SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Returning home following a five-game stretch of games away from Cleveland S. Harley Park, USC Upstate baseball offered a ninth-inning comeback attempt in its season opener against Longwood, ultimately falling just short in a 7-6 decision Friday night.
 
Leading the Spartans offensively, senior designated hitter Johnny Sweeney drove home five of Upstate's six runs, securing his team-leading fourth five-plus RBI game of the season. He finished the evening 2-for-3 at the plate, hitting his 15^th homer of the season with a three-run blast in the fourth. Redshirt junior rightfielder Scott Campbell notched the team's second multi-hit game, ending the night with two hits.
 
On the mound, redshirt sophomore right-handers Amp Phillips and Max Bianchini combined for nine strikeouts as Phillips punched out seven and Bianchini two. Friday's outing marked the third of the season for Phillips with seven or more strikeouts, his first since striking out 11 against High Point on April 5.
 
Game Information
Score: Longwood 7; USC Upstate 6
Records: USC Upstate (24-22; 11-5 Big South); Longwood (11-35; 5-14 Big South)
Location: Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
How It Happened

• T4: Putting the Lancers on the board, James Nelson slugged a two-run homer to left-center, beginning the day's scoring.
• B4: Providing an instant response, the first three hitters of the home half of the first reached base and scored for the Spartans, all coming home on a three-run, no-doubt long ball from Johnny Sweeney.
• T5: Following Upstate's lead, Longwood used multiple free bases to strike back, seeing Myles Webb's first homer of the night push it back in front. The grand slam built a three-run advantage for the Lancers.
• B5: Getting a run back, the Spartans added a run as Sweeney ripped a single through the right side, scoring Henry Zenor from third.
• T8: Adding a run of insurance and creating the ultimate final margin, Webb's second homer of the evening, a solo shot to left-center, ended the Lancers' scoring.
• B9: Loading the bases in the final stanza, Upstate pushed a pair of runs across via free bases with Sweeney drawing an HBP and Preston Lucas a walk.

 
Notable

• Tacking on five RBI to his season total Friday, Johnny Sweeney upped his total to 66, tying for the third-most in a single season in the program's Division I era (2007-pres.), equalling the 66 RBI from Grant Sherrod during the 2023 season. His 2025 total also ties for seventh in program history for single-season RBI.
• Hitting his 15^th home run of the season, Sweeney's total ties for 10^th most single-season homers in program history while tying for fifth-most in the program's D1 era.
• Reaching twice Friday evening, Vance Sheahan pushed his team-leading reached base streak to a career-long 33 games. His streak ranks as the second-longest known reached base streak in the program's D1 era, trailing a 34-game streak from Noah Sullivan in 2022.

 
Connect with the Spartans 
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics 
Twitter | @UpstateBSB | @UpstateSpartans 
Instagram | @UpstateBSB | @UpstateSpartans 
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
 
INVEST IN CHAMPIONS - Join the Upstate Athletic Fund (UAF) and enjoy enhanced benefits for your support of all USC Upstate programs! Make your gift today, click here!
 
SAVE THE DATE FOR SPARTY'S BALL – MAY 17th – Support USC Upstate Athletics at Sparty's Ball, the largest fundraising event of the year for the Upstate Athletic Fund (UAF), to be held Saturday, May 17, 2025 at the Milliken Club at Fifth Third Park. For tickets, sponsorship and auction information, click here!