Blog

Jun 14, 2023

Leading off: Carolina at Florida

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The South Carolina baseball team is in the third base

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The South Carolina baseball team is in the third base dugout at Condron Family Ballpark, but it is still to be determined what time the Super Regional against Florida will begin. The tarp is on the field as the Gamecocks (42-19) and Gators (47-15) are anxiously awaiting to get started. First pitch of the best-of-three series is scheduled to start on Friday at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU with the winner being just nine innings away from a spot in the College World Series.

NINTH INNING - Three pitches, three strikes to Brewer. Fastball is electric. Hornung will pinch hit for Tippett. He fouls off a couple of two-strike pitches, then watches an inside fastball go by. Two down for McGillis. He hits a first pitch home run. Back to within a run. Wimmer fouls off a 95 mph FB to make the count 2-2, but bounces out to third to end the game. That was a College World Series caliber baseball game. FINAL: Florida 5 - Carolina 4

EIGHTH INNING - LeCroy leading this thing off. He pops out to shallow left. Casas hits a hard ground ball, but Halter makes a nice play going to the ground at third base. Braswell bounces out to second. ... Sanders back to the mound, and hits JackyC on the back foot. He's thrown out trying to take second on a ball in the dirt. Rivera walks. Proctor enters, and gets Riopelle to pop up to Braswell back on the grass behind the first base bag. Two down for Heyman. Takes a fastball up to go ahead 2-1 vs. Proctor. Bouncer up the third base line. LeCroy gloves it, but has no play. Two on, two outs now for Shelnut. Soft single to shallow left plates a run. That's some tough luck there. Strikeout ends the inning. But gotta figure out a way to score two. Florida 5 - Carolina 3

SEVENTH INNING - McGillis up first for the Gamecocks, and he strikes out against new LHP Fisher, who has been really good of late there. He's working hella fast. Wimmer pops out to center. Petry up. He doubles down the right field line to bring up Messina. Hits a high chopper back to the mound, and is thrown out to end the inning. ... Halter lines out to center. One down. Nine-hole bounces out to Casas. Kurland hits a bouncer up the middle to bring up Langford. Sanders gets a big out on a bouncer to LeCroy to end the inning. Florida 4 - Carolina 3

SIXTH INNING - First pitch ground out to first by Casas. Braswell up, and he needs one of these long, Braswell-like at-bats to get that pitch count up. Goes ahead 2-0, then 2-1 on a 94 mph FB. Shoots a single past Caglianone. But Brewer pops out on a really nice play going back by the shortstop. Tippett watches a slider go by that he probably needed to try to fight off, but it wasn't a strike. ... Will Sanders enters. Changeup, slider, slider. Dirty. One down. Ball, then three strikes. All offspeed pitches so far. Two Ks. Riopelle sits on a changeup. Hits it off the batters eye. Gators get their first lead. Offspeed bouncer through the left side, and Parker comes out to visit. Shelnut strikes out to end the inning. Florida 4 - Carolina 3

FIFTH INNING - Well, that was kind of a disaster of an inning. Wimmer reaches on a throwing error, but tries to go to second base, thinks there's player interference, and is tagged out trotting to second base. Long argument with Kingston, couple umpire huddles, and he's called out. Petry singles to right, then gets thrown out trying to steal second on a ball he thought was going to hit the dirt. Nice throw by Riopelle. Messina walks. He swipes second, then goes to third on a bad throw by Riopelle, but LeCroy goes down swinging on one of those dirty offspeed pitches. He's at 90 pitches so far. ... First pitch of the inning from Hicks is sent over the stands in left to tie the game. Belt high slider right down the middle. Double to right on a 1-2 pitch. Justin Parker is coming out to visit. Casas fields a ground ball and steps on first. One down, runner on third, top of the order now up. Kurland goes down on strikes. Langford up, and I don't know that we'll get an exit velocity, but I think he hit it about 110 mph off the bat, right against Hicks' right butt cheek. He picks it up and throws to first. Carolina 3 - Florida 3

