Noah Sullivan and Grant Sherrod Post-First HR vs. Charleston So. Gm 2 2024
Emily Rangel
0
Charleston So. CSU 16-23, 8-6 BSC
13
Winner USC Upstate UPST 27-13, 12-2 BSC
Charleston So. CSU
16-23, 8-6 BSC
0
Final
13
USC Upstate UPST
27-13, 12-2 BSC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Charleston So. CSU 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2
USC Upstate UPST 1 0 3 1 2 3 3 0 X 13 11 1

W: Proger, Henry (6-3) L: TIMPANELLI,Nick (1-4)

3
Winner Charleston So. CSU 17-23, 8-7 BSC
2
USC Upstate UPST 27-14, 12-3 BSC
Winner
Charleston So. CSU
17-23, 8-7 BSC
3
Final
2
USC Upstate UPST
27-14, 12-3 BSC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Charleston So. CSU 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 3 4 1
USC Upstate UPST 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 8 2

W: LEDWELL,Parks (4-1) L: Kuskie, Darin (0-3)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Baseball Splits Saturday Twin Bill as Noah Sullivan Ties D1 Era Single-Season Home Run Record and Upstate Ties Single Season Home Run Record

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Facing a twin bill for the second time during the 2024 season, USC Upstate baseball captured its fourth consecutive series victory as it split a Saturday doubleheader with Charleston Southern at Cleveland S. Harley Park, taking game one in shutout fashion before falling in the late innings in game two.
 
Over two games as the Spartans' latest Big South series wrapped, Upstate's pitching staff scattered seven hits and allowed three runs Saturday with the team's game two victory marking the fourth shutout victory of the season, the most in a single season since 2021. At the plate, the Spartans scored 15 runs on 19 hits as five players recorded multiple hits across the two games with five—including four overlaps—recorded multiple RBI. With two home runs in game one, Upstate also tied the program record for team single season home runs, pushing its season total to 76.
 
In game one, senior lefthanders Henry Proger (7.0 innings; five strikeouts) and Jagger Jefferis (2.0 innings; three strikeouts) combined for the shutout and eight strikeouts as only seven Charleston Southern hitters reached base.
 
Redshirt sophomore designated hitter Noah Sullivan recorded his fifth career—and third of the season—multi-home run game in the front end of the twin bill, his 14th and 15th of the season as he retook the Big South's lead in the category while tying the program's Division I era (2007-pres.) single-season mark for home runs. He also finished the game with five runs batted in, finishing an RBI shy of his career high with redshirt senior first baseman Grant Sherrod and redshirt junior rightfielder Koby Kropf adding a pair of RBI each in the 13-0 victory.
 
Game two saw Upstate battle its way back with a pair of runs in the sixth frame, looking to set up the team's third comeback victory of the week. The Spartans, however, ceded a run behind a pair of errors in the eighth inning, dropping a 3-2 decision.
 
In game one, senior lefthanders Henry Proger (7.0 innings; five strikeouts) and Jagger Jefferis (2.0 innings; three strikeouts) combined for the shutout and eight strikeouts as only seven Charleston Southern hitters reached base.
 
Game One
Score: USC Upstate 13; Charleston Southern 0
Records: USC Upstate (27-13; 12-2 Big South); Charleston Southern (16-23; 8-6 Big South)
Location: Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
  • B1: Opening the Spartans' scoring and putting Upstate on the board in the first inning for the first time in six games, Noah Sullivan slugged the first of his two home runs as he smacked the top of the scoreboard in left-center with a solo shot.
  • B3: Adding to the Upstate advantage, Sullivan connected on his second long ball of the afternoon with a three-run blast to center.
  • B4: Hanging another run on the board, Kyle Henington picked up an RBI as Koby Kropf tagged and scored on a sinking lineout to center.
  • B5: Plating a pair of runs in an inning for the second time, Kropf drove home a pair with a single back through the middle with the bases juiced, scoring Jake Armsey and Jace Rinehart.
  • B6: Continuing its streak of frames hanging runs on the scoreboard, Upstate tacked on three more tallies to its advantage in the sixth. The first crossed as Sherrod drew a bases-loaded walk before Troy Hamilton drove home two with a single past the Buccaneer shortstop.
  • B7: Scoring in a fifth straight inning, another three runs crossed for the Spartans in the frame. Much like the prior inning, Upstate's runs scored via a bases-loaded walk and two-run single, this time coming from Sullivan and Rinehart.
 
Game Two
Score: Charleston Southern 3; USC Upstate 2
Records: USC Upstate (27-14; 12-3 Big South); Charleston Southern (17-23; 8-7 Big South)
Location: Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened
  • T3: Jumping out front, Charleston Southern's Hayden Henry hit a solo homer to left to begin the game's scoring.
  • T5: Adding another run, the Buccaneers slugged another solo shot as Evann Long left the yard to left.
  • B6: Battling back to tie the game, Upstate plated a pair in the sixth behind a pair of RBI singles, the first coming from Daniel Gernon as he ripped a pitch into leftfield, and the second from Vance Sheahan with a single into centerfield.
  • T8: Taking advantage of a pair of Upstate errors, Charleston Southern scored the go-ahead run on a field error with two out.
 
Notable
  • Recording his fifth career multi-home run game—the most of any Spartan in the program's Division I era (2007-pres.)—Noah Sullivan hit his 14th and 15th home runs of the season, tying teammate Grant Sherrod (2023) for the era's individual single-season home run record. His effort in game one of the doubleheader versus Charleston Southern also stands as his third multi-homer game of the season, tying teammate Jace Rinehart for the most by a Spartan in a single season in the D1 era.
  • With Sullivan's two home runs Saturday against the Buccaneers, Upstate's season home run total pushed to 76 long balls, tying the program record for single-season home runs. The total ties the 1987, 1988, and 1990 teams for the record.
  • Pitching its fourth shutout of the 2024 season in game one against Charleston Southern, Upstate's season total marks the team's most in a single season since registering five shutouts during the 2021 campaign. The 2024 total stands as the third most in a single season in the D1 era, sitting behind the 2013 (six) and 2021 (five) seasons.
 
Up Next for the Spartans
Upon conclusion of the team's weekend series and four-game homestand, Upstate sees a week free of midweek action, returning to the field next Friday as Big South play continues. The Spartans travel to Presbyterian for a three-game set with first pitch Friday scheduled for 6 p.m. ET, first pitch Saturday at 4 p.m., and first pitch Sunday at 2 p.m.
 
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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