ANDERSON, S.C. – With eight Trojans recording at least one hit in the nightcap, the Anderson baseball team split a nonconference doubleheader with longtime rival Erskine, Wednesday at Memorial Stadium.
Anderson (17-28) dropped the first contest, 8-5, but bounced back to win the nightcap, 11-5. Erskine moved to 26-19 on the season.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Game #1
Erskine 8, Anderson 5
Junior Dillon Carpenter was 3-for-4 in the opener, with a pair of singles and a two-RBI double. Junior Matthew Overton added a two-run double and a single, with senior Bandon Odachowski going 2-for-4, with a pair of singles. Sophomore Will O'Brien notched two singles, while classmate Will Lindsey posted single and a double, while scoring twice.
Senior right-hander Stetson Scott fell to 1-4 on the season after allowing six runs on seven hits over 3 1/3 innings.
Game #2
Anderson 11, Erskine 5
Lindsey was 2-for-2 in the nightcap, with two singles and also reached on a pair of walks. The Hendersonville, N.C., native also scored twice. O'Brien was 2-for-3, with a double and a single and scored three runs. Dillon Carpenter drove in three runs, while Odachowski and Trevor Weisner each drove in two runs.
Freshman Lucas Smith (3-1) earned the win after surrendering just one hit and striking out three in two innings of work. Junior closer Christian Carpenter notched his South Atlantic Conference-leading 12th save of the season by tossing the final 1 2/3 innings. He allowed one hit and fanned five batters.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1
Overton's two-out, two-run double in the bottom of the first gave AU a quick 2-0 lead, but the Flying Fleet countered with a four-run second inning to take the lead.
The Trojans came back quickly to regain a 5-4 lead by scoring three runs in the third inning, with Carpenter providing a two-run double to the gap in left-center. However, Erskine posted two runs in the fourth to reclaim the advantage and added solo runs in the sixth and seventh innings to round out the scoring.
Game 2
The Trojans opened up an early 3-0 lead by scoring once in the first inning and twice in the second frame.
After a scoreless third inning, Erskine got on the scoreboard with two runs in the fourth inning, with the Trojans responding by batting around and scoring three times in the bottom of the fourth to build a 6-2 lead.
The Flying Fleet climbed to within one by scoring three times in the top of the sixth, but AU answered by posting five runs in the bottom of the inning.
ANDERSON STAT OF THE DAY
The Trojan pitching staff (seven hurlers on the day) did not issue a walk, while facing 64 batters.
NOTABLES
• With 12 saves on the season, Christian Carpenter has tied the school record for saves in a single season – former standout Nick Wates also recorded 12 saves during the 2003 campaign.
• The Trojans out-hit Erskine, 22-21, on the day.
• AU batted around twice in the second contest.
• Brandon Odachowski extended his hitting streak to five games.
• Will Lindsey and Brandon Odachowski have each reached base safely in six straight games.
• The 11 runs scored by the Trojans in the nightcap were the most since scoring 14 in AU's 17-14 loss to the Fleet on Feb. 27.
• The two teams combined for 48 runs in their two earlier meetings this season, with Erskine winning, 17-14, and 11-6.
• The Trojans have three conference games remaining on their schedule and trail both Coker and Lenoir-Rhyne by one game in the chase for the No. 8 seed in the South Atlantic Conference Tournament. AU owns the tiebreaker over both the Cobras and Bears.
UP NEXT
Anderson will wrap up its regular-season South Atlantic Conference slate this weekend with a three-game series against Mars Hill. The Trojans and Lions are scheduled for a Friday afternoon doubleheader at 1 p.m. at Memorial Stadium, with the series finale set for 1 p.m. on Saturday.
