So much for USC’s pitching woes. After struggling all season against SEC hitters, the Gamecocks have taken out their mound frustrations on Mississippi in the first two games of their series at Ray Tanner Field at Founders Park.
Following a dazzling complete game victory from Brandon Stone on Thursday night, Jake McCoy was nearly as good for seven innings on Friday to lift Carolina to a 7-2 triumph over the Rebels. The win gives USC its first SEC series victory of the season and keeps Ole Miss winless in series against the Gamecocks played in Columbia. USC will take a 24-11 overall record on their home turf against the Rebels into the series finale tomorrow at 2pm.
The game didn’t get off to the best of starts for McCoy, who gave up a solo home run to Ole Miss lead-off batter Hayden Federico to begin the ball game. But that was the only blemish on an otherwise stellar afternoon for the sophomore out of Fort Mill. McCoy tossed a career-high 6.1 innings, giving up one run on three hits with seven strikeouts.
With McCoy holding anchor into the seventh inning, the Gamecock offense went to work and actually got as many runs as it would need in the bottom of the first.
Trailing 1-0, USC put runners at first and third with two outs as Jase Woita came to the plate. Woita took a 2-2 pitch and delivered it into right center to bring home Nathan Hall with the game-tying run. Carolina moved in front for good on a wild pitch from Ole Miss starting pitcher Riley Maddox to grab a 2-1 lead before a bizarre play doubled the Gamecocks’ advantage.
With Woita standing at third, Beau Hollins hit a hot shot right at first baseman Collin Reuter, who fielded the ball cleanly and started to run towards the bag for the final out of the inning. However, it appeared Reuter was unsure whether he should take it himself or toss the ball to Maddox covering the base. Instead, he did neither. Reuter committed an error by failing to step on the bag, allowing Woita to touch home with the third run of the inning. After review, the call was upheld, and Carolina led 3-1 going into the second. The mistake was the first of three errors committed by the Rebels on Friday evening.
USC extended its lead to 4-1 in the second as Hall blasted a home run to left field. Then in the sixth, Blake Jackson cranked a solo homer to up the margin to 5-1.
Ole Miss scratched across a run in the top of the eighth before USC put it away with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the inning. Hall delivered a two-run single to finish off the scoring and give the Clemson transfer 3 RBIs on the day.
McCoy picked up his fourth win of the season, with Ashton Crowther working an inning and a third of scoreless relief to nab his first save of the season. Carolina’s staring pitching has gone 15.1 innings with 11 strikeouts and just three runs allowed against the Rebels thus far in the series. USC will go for the sweep in Saturday’s finale before hosting North Florida on Tuesday.