Weekend Series
April 14-16, 2022 | 6:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. / 2:00 p.m.
USC Upstate (18-15; 7-5 Big South) vs. Charleston Southern (14-19; 6-6 Big South)
Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
TV: ESPN+ (Thursday Only) | Via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN App
 
Probable Starting Pitchers
USC Upstate | Charleston Southern
Game One: RHP Jacob Curry (2-2; 6.18 ERA) | RHP Daniel Padysak (1-1; 5.03 ERA)
Game Two: RHP Austin Morgan (3-2; 7.22 ERA) | LHP Kaleb Hill (3-3; 4.39 ERA)
Game Three: RHP Trey Miller (1-3; 5.59 ERA) | RHP Evan Truitt (1-3; 4.91 ERA)
 
Series History
Meeting on Easter weekend, USC Upstate and Charleston Southern are meeting for the 29^th, 30^th, and 31^st times in the Spartans' Division I era (2007-pres.). Overall, the Buccaneers lead the all-time series 15-13 and have taken six of the eight meetings between the two clubs since Upstate moved to the Big South ahead of the 2019 season. Last season, Charleston Southern won the lone series with Upstate, taking the series two games to one in mid-April.
 
Last Time Out
USC Upstate: vs. Clemson (L, 11-2)
Charleston Southern: vs. Winthrop (L, 9-3; L, 9-7; W, 14-11)
 
Players to Watch
USC Upstate:
Pitcher: Tossing a scoreless inning while striking out the side against Clemson Tuesday, senior right-hander Kevin Davis increased his team-leading strikeout per nine innings figure to 12.9. Through 22.1 innings of work this season, he's recorded 32 punchouts with Tuesday's eighth inning marking his second in the 2022 season where he struck out the side. Davis also enters the weekend tied for the Big South lead in saves, posting four while carrying a 2-2 record and 5.64 ERA.
 
Position Player: Going 1-for-4 with an RBI Tuesday night versus Clemson, redshirt junior third baseman Troy Hamilton has driven home a run for the Spartans in consecutive games, increasing his season total to nine on the season. He's riding a three-game hitting streak and has moved into the clean-up spot for the Spartans. On the season, he's hitting .292 (26-for-89) and is tied for the team lead in doubles with nine, including three two-baggers over the past three games.
 
Charleston Southern:
Pitcher: Taking the ball in game two for the Buccaneers, left-hander Kaleb Hill enters the weekend series as Charleston Southern's top starting pitcher, carrying a 3-3 record and 4.39 ERA over seven starts. Of his seven starts this season, three have seen Hill pitch 7.0 or more innings, doing so in each of his first three Big South starts. He also enters the weekend with 39 strikeouts against 11 walks over 41.0 innings as his innings pitched and strikeout totals lead the Buccaneers.
 
Position Player: Riding a 17-game hitting streak, rightfielder Hayden Hurst enters the weekend having picked up 33 of his 40 hits on the season during his lengthy streak. Overall, he's hitting .374 (40-for-107) this season as his batting average ranks third highest in the Big South. Of his 40 hits, 15 have gone for extra bases including 10 doubles and five homers as he leads Charleston Southern in slugging percentage (.607).
 
UP Next for the Spartans
Continuing its stretch of games against teams from Charleston, Upstate welcomes the College of Charleston to Cleveland S. Harley Park next Tuesday for the first of two midweek games for the Spartans next week. First pitch between the Spartans and Cougars is slated for 6 p.m. ET with the game airing on ESPN+.
 
JOIN UP
Make a difference in the lives of USC Upstate student-athletes! Donate to the USC Upstate U Club today!
 
Sparty's Ball and Auction:
Reserve your tickets for Sparty's Ball and Auction featuring The Andrews Brothers Dueling Pianos, Saturday, May 21, 2022, at upstatespartans.com/spartysball.

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