Box Score / Play by Play
MT. PLEASANT, S.C. – No. 15 College of Charleston baseball downed crosstown rival Charleston Southern, 12-5, after mounting an eight-run second inning and never looking back on Tuesday night at Patriots Point.
Charleston (39-10) saw five different hitters record multiple hits on the day, with Blake Butler and Bradley Jones both homering and tying for a game-high four RBIs. With 12 runs on 13 hits, the Cougars were impressive in leverage situations, batting .429 (6-for-14) with two outs, .529 (9-for-17) with runners on base, and .571 (8-for-14) with runners in scoring position.
Starting pitcher Eric Bauer (4-3) earned the win after pitching 4.2 effective innings in a predetermined split. Bauer pitched well under pressure, and worked out of jams to hold CSU to one run on eight hits. Hayden McCutcheon, Wade Arduini, and Jake McBreairty combined in relief appearances. The pitching staff combined to strand eight CSU runners.
“We played very well tonight,” said head coach Monte Lee. “Eric Bauer, who has not pitched a lot this year because he's been battling injuries, stepped up and gave us a good start. After we used as many pitchers as we did this past weekend, we needed someone to step up, and he did that. He really threw the ball well, and pounded the strike zone; I think all of our guys did tonight. Defensively, we played a very sound ball game, and we hit the ball well. Our guys continue to be consistent, and we picked up another good win.”
Bauer found himself in trouble early, as Nate Blanchard led off with a single and a Sly Edwards sacrifice bunt attempt turned into a single to put two on with no outs. Bauer then forced three consecutive ground outs to end the inning unscathed, stranding runners on second and third.
The prolific Cougar bats exploded into form in the second, as the Cougars sent 10 hitters to the plate and scored eight runs on six hits. Butler led off the inning with a walk, and later punctuated the rally with a three-run bomb to left, his third homer in the last two games and team-high 11th of the year. Sandwiched between Butler's leadoff walk and his homer were consecutive singles by Nick Pappas, Morgan Phillips, and Erven Roper, followed by an RBI double by Jones which put the Cougars up 3-0. The rally continued with an RBI single by Champ Rowland, followed by an RBI sacrifice fly by Ryan Brown, the first out recorded in the inning. After a walk and fielder's choice left Cougars on the corners with two outs, Butler left the yard to left on a 1-1 pitch for an 8-0 Cougar lead.
CSU took a run back on a walk and two singles in the third, but Bauer shut down the rally with a strikeout and flyout. The Bucs scored a second run on three singles in the fifth, but the Cougars maneuvered a 3-6-1 double play to minimize the damage.
Jones walked and stole second base in the sixth, putting himself in scoring position until a two-out RBI single by Wise, his team-high 29th two-out RBI of the season. In the next inning, Jones hit his ninth homer of the year with Pappas on third to push the Cougar lead to 11-2. Charleston added one more in the eighth on back-to-back, two-out doubles by Wise and Butler.
Robbie Streett hit a three-run homer in the ninth, but CSU would get no closer and falls to CofC for the sixth consecutive time.
The Cougars close out the regular season with their final Colonial Athletic Association series at Northeastern, with all the league's series moved up to Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to allow preparation for next week's CAA Championship, hosted by The College at Patriots Point.
The Cougars have already locked up the regular-season title and No. 1 seed in the tournament, which begins Wednesday, May 20 at Patriots Point.
“We just hope to remain consistent,” said Lee. “That's the main thing. I just hope our guys will go up there and compete with the same sense of urgency that we have week in, and week out. Just because we have wrapped up the regular-season championship, I hope our guys don't think we can just show up and win games. We still have to play.
“Northeastern has a very good pitching staff, and we are trying to beat them at their place. We have a tough test, and will have to play well if we plan on winning that series. I just want our guys to stay focused, and understand that there is still a lot at stake.”
POSTGAME NOTES
The Cougars are ranked in all five polls recognized by the NCAA, climbing as high as No. 15 according to the NCBWA. The Cougars are ranked No. 18 by both Baseball America and D1Baseball, No. 19 in the USA Today Coaches Poll, and No. 20 by Collegiate Baseball.
The Cougars entered the game ranked fourth nationally in batting average, and improved upon their previous mark (.317) by hitting .383 (13-for-34) on the day.
The Cougars scored more than 10 runs for the 18th time this season (18-0).
Charleston improves to 12-3 when getting on the board before an opponent, and 34-0 when leading after the sixth inning.
The game was the Cougars' 18th multiple-homerun game of the season (17-1).
Blake Butler extended his hitting streak to six games with his team-high 24th multiple-hit game of the season. He now ties Carl Wise with 17 multiple-RBI games.
