Home-Run Barrage, Dominant Pitching Lead Gamecocks To Victory
Mark Kingston and his club started the season with a bevy of fireworks on Friday, scoring a staggering 20 runs against the Riverhawks while giving up only three on the mound. Based purely on baseball superstition, the Gamecocks should have been due for a slow offensive outing the following game, except South Carolina's ball players, clearly didn't believe in this specific notion, as they compiled another 17 runs en route to a 16-run victory on Saturday afternoon.
The main results from game one to game two for Carolina were consistent plate discipline combined with power hitting with multiple runners on base, evidenced by the Gamecocks drawing eight walks as a team and hitting four home runs in the contest. Three of the home runs came with runners on base, with the most impressive one coming in the fourth inning, where South Carolina fought back from a two-out start to load the bases, leading to Braylen Wimmer scorching a fastball into the opposing team's dugout.
On the mound, senior Noah Hall got the start and got off to a bit of a low start in terms of his command, being unable to consistently hit the strike zone, which led to two hits and a run being scored off a double by Gerry Siracusa. After the first inning, however, Hall and the rest of the pitching staff would lock down UMass-Lowell's batting lineup for the rest of the game, allowing just three baserunners for the rest of the game, with neither baserunner reaching due to a base hit.
This start for the Gamecocks is quite impressive, particularly on the pitching side, considering the chemistry the Riverhawks have accumulated over time due to the number of starters they returned from last season. South Carolina will look to complete the series sweep on Sunday, with right-hander Jack Mahoney taking the mound for the first time in over two years.
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