Grant Sherrod 12th Homer vs. Queens Gm 2 2023
Joshua Ragsdale
7
Queens QU 12-32
14
Winner USC Upstate UPST 29-16
Queens QU
12-32
7
Final
14
USC Upstate UPST
29-16
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Queens QU 0 5 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 9 3
USC Upstate UPST 0 4 3 1 2 0 0 4 X 14 17 1

W: Sivec, Derek (2-0) L: Joseph Rodriguez (0-4)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Behind A Record-Breaking Homer From Grant Sherrod and the Eighth Homer from Daniel Gernon, Baseball's Bats Come Alive in 14-7 Midweek Victory Over Queens

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Closing the team's final extended homestand with the eighth straight game at Cleveland S. Harley Park, USC Upstate baseball wrapped its season series with Queens with another come-from-behind victory against the Royals, erasing an early five-run deficit in a 14-7 victory Wednesday afternoon.
 
Despite trailing by five runs in the middle of the second, Upstate didn't waver as it immediately battled back with four runs of its own in the inning. After scoring the first run of the inning on a groundout, the Spartans pulled within one as redshirt junior first baseman Grant Sherrod broke the program's Division I era (2007-pres.) single-season home run record with an opposite-field longball to cap a four-run inning.
 
Queens extended its lead with a pair of runs in the third before the Spartans hung three more runs on the board with three RBI singles in the home half of the inning, knotting the game at seven. Taking over on the mound to start the fourth inning, redshirt senior left-hander Derek Sivec settled the Spartan pitching staff as he faced two batters more than the minimum, tying a career-long as he pitched 5.0 innings of scoreless baseball while striking out four.
 
As Sivec frustrated the Queens offense, Upstate's bats took control, breaking up the tie in the fourth with a sac fly from sophomore centerfielder Kyle Henington before redshirt junior rightfielder Daniel Gernon's eighth home run of the year helped add to the lead in a two-run fifth. Behind a wild pitch, the second and third runs batted in from sophomore shortstop Cole Caruso and the fourth RBI from Sherrod, the Spartans added four runs in the eighth, doubling up the Royals for the final margin.
 
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 14; Queens 7
Records: USC Upstate (29-16; 14-4 Big South); Queens (12-32; 6-15 ASUN)
Location: Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
Scoring Summary
  • T2: Sending nine batters to the plate, Queens started the game's scoring with a squeeze bunt, kickstarting a five-run inning. Following up the squeeze, the Royals scored with four straight run-producing hits.
  • B2: Battling back and chipping into the five-run deficit, Upstate began its scoring as Cole Caruso used a groundout to the right side with two men in scoring position to plate the first run. The Spartans pulled within one as Grant Sherrod hit a three-run, opposite-field homer to finish a four-run frame.
  • T3: Extending their lead, Queens saw a fifth run-producing base hit to drive home the first run of the third. The second scored on a second squeeze play, pushing the game to a 7-4 margin.
  • B3: Stringing together four consecutive hits to open the home half of the inning, Kyle Henington and Braxton Boddorf's singles to wrap the four straight hits drove home the first two runs for the Spartans, pulling the team within one. Following a sacrifice bunt, Daniel Gernon tied the game with a single bounced back up the middle.
  • B4: Breaking the 7-7 deadlock, Kyle Henington lifted a sacrifice fly to left as Easton Cullison—who stole two bases to put himself 90 feet from scoring—raced home to score.
  • B5: Driving home his second run of the game and the first in a two-run inning, Gernon launched the first pitch of his fourth plate appearance to left-center. Adding the second tally of the frame, Jace Rinehart singled through the middle to score Sherrod.
  • B8: In the team's final trip to the plate, Upstate posted its second four-run inning on the scoreboard, starting the scoring on a wild pitch. Caruso drove in the next two runs with a single back up the middle before Sherrod ended the scoring with a single into center.
 
Notable
  • Hitting his 12th home run of the season, Grant Sherrod established Upstate's Division I era (2007-pres.) single-season home run record. He breaks a tie with Charlie Carpenter (11 in 2017) for the record with Sherrod's season the third double-digit homer season in the D1 era.
  • With four RBI against Queens, Sherrod eclipsed the 50-RBI mark on the season, pushing his total to 53 runs batted in this season. His total is the third 50-RBI season in the Spartans' D1 era and sits three RBI shy of Noah Rabon's D1 era record of 56 RBI from the 2022 season.
  • Stealing a pair of bases Wednesday, Easton Cullison notched his fifth multi-steal game of the year and sixth of his career, upping his season steal total to 18. With his 18 steals, he's stolen the second-most bases in a single season in the D1 era and is closing in on Noah Myers' record 21 steals in 2022.
  • For the second straight game, all nine starters for Upstate reached base at least once. Wednesday against Queens, all nine starters reached with a base hit. Five starters recorded multi-hit games as the Spartans recorded 17 hits for the second straight game while four Spartans recorded multi-RBI games.
 
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