Harris dominates as Kentucky downs South Carolina 7-3 in opening game of doubleheader

Kentucky rode a dominant outing from freshman right-handed pitcher Nate Harris to a 7-3 win over South Carolina in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader.

With the win, the ‘Cats improve to 24-15 (9-10) and have won five of their last six games (three straight SEC wins). They remain at No. 11 in the SEC standings.

Six different ‘Cats notched at least one hit, while three different players drove in at least one RBI (Bell, Hansen and Burkes). Outfielder Carson Hansen belted a two-run home run in the first inning and was the lone player with multiple RBIs. Kentucky’s first (and only) strikeout came in the bottom of the eighth inning.

The aforementioned Harris enjoyed the best start of his young career against the Gamecocks, as he allowed just four hits and two earned runs with a career-high seven strikeouts in seven innings of work. He lowered his ERA against SEC competition to 3.66 (8 ER in 19 2/3 IP).

Carson Hansen stays hot with early two-run home run

Kentucky freshman left-hander Nate Harris made his ninth start of the season Saturday against South Carolina and held the Gamecocks scoreless in the top of the first, bringing the surging Wildcat offense to the plate. In its last game, Kentucky scored 17 runs in just six innings against No. 19 Louisville.

The hits came early once again for the ‘Cats, as Tyler Bell opened the game with a single but was thrown out at second on a Kyuss Gargett fielder’s choice. With two outs in the inning, junior center fielder Carson Hansen was brought to the plate with an early RBI opportunity. In that win over Louisville, Hansen homered and drove in three RBIs.

Hansen, who proclaimed that “the Cats are hot” following that rivalry win, jumped on an 0-1 pitch from Carolina right-hander Brandon Stone for a two-run home run over the left field fence, propelling Kentucky to an early 2-0 lead.

Carson. Kaboom. 💥@Carson34Hansen smokes a two-run, opposite field #BigBlueBomb.

📺 SECN+ pic.twitter.com/itRVTvtp49

— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) April 26, 2025

Kentucky’s lead however didn’t last long, as the Gamecocks would ding Harris for two runs in the top of the second inning thanks to an RBI-double by first baseman Beau Hollins and an RBI-single from catcher Gavin Braland. Following these two runs in the second however, Nate Harris completely shut down the Gamecock lineup.

Harris and Stone dominate the middle innings

Once the game was tied at two in the top of the second, Kentucky’s Nate Harris and South Carolina’s Brandon Stone dominated the next few innings.

No team scored in either the third or fourth innings, where both pitchers held both teams hitless. Following another 1-2-3 inning from Harris in the top of the fifth, Kentucky broke the tie in the bottom of the inning.

Ryan Schwartz blooped a two-out double down the first base line to put a runner in scoring position, which injured South Carolina star right fielder Ethan Petry after he ran into the wall. This brought up Tyler Bell with two outs, who hit a chopping groundball to Carolina third baseman KJ Scobey. Schwartz headed for third as soon as the pitch was being delivered and rounded third, scoring safely after the throw to first base pulled Beau Hollins off the bag.

Harris kept on dominating, holding Carolina scoreless (and hitless) so that the ‘Cats could pad their lead in the bottom of the sixth. With runners on second and third, Devin Burkes lofted an RBI sac-fly to left field which gave Kentucky a 4-2 advantage.

Kentucky takes game one of the Saturday doubleheader

Harris’ day finally came to an end following the seventh inning, where he was replaced by senior left-hander Jackson Nove to open the eighth. Prior to his exit, the freshman had not allowed a South Carolina hit since the second inning.

Kentucky tacked on one more run to its lead in the bottom of the seventh, as Tyler Bell lofted a hard-hit ball to the left field wall with Cole Hage on second. Carolina left fielder Blake Jackson, who ran into the fence pretty hard on the Hansen home run in the first, misplayed the ball and allowed it to drop in for an RBI-double. Bell had notched his 16th double of the season, which ranks third among SEC hitters.

B7 | UK 5, SC 2@BellTyler28 hits his 16th double of the season to tack another run on the board!

📺 SECN+ pic.twitter.com/4bcC6KI7do

— Kentucky Baseball (@UKBaseball) April 26, 2025

Carolina looked to make things interesting following Harris’ departure in the eighth, as they loaded the bases with no outs in the frame. Jackson Nove however forced a big-time double play and struck out pinch-hitter Kennedy Jones to get out of the jam having allowed just one run, preserving Kentucky’s two-run lead.

That two-run lead quickly turned into a four-run lead in the bottom of the eighth inning, as RBI-singles from Cole Hage and Griffin Cameron (safety squeeze) gave the ‘Cats a late 7-3 lead. Right-hander Simon Gregersen entered in relief in the ninth and held the Gamecocks to cement the series opening win.

What’s next for Kentucky?

Following their series opening win over South Carolina, the ‘Cats and Gamecocks will immediately run it back in game two of Saturday’s doubleheader. With a win, Kentucky would notch back-to-back SEC series wins for the first time this season.