South Carolina got a much-needed 6-1 victory over Tennessee in the opening game of a doubleheader against Tennessee, Saturday. Jack Mahoney had his second straight strong outing and only allowed one run through six innings and the Gamecocks offense had a five-run outburst in the sixth inning to win for just the second time in nine games.
The victory improves South Carolina to 38-16 overall and 16-12 in the SEC. It also keeps the Gamecocks hopes alive to be one of the 16 host sites for a regional. Game two is slated to start at 5 p.m.
Mahoney was impressive in his six innings of work. The junior right-hander retired the first nine batters he faced and only allowed one run on three hits. He struck out nine with one walk and he hit a batter.
The only trouble Mahoney faced came in the fifth inning. He allowed a leadoff double to Zane Denton and after a fly ball, Christian Scott doubled over the head of Ethan Petry in rightfield to tie it at 1.
Dylan Brewer saved the Vols from getting on the board in the fourth inning. Tennessee had runners at first and second with two outs when Moore singled to Brewer. The senior fielded the ball cleanly and threw a strike to the plate, allowing Cole Messina to make the tag and end the threat.
Braylen Wimmer started this quickly for the Gamecocks when he connected on his 12th home run of the season to give South Carolina a 1-0 lead in the first inning.
Wimmer was the only one that could solve Tennessee starter Chase Dollandar. Wimmer had a home run in the first inning and got the second hit of the game for the Gamecocks with a single in the sixth inning.
Dollander struck out 13, didn’t walk a batter and left after Wimmer’s single in the sixth inning. The Gamecocks then greeted Tennessee reliever Chase Burns with five straight hits to break open the close game.
Cole Messina singled on the first pitch he saw before Ethan Petry drove in the go ahead run with a single. Gavin Casas followed with another RBI single before Talmadge LeCroy ripped a two-run double down the left field line. He eventually scored on Michael Braswell’s single in the five-run outburst.
South Carolina had 4 hits in the first 15 innings against Tennessee but strung together six straight hits in the game-winning outburst.
