ANDERSON, S.C. – The Anderson baseball team dropped the series finale of a three-game, season-opening set, 13-7, to King, Sunday afternoon at Memorial Stadium.
"It's exciting to open the year with a series win," said Anderson Head Coach PJ Zocchi. "When you win the first two at home you need take care of business and get the third. I have to do a better job preparing the team on finishing out the weekend."
Anderson slipped to 2-1 on the young season, while King captured its first victory of the campaign.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Junior Nick Vella recorded a pair of two-run doubles, with senior Dillon Carpenter posting a single and a double to go along with an eighth-inning walk. Senior Cody Adams was 1-for-2 and scored three times, while freshman catcher Ryan Brash was 1-for-2, with a fifth-inning double. Junior Will Lindsey added a single and a walk and crossed the plate twice.
Freshman right-hander Trace Furtick (0-1) absorbed the loss after allowing seven runs on nine hits in two innings of work on the mound. He struck out three and walked one.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The sun on a cloudless day, along with a brisk wind, played havoc with the Trojan defense, as the Tornado opened the game by batting around and posting five runs in the top of the first inning, while adding two more runs in the second inning and three runs in the third to claim a 10-0 advantage.
Meanwhile, sophomore Logan Jackson became AU's first baserunner after drawing a two-out walk in the bottom of the third, as King senior hurler Braden White held the Trojans hitless through 3 2/3 innings. Carpenter broke up the no-hitter with a two-out double in the fourth, but the Trojans were unable to push a run across.
After the Tornado built a 12-0 advantage with a two-run fifth inning, the Trojans got on the scoreboard with two runs in the bottom of the frame. King added a solo run in the seventh, while AU pushed across three in the seventh and wrapped up the scoring by plating a pair of runs in the bottom of the ninth.
STAT OF THE DAY
Junior Nick Vella drove in four of AU's seven runs.
NOTABLES
• After committing nine errors in Saturday's doubleheader, King committed just one miscue on Sunday afternoon.
• The two teams combined to use 43 players, including 12 pitchers on the afternoon.
UP NEXT
AU travels to Limestone on Tuesday, before returning to the Electric City for a Wednesday afternoon contest against Emmanuel. First-pitch versus the Saints in Gaffney, S.C., is slated for 5 p.m.
