ANDERSON, S.C. – The Anderson baseball team opened a seven-game homestand by sweeping a nonconference twin bill with Limestone, 9-4 and 6-1, Monday at Memorial Stadium.
Anderson improved to 20-24 on the season with its sixth win in seven outings, while Limestone fell to 18-25 with its fifth straight setback.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Game #1
Anderson 9, Limestone 4
Redshirt freshman Chandler Castleberry was 2-for-2, with a two-run home run and also reached on a single and a walk. Sophomore Joseph Strange was 2-for-2, with a pair of singles and also drew a walk. Sophomore Dillon Carpenter added a two-run home run and a double, with junior Brandon Odachowski posting a single and a walk and scoring both times. Freshman Chase Stephens notched a two-run single in the fifth inning.
Sophomore Austin Todd improved to 4-3 on the season after allowing just two runs on five hits, while fanning three batters and not issuing a walk in four innings of work.
Game #2
Anderson 6, Limestone 1
Sophomore Matthew Overton hammered his second grand slam of the season in the decisive fifth inning, while Odachowski added a single and an RBI-double. Senior Tyler Miller reached base three times with a double and a pair of walks.
Sophomore Brent Reynolds (2-0) tossed the Trojans' second complete game of the season, while limiting the Saints to four hits on the night. The left-hander did not allow a hit until the fifth inning and nearly recorded AU's second shutout of the season. He struck out a season-high eight batters and issued just one walk.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1
Carpenter's eighth home run of the season – a two-run shot over the right-field wall in the first inning – gave the Trojans a quick 2-0 lead and they never trailed the rest of the way. Limestone knotted the score with a pair of runs in the top of the second inning, but AU quickly regained the advantage on Castleberry's team-leading 15th homer of the season that also plated Carpenter in the bottom of the third.
AU added two more runs in the fourth and after the Saints scored twice in the fifth, the Trojans set the final score with three runs in the fifth.
Game 2
Jackson Strange notched a one-out single in the second frame and crossed the plate on Odachowski's double to open the scoring and the AU offense gave Reynolds more than enough support by scoring five runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, highlighted by Overton's one-out grand slam well beyond the right-field fence.
Limestone avoided the shutout with a two-out run in the top of the seventh.
STAT OF THE DAY
Brent Reynolds allowed just four runners to reach scoring position in the nightcap.
NOTABLES
• The Trojans are 17-3 when leading after five innings.
• Jackson Strange extended his hitting streak to 12 games.
• Tyler Miller has reached base safely in 37 consecutive games.
UP NEXT
Anderson continues the homestand when Young Harris invades Memorial Stadium for the second time this season on Wednesday. The Trojans are looking for a sweep of the Mountain Lions, after defeating YHC, 14-8, two weeks ago. First-pitch for the midweek contest is set for 6 p.m.