ANDERSON, S.C. – The Anderson baseball team was out-hit by visiting Southern Wesleyan on Wednesday night, but the Trojans capitalized on their opportunities and came away with a 6-3 win over the Warriors in nonconference action at Memorial Stadium.
Anderson improved to 14-25 with its second straight win, while Southern Wesleyan fell to 15-24 with its second consecutive loss.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Shortstop Jackson Strange was 2-for-4 at the plate, with a pair of singles and also scored twice, with junior Dillon Carpenter adding an RBI-single and a fifth-inning double. Junior Matthew Overton was 1-for-3, with a two-run homer and crossed the plate twice. Sophomore Chandler Castleberry ripped his second triple of the season in the third inning and also reached on a walk.
Junior left-hander Brent Reynolds earned the start and scattered six hits over four innings, while limiting the Warriors to just one run. He struck out three and walked one. Freshman Lucas Smith (1-1) earned the win with 1 2/3 innings of relief, as the right-hander allowed one run on one hit. The St. Petersburg, Fla., native fanned two batters and issued one free pass.
Senior Christian Hendrix was perfect in 1 1/3 innings of relief, while striking out a pair of batters. Junior closer Christian Carpenter earned his league-leading ninth save of the season by working a scoreless ninth inning and striking out three Warriors.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Southern Wesleyan took an early lead with a solo run in the top of the second inning, but Overton's two-out, two-run blast – his second homer in five games – gave the Trojans a 2-1 lead after two innings.
Another two-out rally in the third inning boosted the Trojans' advantage to 4-1, when Trevor Weisner led off with a walk and moved into scoring position on junior Cody Adams' sacrifice bunt. Two batters later, Dillon Carpenter singled to center field, bringing home Weisner and Carpenter scored on Castleberry's triple.
The Warriors added another solo run in the sixth frame, with AU answering by capitalizing on a pair of SWU errors and scoring two more runs to claim a 6-2 lead.
Southern Wesleyan finished out the scoring with a run in the top of the eighth.
STAT OF THE NIGHT
Southern Wesleyan stranded 12 runners on the night … AU left six runners on base.
NOTABLES
• Jackson Strange enters the weekend series riding a three-game hitting streak.
• Chandler Castleberry has reached base safely in 15 consecutive games.
UP NEXT
Anderson will get back on the diamond Friday, when the Trojans travel to Coker for a three-game South Atlantic Conference series. First-pitch versus the Cobras is scheduled for 3 p.m.