler for the all-time record. His 19 saves are also tied for 11th in the history of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
TICKETS
Day Passes for the A-Sun Championship will be available for $15 for General Admission (bleachers) and $20 for reserved seating during the tournament ONLY. Tournament Passes are available for purchase until May 21 for $45 for General Admission (bleachers) and $55 for Reserved Seating by calling (386) 822-8110. Tournament Passes will not be sold during the tournament.
FACILITY
One of the most picturesque, fan-friendly stadiums in the nation, Melching Field at Conrad Park enters its thirteenth season as the home of the Stetson Hatters. At a cost of $4.5 million, Melching Field was the result of a joint effort between Stetson University, DeLand Sports Redevelopment Association and the City of DeLand. Built on the same site as old Conrad Park, Melching Field opened on Feb. 12, 1999 as the Hatters defeated Louisville 4-3 before an overflow crowd of 2,874 fans. This season marks the 15th time that Stetson has hosted the Atlantic Sun Baseball Championship.
Follow Upstate baseball throughout the A-Sun Championship on your mobile device, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
