Jace Rinehart First AB vs. South Carolina 2024
Emma Hudson
4
UNC Asheville AVLBASE 11-13, 1-3 BSC
14
Winner USC Upstate UPST 16-11, 5-2 BSC
UNC Asheville AVLBASE
11-13, 1-3 BSC
4
Final
14
USC Upstate UPST
16-11, 5-2 BSC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
UNC Asheville AVLBASE 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 10 3
USC Upstate UPST 2 1 1 3 0 3 4 0 X 14 15 0

W: Sullivan, Noah (6-1) L: Nick Bruno (0-3)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Jace Rinehart's Fourth Career Multi-Homer Game and Career-High-Tying Five RBI Lead Baseball's Offensive Outburst in 14-4 Series-Opening Win Over UNC Asheville

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Returning home to begin a three-game Big South Conference series ahead of Easter weekend, USC Upstate baseball put itself back in the win column as it scored early and often in a 10-4 series-opening victory Thursday afternoon over UNC Asheville in the first game on the diamond of the Ingles I-26 Rivalry Series at Cleveland S. Harley Park.
 
For the 18th time through 27 games during the 2024 season, the Spartans slugged multiple home runs, hitting three Thursday. Leading Upstate at the plate, junior leftfielder Jace Rinehart drove home a career-high-tying five runs as he recorded his fourth career multi-homer game with a pair of long balls, retaking the program's D1 era lead for most individual multi-homer games.
 
Joining Rinehart's three-hit day, four other Spartans recorded multi-hit games as redshirt junior Koby Kropf collected the team's other three-hit game. As a team, Upstate recorded 15 hits, collecting double-digit hits for the sixth time in seven Big South games this season.
 
Redshirt sophomore right-hander Noah Sullivan fashioned his fourth consecutive start pitching into the seventh inning as he worked 6.2 innings to pick up his league-leading sixth victory while striking out six. Out of the bullpen, redshirt junior righty Jake Cubbler, senior left-hander Jagger Jefferis, and sophomore righty Braden Consaul combined to surrender two hits and combine for 2.1 scoreless innings to close out the game.
 
Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 14; UNC Asheville 4
Records: USC Upstate (16-11; 5-2 Big South); UNC Asheville (11-13; 1-3 Big South)
Location: Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
  • B1: Stepping to the plate with one on and two out, Jace Rinehart put Upstate on the board first as he hit a two-run opposite-field homer.
  • B2: Ambushing the first pitch of his at-bat following a leadoff double from Koby Kropf, David Pereira drove home a run with a single back through the middle.
  • T3: Fighting back to even the game, UNC Asheville plated three in the third as Corbin Lanowitz cleared the loaded bases with a double into the rightfield corner.
  • B3: Putting the Spartans back on top and delivering a lead they wouldn't relinquish, Kropf slugged a solo shot to right.
  • B4: Upstate added to its advantage with a three-spot of its own in the fourth, scoring the first as it took advantage of a fielding error to push across the first run of the frame. Jace Rinehart's second two-run homer of the day, a blast to left, tacked on the final two of the inning.
  • T5: Scratching the team's final run, UNC Asheville added its final run to the scoreboard behind a single into left-center from Dylan Bacot.
  • B6: Taking advantage of three free bases in the inning, Upstate posted its second three-run inning of the day as Grant Sherrod plated two with a single before Kropf added another RBI with a single of his own.
  • B7: Behind five two-out hits as the lineup turned over, the Spartans' hung four tallies on the board in the seventh with Sherrod and Rinehart posting single RBI before Noah Sullivan drove home two to concluded the day's scoring.
 
Notable
  • Hitting a pair of home runs Thursday night, Jace Rinehart secured his fourth career multi-homer game, recording a two-homer game for the third time this season. His four career multi-homer games break a tie with teammate Noah Sullivan for the most by a single player in the program's Division I era (2007-pres.).
  • Rinehart's multi-homer game is the sixth by a Spartan during the 2024 season and the 16th overall during the program's D1 era.
  • Hitting three home runs in game one against UNC Asheville, Upstate surpassed 50 total home runs on the season. The 2024 season marks the second time in the program's D1 era to see the Spartans hit 50 or more home runs as the team's 51 homers this season ranked second in the D1 era to last season's 53 homers.
 
Tickets on Sale for Sparty's Ball – Saturday, May 18
Support USC Upstate Athletics at Sparty's Ball, the largest fundraiser of the year for the Upstate Athletic Fund. The UAF impacts current and future generations of Spartans, developing champions on the field, building scholars in the classroom, and preparing leaders for life. Presented by the Sports Medicine Institute, a division of Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, Sparty's Ball features live and silent auction items, delicious food from Cribbs Catering, beverages, and live entertainment from Under the Sun, and held at a new location, Indigo Hall in downtown Spartanburg. Come dressed in your Spartan best—cocktail attire is required. For details and tickets, log onto www.upstatespartans.com/spartysball.

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