MONTGOMERY – Alabama State plated a run in each of the first three innings and limited a hot-hitting Jacksonville State to six hits in a 3-1 win over the Gamecocks on Wednesday at the Wheeler-Watkins Baseball Complex.
The loss drops Jax State to 9-8 on the season, while the Hornets improve to 11-7 overall and notched their first victory over JSU since the 2007 season and just the second win overall between the two teams since the clubs starting playing each other back in 1974.
After scoring the only run of the contest in the opening frame, ASU used five different pitchers to limit the Gamecocks offensively. JSU touched ASU's starter Tyler Howe for four hits and a run in the first three innings. The Hornets went to the bullpen with Michael Tellado and JSU struggled with the three other Hornets out of the pen as it was limited to just a pair of hits in the final six innings. The Gamecocks left 10 men on base and could not get a key hit throughout the contest. Tellado was solid in his three innings of work to pick up the win. He allowed just one hit and struck out four Gamecocks. Jax State struck out a season-high 13 times.
The JSU run was manufactured after
Peyton Williams led off the game with a single and then swiped second base. After a
Joe McGuire infield single, junior
Paschal Petrongolo drove in the run on a put out by first baseman.
The brother tandem of P.J. Biocic and Chris Biocic teamed up to score the run in the opening frame. After P.J. Biocic laced a double, Chris Biococ drove him home. The Biocic duo combined for five of the Hornet's 10 hits and P.J. Biocic drove in a pair. P.J. Harris led off the second with a towering home run blast to right to give ASU the lead that it wouldn't relinquish.
Chris Biocic posted his second RBI of the contest in the third with an RBI to left. All three runs were charged to
Michael McCreless, who made his first start of the season. McCreless allowed six hits in four innings of work. The JSU bullpen limited the damage the rest of the way as
Colton Campbell,
Grant Chandler and
Dalton Etheridge combined to hold the Hornets scoreless.
Williams and
Joe McGuire were the only two Gamecocks with multiple hits.
The Gamecocks return home this weekend against Ohio Valley Conference foe Eastern Illinois in a three-game series that starts on Friday at 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday game times are set for 1 p.m.
