Plate approach, pitching power South Carolina to midweek win

South Carolina baseball’s revamped plate approach was on full display Tuesday night at Founders Park. 

The Gamecocks walked nine times against USC Upstate, four of those with the bases loaded, en route to a no-frills 7-2 win against the Spartans. 

“Another good game for us in the midweek,” Mark Kingston said. “When you give up four hits in a midweek game, it speaks to our pitching depth. We’ll move on and try to get ready for Vanderbilt.” 

After almost four full days off, sixth-ranked South Carolina (29-4, 9-2 SEC) wasted no time. Dylan Brewer and Ethan Petry launched back-to-back jacks in the first inning.

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Brewer now has five homers this season, three coming in his last 24 at-bats.

“He’s swinging the bat as well as anybody over the last two weeks. Really happy with him. He started the year as a starter, came out of the lineup for a while and kept working and kept a good attitude and he was a great teammate,” Kingston said. “You tend to get rewarded when you do that. Now that he’s been reinserted into the lineup and swinging it well, he’s another good story for this team.”

For Petry his magical start to the season continues. 

He’s now up to 16 homers this year, one shy of tying Justin Smoak for the most by a Gamecocks freshman in program history. He finished going 3-for-5 on the night and a triple shy of the cycle. That raised his batting average to a scorching .449 on the season. 

“He has elite bat speed and he has an elite swing path now,” Kingston said. “He stays in the zone for a long time. His eyes work really well. When you combine those things you get a very accomplished hitter.” 

South Carolina offensively would roll through pitcher after pitcher. It’d notch eight hits with three of those going for extra bases.

The Gamecocks loaded the bases in the third and fourth innings and plated five runs with just one hit, a RBI single from Cole Messina. 

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South Carolina’s top of the order–Brewer, Petry and Messina did most of the heavy lifting Tuesday going 6-for-13 while scoring seven times. 

Carson Hornung drove in two runs as well with two bases-loaded walks in consecutive innings. 

Meanwhile, South Carolina’s pitching staff carried a no-hitter into the fourth inning. Gamecock arms didn’t allow a run until the fifth thanks to a solo homer off of Austin Williamson. 

That was the only earned blemish on the Gamecocks’ scorecard while eight pitchers combined to allow just one earned run on four hits. They’d strike out 13 to just three walks en route to yet another dominant showing on the mound.

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Wesley Sweatt, after a long hiatus, struck out the side and pitched around a leadoff double in the second of consecutive strong appearances.

“He’s a different guy now since he’s rehabbed and since he’s come back. I think he’s as healthy as he’s been in a while,” Kingston said. “The velocity, it’s elite velocity again for him. He’s always been a strike-thrower. The slider is good at 83 or 84 and the fastball is 93 to 94 and touching 96. He’s going to be a piece for us, there’s no question.”

USC Upstate got a run in late thanks to three South Carolina errors in the ninth.

South Carolina is now 20-2 in non-conference play this season. The Gamecocks are also a near-perfect 20-1 at home this season. The lone loss was an 8-7 defeat Friday to LSU.  

The Gamecocks needed a no-drama win while this game is sandwiched between two series against top-five teams.

Up next: South Carolina starts a series with No. 4 Vanderbilt Friday night in Nashville. The Gamecocks haven’t announced a starter yet but it’s anticipated Will Sanders will get the nod.

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