Max Kaplan's Complete Game Secures Baseball's Postseason Bid and Series-Evening Victory Saturday Against Presbyterian

Saturday, May 9

Clinton, S.C.

4:00 p.m.

University of South Carolina Upstate Athletics

24-27, 0

Presbyterian

11-40, 0

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
USC Upstate	0	1	0	0	2	3	0	0	1	7	9	0
Presbyterian	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	5	1

Max Kaplan 4th Inn. vs. Presbyterian Gm 2 2026 - RF

Photo by: Ryan Frye

5/9/2026 10:45:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

CLINTON, S.C. – Entering Saturday looking to erase the bitter taste of last night's walk-off as its Big South Conference slate nears the end, USC Upstate baseball wrestled all the momentum to its side early, evening its series with Presbyterian with a 7-1 victory. The win secured the Spartans' place in the upcoming Big South Baseball Championship, marking the seventh straight postseason appearance for the club.

Following in the footsteps of Friday night's starter, junior left-handed pitcher Chris Torres, sophomore southpaw Max Kaplan did Torres one better Saturday afternoon. For the second time in his career, Kaplan tossed a complete game, scattering five hits and one run over 9.0 innings of work. He tied his season high with seven strikeouts, the third time he's reached the mark this season.

Kaplan began his outing retiring the first nine batters he faced, carrying a perfect game into the fourth inning. While Presbyterian scratched a run in the fourth, he stranded a pair of runners in the frame, stranding four runners from the fourth to the fifth innings. From the sixth inning onwards, Kaplan faced one batter over the minimum, inducing his team-leading ninth double play and retiring the final five hitters he faced.

Backing Kaplan, Upstate's offense struck for a run in the second, two in the fifth, three in the sixth, and one in the ninth, totaling seven tallies on the afternoon. Redshirt sophomore rightfielder Henry Zenor took the biggest swing of the afternoon, slugging a two-run shot to right in the sixth inning, securing the Spartans' lone multi-RBI effort.

Tying his career-high hit total, senior leftfielder Preston Lucas paced the Spartans with three knocks, one of three players with a multi-hit effort, joined by redshirt senior third baseman Jake Armsey and redshirt sophomore catcher Tyler Lang. All three joined Zenor with an RBI while senior first baseman Wylie Waters also collected an RBI.

On the basepaths, Upstate swiped six bases, stealing five or more bags in consecutive games for the first time since April 22-23, 2023, versus Radford. Senior pinch runner Gage Griggs and redshirt sophomore shortstop Maloy Heaghney stole two bases apiece.

Game Information
Score: USC Upstate 7; Presbyterian 1
Records: USC Upstate (24-27; 12-11 Big South); Presbyterian (10-40; 7-13 Big South)
Location: Elton Pollock Field at the PC Baseball Complex | Clinton, S.C.

How It Happened

T2: Putting the Spartans out front, Preston Lucas flared a single to left, scoring Jake Armsey from third.
B4: Tying the game for the Blue Hose, Emory Guilford drove home a run with a single to leftfield.
T5: Answering the Presbyterian tally, a Blue Hose balk gifted Upstate the go-ahead run. The Spartans tacked on a run of insurance as Tyler Lang singled into the right-center gap, pushing Maloy Heaghney across the plate.
T6: Lengthening its lead, Upstate scored thrice in the sixth. Wylie Waters singled through the left side to drive home the first before a two-run blast from Henry Zenor plated the rest.
T9: Closing out the day's scoring, Armsey collected an RBI with a sac fly to left, sending Gage Griggs home to score.

Notable

Earning the win Saturday afternoon, Upstate secured its bid to the 2026 Big South Baseball Championship. Qualifying for the postseason, the Spartans have qualified for all seven Big South Baseball Championships since joining the league in 2019.
Drawing a pair of HBP, Johnny Sweeney upped his season total to 23, tying him with former teammate Scott Campbell for the program's single-season record. Sweeney, the program's career HBP record holder, is the lone player in program history to record 20 or more HBP in multiple seasons in a career.

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