Woita's go-ahead slam lifts South Carolina to series-opening win

It was only a matter of time before something went South Carolina’s way. The pitching was doing its job, the lineup was coming up to bat for the third time through. The writing was on the wall.

With two outs in the sixth inning, the Gamecocks started a small rally with two straight walks to load the bases. After struggling against Milwaukee right-hander Gavin Theis all afternoon, they were on the doorstep of breaking through.

Then, on an 0-1 pitch, Jase Woita delivered the biggest hit of the game, a go-ahead grand slam into left field to lead South Carolina (6-0) to a 5-2 win in the series opener on Friday.

“The at-bat before (Theis) kind of got me on a cutter. He got inside on my hands a little bit,” Woita said. “… He was tough. He did very well. I got a mistake and was able to put a good swing on it. Kind of blacked out a little bit.”

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Woita, a newcomer from Kansas City Kansas Community College, struggled mightily at the plate in the preseason. But since the regular season began, he’s flipped the switch and has taken rein of South Carolina’s designated hitter duties. He’s now 5-for-11 with a homer and six RBI in his first four games.

“It definitely wasn’t the preseason I wanted,” Woita said. “But I know that it’s (God’s) plan, not mine, and I knew that was gonna get a chance at some point. So I could either kind of pity myself or keep working and busting my butt every day. And that’s the route that I’ve always chose. It’s the reason that I’m here.”

Head coach Paul Mainieri, who has been all about giving players opportunities throughout his 40-year coaching career, inserted Woita into Tuesday’s starting lineup at Winthrop. He liked the way his at-bats had been going in a game where he went 2-for-4. Mainieri said he’ll be back in the lineup again on Saturday and hopes he can “do something special again.”

“There’s been a lot of kids that haven’t started the season. You give them an opportunity here and there, and they earn it, and they take and run with it,” Mainieri said. “And I think that’s the only way to operate. You have to give kids a chance. And when you give them a chance, the ones that take advantage of it are the ones that give them more and more opportunities.”

Before Woita’s go-ahead blast, it hadn’t been a great day at the plate for an offense that had only mustered one run through five innings. After a one-out single in the second by Dalton Mashore, South Carolina didn’t pick up another hit until the sixth when Nathan Hall led off with a single to start the eventual rally.

But even without much offense, the pitching kept things close to give the bats a chance in the later innings. Dylan Eskew exited his start with the trainer after only making it through two innings. The right-hander struggled with his command as he walked four and plunked two while giving up one earned run.

“He had a little strain in his back that I think was affecting his delivery,” said Mainieri, providing an update on Eskew’s injury status. “So we got him out of there to make sure that it didn’t get any worse.”

Eskew left South Carolina’s bullpen as he had loaded the bases with no outs in the third. Tyler Pitzer came in and only gave up one run via a walk, which was charged to Eskew’s final line. But from there, Pitzer struck out the next three batters to escape bigger trouble.

“It’s tougher than obviously, getting warmed up like usually,” Pitzer said on coming into a tough spot in the game. “But if you go in with the mentality of just filling the strike zone, doing the best of your capabilities, and knowing that your defense is behind you in the end, it works out.”

Pitzer found himself in multiple jams throughout the four innings he tossed on Friday. However, he was able to keep Milwaukee off the board and didn’t allow a run on four hits. The right-hander struck out eight and walked two on 68 pitches.

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After South Carolina recaptured the lead, Zach Russell followed up what Pitzer did, adding two more shutout innings while striking out one. Brendan Sweeney finished off another impressive showing from the bullpen by retiring the final three batters of the game after a leadoff walk in the ninth.

Between Pitzer, Russell, and Sweeney, they pitched seven shutout innings and allowed six hits to go along with 10 strikeouts and three walks.

Up next: South Carolina will go for the series win against Milwaukee on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is at 2 p.m. on SEC Network Plus. Matthew Becker (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will get the start on the mound.

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