Story by Citadel Athletics
Carried by a 7.0-inning performance from starter Will Holmes and solidified courtesy of closer Michael Gibson over the final 1.1 frames, fifth-seeded The Citadel (35-24) edged No. 3 overall Samford (31-25) in the Southern Conference Championship final, topping the opposing Bulldogs via a 3-1 decision Saturday evening at Fluor Field. With the victory, the Bulldogs cemented the program’s 22nd SoCon title and first since the 2010 campaign, securing the league’s automatic bid into the upcoming NCAA DI Baseball Championship.
“I don’t think we got here by luck because we’ve been playing good baseball,” head coach Russell Triplett said. “We played our best this week and we’ve been getting better and better over the last 20 games. To see it all come together was so satisfying. I thought we pitched, we played good defense and probably having a little out-of-body experience offensively. We got contributions throughout our lineup and I think you need that to win a tournament. We had guys step up when we really needed them to. I’m so happy for them.”
Following the conclusion of the game, the Southern Conference named Gibson the winner of the Walt Nadzak Award, annually given to the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Further, five additional Bulldogs garnered placement on the All-Tournament team, including the battery of Holmes and Phillips Daniels, first baseman Zach Hunt, shortstop Lane Tobin and outfielder Christian Stratis.
“Michael [Gibson] is a high character individual and that’s part of his success on the field,” Triplett continued. “He’s elevated the people around him with his character and his play on the field.”
Offensively, Jayden Williams paced the squad at the plate with three hits while both Hunt and Stratis wrapped up the day boasting a pair of knocks for an RBI apiece. TJ Anderson managed three appearances on the base paths, collecting one hit with two walks and crossing home on one occasion, while Gibson tallied a hit and a run scored as well.
On the mound, Holmes (W, 7-4) battled through 7.0 innings en route to his seventh victory on the year, setting down 10 batters on strikes while surrendering just two hits, one walk and one run. Andrew Buffkin handled a pair of outs during the eighth while giving up two hits before Gibson shut the door across 1.1 frames of action, allowing zero hits with two strikeouts as the senior logged his conference-best 10th save of the campaign.
“Will [Holmes] was special tonight,” Triplett added. “He wanted the ball. It’s hard for me to tell him no. I feel confident when he’s out there. He pitched really well and got some big outs in big moments.”
For Samford, four Bulldogs posted one hit apiece on the night with Pierce Dutton notching the lone RBI. Noah Berry (L, 5-3) suffered the loss after pitching the initial 1.2 innings, giving up five hits and two walks for a pair of runs with one strikeout.
The full bracket for the NCAA DI Baseball Championship releases on Monday, May 25 at noon courtesy of the annual selection show via ESPN2.
“As long as they let us in, and I think they have to now, we’ll go wherever they send us,” Triplett concluded.