MILLEDGEVILLE, Ga. | Pitching shined as Georgia College & State University swept a Peach Belt Conference baseball doubleheader from the University of South Carolina-Beaufort Saturday (Feb. 28) afternoon at John Kurtz Field.
Keaton Prior tossed a no-hitter as the Bobcats took the opener 11-0 in seven innings, before
Jake Beaver struck out 16 over eight innings as GCSU completed the sweep with a 9-2 win in the nightcap.
GCSU improved to 4-12 overall and to 3-5 in the Peach Belt, while USCB fell to 4-11 and 0-8. The two teams meet in the series finale at 1 p.m. Sunday (March 1).
In the opener, Prior (1-3), a junior right-hander from Milledgeville, Georgia, recorded the first no-no for the Bobcats since Michael Joyce twirled his in a 7-0 (7 innings) win against Kennesaw State University on Feb. 26, 2000.Â
Prior struck out eight and allowed just one runner to get to third base in the complete-game effort. He walked two, hit a batter and had another reach on a throwing error. Prior retired 14 of the final 15 batters he faced.
The Bobcats got all the offense they would need as they exploded for 10 runs in the fourth inning against Joe Turner (1-1).
Luke Boone started the rally with a leadoff homer to left and he added a grand slam - also to left field - during his second trip to the plate in the frame. It was his team-leading fourth long ball of the season.
Tanner Patterson drove in runs on his double and single in the fourth.
Carson Vick drove in a run after being hit by a pitch and
Evan Cowan wallked with the bases loaded.
Ty Petrovich had a sacrifice fly in the outburst.
Boone closed out the scored with a run-scoring double to left-center.
Boone, who drove in six runs, and
Carson Phillips each led the way with three hits, while Patterson added two more.
Beaver (2-2) retired an NCAA-era record-tying 16 strikeouts over eight innings in the nightcap. The 16 strikeouts equals the number set by Steve Pacheco on March 8, 2000, against West Chester University. The left-handed pitcher from Gainesville, Georgia, retired the side on strikeouts in the second, third, fourth and fifth innings. Beaver, who only walked one, scattered eight hits - all singles - as he allowed just one earned run.
Cole Huddleston had an RBI single in the second for the Bobcats. After the Sand Sharks scored twice in the top of the fifth, GCSU responded with four in the bottom half to take a 5-1 lead. Vick stroked a two-run double to left-center and Boone drove in another run.
Boone had a sacrifice fly in the sixth and drove in two more with a double to right-center in the eighth.
Vick led the Bobcats with three hits, while Petrovich and Huddleston had two apiece. Boone drove in 10 runs in the doubleheader.
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About GCSU AthleticsÂ
Owning the top Academic Success Rate among all public colleges and universities in Division II for five consecutive academic years, the Georgia College Department of Athletics sponsors 11 varsity athletic programs at the NCAA Division II level. GCSU Athletics has won six consecutive Presidents' Awards for Academic Excellence, and are two-time winners of the PBC Commissioner's Cup and four-time winners of the PBC Institution of the Year Sportsmanship Award. As a Division II program, Bobcat Athletics prides itself on balancing the life of the student-athlete, evidenced by the teams' continued appearances in postseason competition as well as high-level academic success and community-service involvement. Bobcat Athletics embodies the mantra of "Graduating Champions for Life." Sign up at @GCSUBobcats on all social media outlets for up-to-the-minute reports or subscribe to theÂ
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