FOURTH INNING - Brewer grounds out on the first pitch. Tippett strikes out on four pitches. McGillis swings through a 96 mph FB to go down 1-2. Works it to 3-2, fouls away a pitch, but then can't pull the trigger on a 97 mph FB located well down and away. ... Braswell fields and flips to first on a bouncer by Rivera. Tippett settles under a long fly ball right beside the 400 sign. Bouncer to third. LeCroy makes the play. Hicks at 39 pitches through four innings. Carolina 3 - Florida 2

THIRD INNING - Three up, three down go the Gamecocks. LeCroy hits a soft liner to right, which is caught. Casas goes down on strikes. Braswell works the count to 3-2 taking a 97 mph FB outside. Fouls off three two-strike pitches, and gets him up to 58 for the game, though. ... Top of the order up, and Kurland hits a first pitch single back up the middle on a fastball that split the heart of the plate. Brewer catches a high fly ball to deep left center on the first pitch by Langford. A 4-6-3 double play ball. Heck of a double play. Quick by Braswell, hell of a turn by Wim. Carolina 3 - Florida 2

SECOND INNING - Dylan Brewer leads it off with a line drive single to right. Tippett bunts him up, then McGillis drops a single to left. Gamecocks back on top. Then Wimmer doubles inside the third base bag. Petry gets pointed to first base as Messina comes to the plate with one down. Ends up being a smart move. Messina gets jammed, and hits a tapper back to the mound. Easy 1-2-3 double play ends the inning. ... Braylen Wimmer with another special play at short. To his right, leaps and throws a strike. One down. Tippett settles under a pop up in shallow right. Two down. Halter hits a chopper to the right side. Braswell tries to flip it with his glove to first, and it's slow. But does it to second on a ball hit up the middle, and it works. Carolina 3 - Florida 2

FIRST INNING - And, it's 1-0. Will McGillis turns on a 97 mph fastball on the second pitch of the game and hooks it just inside the left field foul pole. Can't ask for a better start than that one. Then Langford loses a pop up in center field. Wimmer stands on first with no one out. Petry up, and takes a 99 mph fastball to go down 0-2 in the count. He fouls away a pitch, then goes down swinging at a slider for strike three. Messina singles up the middle to put runners on first and second for LeCroy. He falls behind 0-2, fouls away a pitch, then tries to go the other way on a fastball, but flies out to right. Casas is first pitch swinging, and hits a bullet back up the middle on a fastball. Second baseman had him shaded to pull. Not sure he'd get there if he was playing straight up. Wimmer scores from second, Messina to third. Braswell works a full count, but swings at what would have been Ball 4. He doesn't do that often. Good first inning, through, as Sproat throws 26 pitches. ... Hicks gets a very pitcher's pitch strikeout to Kurland to start the game, and then gets Langford to pop out to right. Jacky C ropes a 2-1 single through the right side. Breaking ball that stayed up. Holy moly, Rivera just hit a ball to the moon to tie the score. Fastbal that ran right into his barrel. Tie score. Riopelle grounds out to first to end the inning. Carolina 2 - Florida 2

RHP James Hicks: 8-1, 3.32 ERA, 62.1 IP, 53 H, 14 BB, 54 K, .228 OBARHP Brandon Sproat: 7-3, 4.70 ERA, 90 IP, 67 H, 38 BB, 113 K, .204 OBA

CAROLINA DH Will McGillis SS Braylen Wimmer RF Ethan Petry C Cole Messina 3B Talmadge LeCroy 1B Gavin Casas 2B Michael BraswellLF Dylan Brewer CF Will Tippett

FLORIDA2B Cade KurlandCF Wyatt Langford1B Jac CaglianoneSS Josh RiveraC BT RiopelleDH Luke HeymanRF Tyler Shelnut3B Colby HalterLF Richie Schiekofer

South Carolina season stats | Florida season stats