SPARTANBURG, S.C. – USC Upstate baseball defeated cross-town rival Wofford College 9-7 Tuesday evening at Russell C. King Field to stay undefeated in midweek games under head coach Mike McGuire and his staff. The Spartans improved to 22-7 overall on the year, and are 9-0 against nonconference opponents.
"Any time we win, it's a good thing. Tonight was a little different than we've done it all year. We've had a lot of ballgames where we won because we really pitched it well and did enough offensively. Tonight we won it with the bats, and I thought we didn't get good pitching at times. We were kind of out of character and gave up some free stuff on the mound and didn't control the running game as well as I'd like to, but credit to our guys. We kept batting and got some good stops in the middle," said Coach McGuire. "You don't care if you're winning pretty or winning ugly. Tonight wasn't the prettiest ballgame, but I'm glad we got out of here with the win."
Sawyer Worrell got the start on the mound and was credited with the win after throwing a solid 4.0 innings with three strikeouts while giving up just three hits and two runs.
Jake Cubbler took over in the bottom of the sixth with bases loaded and one out to get the Spartans out of a jam. He went on to give 2.0 innings before Kevin Davis entered in the bottom of the eighth with one out and runners on first and second. He struck out the first batter faced before Damon Maynard gunned down the lead runner trying to steal third to get out of the inning. Davis picked up his league-leading fifth save of the year.
Jack Gallagher's two-out, two-RBI single to left in the first got Upstate on the board early. He batted 2-for-4, and brought his season RBI total to 29, which still ranks in the top-three in the conference.
After Wofford evened things up at 2-2 in the third, the Spartans answered with a four-run effort in the top of the fourth. With the bases loaded, Jason Matthews ripped a bases-clearing double to the fence in left to put Upstate back on top 5-2. Matthews leads the conference with 12 doubles, and has 22 RBI so far on the year.
Right after that, Noah Rabon extended his on-base streak to 20 games with an RBI single right back up the middle to push Upstate's lead to 6-2.
After Devin Buckner extended his on-base streak to 17 games with a double in the first, he plated a run with a sac fly to center in the sixth.
Jeff Taylor knocked in a pair of runs with a two-RBI double down the right field line in the seventh, and Cameron MacIntosh added another run to make it 9-4 with a groundout to second in the inning.
Wofford threatened with three runs in the eighth to cut the deficit to 9-7, but the Spartans settled down to hold on for the win.
Jack Hennessy recorded a hit, two walks, and two runs scored on the night while Adam Grob had a double and a run scored.
UP Next for the Spartans
The Spartans will continue on the road this weekend with a three-game series at Charleston Southern on Friday, April 16 and Saturday, April 17. Upstate will play a single game on Friday at 6 p.m. followed by a doubleheader on Saturday with game one beginning at 1 p.m. and the series finale to follow.
Spartans Win Today, You Save Tomorrow!
Save 50% off online orders at Papa John's locations across the Upstate. Use the code USCUP50 when placing online orders the day after Upstate victories. Also tomorrow, visit The Beacon Drive-In located in Spartanburg and show the win graphic posted to the @UpstateSpartans Instagram account to claim a free sweet tea as part of the "Sweet Taste of Victory" promotion. No purchase necessary.
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