JACKSONVILLE – The Jax State baseball team scored 15 runs in route to a 15-11 victory over the Alabama A&M Bulldogs on Tuesday night at Jim Case Stadium.
Jax State improved to 30-8 on the season, while the Bulldogs fell to 8-31.
The Gamecocks were led offensively by Cooper Blaser, who went four-for-six with three RBI and three runs scored. Blauser tied a career-high in hits in a game with three and stole three bases in one inning.
In total, the Gamecocks stole six bases in the contest, tying a season-high.
Alabama A&M led off the game with five runs scored in the top of the first inning, including two unearned runs due to Gamecocks errors in the inning.
Between the second inning and the fourth inning, Jax State put up 13 runs, including eight in the bottom of the fourth.
In the bottom of the second, the Gamecocks scored on a wild pitch, an RBI-single by
Luke Williams, a
Caleb Johnson bases-loaded hit by pitch, and a Blauser RBI-infield single.
The bottom of the third saw
Trey King score on a double by L. Williams to left center, tying the game at five-all.
Brady Thomas broke the tie in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI-triple, scoring Blauser, with four more RBI-singles following that, with a
Grayson Ashe score from a failed pick-off attempt between those. Ashe and King scored runs 12 and 13 to finish the inning on back-to-back bases-loaded walks.
The Bulldogs responded with an RBI-single in the top of the sixth, but the Gamecocks put up two more runs in the home half of that same frame, with a Blauser RBI-double and a
Matthew Cash RBI-single, wrapping up the Gamecocks scoring at 15-6.
Alabama A&M opened the top of the seventh with a solo home run down the left field line, the only home run of the contest. An additional run would score for the Bulldogs in the same inning with a fielder's choice, cutting the lead to 15-8.
AAMU would cut into the lead again in the top of the ninth inning, starting with a two-RBI single, followed by a bases-loaded walk. With two outs in the inning and the bases loaded,
Skyler Hutto was brought in to shut down the threat, earning his CUSA-leading eighth save.
Jud Files earned his first Division I with the outing, pitching two clean innings. Bryce Dolce took the loss for AAMU as the pitcher who gave up the go-ahead runs in the fourth.
Jax State played its longest game of the season, with the final duration coming to four hours and eight minutes.
The Gamecocks will get back into conference play this weekend, hosting the Florida International Panthers for a three game set. First pitch times are scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with Sunday moving up to 11 a.m.
