Box Score (.pdf)

Spartanburg, S.C. - The USC Upstate baseball team scored three runs with two outs in the eighth inning to erase a 7-5 deficit as the Spartans defeated the Lafayette Leopards 9-8 in non-conference action Monday night at Harley Park. 

Upstate improves to 9-12 while Lafayette falls to 4-9. The victory snaps a seven-game losing skid for Upstate. 

The Spartans strung a pair of two-out hits together to take a 1-0 lead in the second.  Jake Beaver reached on a walk with one out, followed by a strikeout. Brendan Brundage got Beaver into scoring position with a base hit to right field followed by an Anthony Vaglica base hit to left field that scored Beaver. 

Lafayette took their first lead of the game thanks to a three-run third inning. John Selsor led off the inning with a base hit, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a Michael Coniglio single with two outs. Conigilio would score on a Steven Cohen triple for a 3-1 Leopard lead.

Upstate tied the game in the bottom-half of the inning with one run scoring on a bases-loaded walk and another on a Brundage base hit with two outs. Upstate reclaimed the lead in the fourth after Devon Ortiz led off with a single and advanced to second on a two-out hit by Cody Brittain. Charlie Carpenter singled to left, scoring Ortiz for a 4-3 Upstate lead.

An Upstate error with two outs kept the Lafayette fifth inning alive and the Leopards capitalized, tying the game on a double by Alex Woinski. In the sixth inning, the Leopards got two-out base hits from Andrew Landolfi and Coniglio before scoring on a Tyler Hudson triple. Hudson was thrown out at home plate to end the inning. The Spartans answered in the bottom-half of the inning as a Brittain triple brought home Jaden Savage. 

Cohen led off the Lafayette seventh inning and scored on a Luke Robinson pinch-hit single.

Ortiz began the Upstate eighth inning with a single but was retired at second base on a fielder's choice. Daniel Fickas took the place of Ortiz on the bases and advanced to second on a wild pitch before James Fowlkes drew a walk. Carpenter reached on a fielder's choice as the Leopards tried to retire Fickas at third, but the throw went wide of the bag allowing Fickas to score. Upstate tied the game on a Beaver single up the middle and took the lead after a dropped throw at first base which allowed Carpenter to score the go-ahead run. 

Elijah Willingham opened the ninth inning with a strikeout before being lifted for Richie Lacell. Lacell walked Cohen but struck out the final two batters to secure the Upstate win. 

Beaver went 1-for-3 with a single, run scored and two RBI to lead the Upstate offense. Brittain went 2-for-5 with a single, triple, run scored and RBI. Brundage went 2-for-5 with two singles and an RBI. Ortiz went 2-for-4 with two singles. Vaglica finished 1-for-4 with a single and RBI. Carpenter went 1-for-4 with a single, run scored and RBI.

Coniglio and Selsor each had two hits for Lafayette. 

Kevin Hickey (1-0) earned his first win as a Spartan, allowing one run on two hits with a strikeout in two innings. Lacell recorded his fourth save of the season, striking out two batters in two-thirds of an inning.  Coleman Strohm (0-1) took the loss, surrendering three runs (two earned) on one hit with two walks in 1.1 innings. 

Upstate goes for the season sweep of The Citadel tomorrow at 5 p.m. at Harley Park. 

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