CLINTON, Miss. (vstateblazers.com) — The No. 19 Valdosta State baseball team defeated Mississippi College 8-3 in its last game of weekend away series. The Blazers improved to 19-6 overall and 11-3 in Gulf South Conference play and the Choctaws fell to 11-19 overall and 6-9 in the GSC.
Mississippi College got on the board first with one in the first inning, but the Blazers answered back and added one in the second with a solo home run from graduate student Mike Christopoulos.
Valdosta State added one more in the third and fifth as junior Ryan Romano crossed home plate and junior Bryson Gandy homered for his second home run of the weekend and season.
The Choctaws added one in the fifth and one in the eighth but couldn't tally more as the Blazers added four in the sixth and one in the seventh.
In the sixth, junior EJ Doskow singled to left field and scored on a single to the shortstop from freshman Cory McCann. Before the half inning was finished, sophomore Jacob Harper hit a three-run homerun to pull away from the Choctaws.
The Blazers outhit the Choctaws 11-7 as both teams had three errors. Valdosta State also tallied eight RBI, two doubles, three home runs, one stolen base, and three free passes.
Leading the Blazer offense was Doskow going 3-5 with two doubles, one RBI, and one run scored. Romano followed behind going 2-5 with one run scored and the only stolen base. Along with the home runs by Gandy, Christopoulos, and Harper, hits for the Blazers were recorded by junior David Crawford (1), junior Orlando Adams (1), and McCann (1).
Starting on the mound for the Blazers was junior Kevin Tomas as he threw four innings and recorded three strikeouts and gave up three hits and one run.
Junior Brandon Raiden relieved Tomas and threw 3 innings and recorded the win for the Blazers (5-1). Raiden tallied two strikeouts and gave up four hits and two runs. Junior Zach Henderson also threw for Valdosta State to finish the game and recorded one strikeout.
The Blazers are back at Billy Grant Field at Tommy Thomas Park on Wednesday, March 30, for a midweek matchup against Flagler College at 6 p.m.
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The No. 3 Valdosta State softball team was unable to come away with a series sweep at Mississippi College Sunday afternoon, falling in the final game, 2-1 in eight innings.
The Blazers fell to 21-5 on the year and 13-1 in the Gulf South Conference, while MC improved to 14-14 on the year and 7-10 in the GSC. VSU's 13-1 mark in league play tops the GSC, while West Florida and Auburn Montgomery each are 12-3.
Yesterday, the Blazers defeated the Choctaws 8-4 in game one of a doubleheader and 11-4 in game two. The team combined for seven hits and six home runs to win the series and battled back from deficits in both games.
Mississippi College struck first in Sunday's game as a Blazer error and a single from the Choctaws' offense in the bottom of the second inning allowed a runner to cross home to give MC a lead, 1-0.
The Blazers responded in the top of the fourth inning as sophomore Aniston Gano advanced graduate student Ally Clegg to second off a sacrifice bunt. Senior Nikki Pennington singled to left field to plate Clegg to tie the game 1-1.
After four innings of a pitching duel, the Choctaws broke through in the bottom of the eighth inning as MC blasted a solo home run to left field to complete the walk-off, 2-1. The Blazers put two on with one out in the top of the seventh and had runners at second and third in the frame with two out but were unable to get the go ahead run across.
Junior pitcher Samantha Richards (16-2) went the distance for the Blazers as she recorded 11 strikeouts and gave up five hits, two earned runs, and one walk.
The Choctaw pitching staff combined for three strikeouts, four hits, one earned run and two walks through 27 Blazer batters.
The Blazers return home next weekend, April 2-3, to take on Christian Brothers at Steel's Diamond at Blazer Park. VSU will play a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m., and will conclude the series on Sunday with a single game slated for 1 p.m.
