May 4, 2003

Final Stats

Spartanburg, S.C. - Brandon McDowell's two-out double to center in the ninth inning scored pinch runner Brett Kasten from third with the winning run as the 34th-ranked Western Carolina Catamounts overcame a 3-0 deficit for a 6-5 victory over Wofford this afternoon at Duncan Park.

WCU junior Denver Edick started the ninth with a single to left field and was later lifted for Kasten. Kasten moved to second on a Chris Davis groundout to first base, moved to third on Matt Nelson's ground out to short stop and scored the game winner on McDowell's fifth double of the season.

The Catamounts (34-14, 19-5) extend their winning streak to 10 games while moving closer to a Southern Conference regular-season championship. The Terriers (8-35, 6-20) were making their final home appearance of the season and playing their final game at Duncan Park. Wofford is scheduled to move into a new on-campus stadium next spring.

Steve Casey led off the bottom of the fourth with his sixth home run of the season to give Wofford a 1-0 lead. The Terriers added two more runs in the inning on a Tony Carbone run-scoring single, one of his three hits on the day, and a squeeze bunt by Matt Davis.

A misplay on a foul pop up to begin the top of the fifth and two subsequent Wofford errors were part of a five-run inning that gave Western Carolina a 5-3 lead. A Todd Roper infield single brought home the first run before Alan Beck tied the game with a sacrifice fly to left. Rod Goldston then hit a two-run double to give the Catamounts a 4-3 lead. It was Goldston's 24th two-bagger of the season, one shy of the school's single-season record, and the 68th of his career, tying him for the all-time Western Carolina mark. Davis capped the inning with an RBI single to give the Catamounts a 5-4 lead.

A Casey sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth pulled Wofford within 5-4. The Terriers then evened the game with two outs in the seventh when an error by Catamount shortstop Wayne Kilmer allowed Scott Holloway to score the tying run.

Derrick Hawk (8-1) allowed just one hit and an unearned run in 4.2 innings of relief to earn the victory. He struck out five and walked one. Catamount starter Brad Josey lasted 4.1 innings and surrendered four runs, two earned, on seven hits.

Roper and Davis each had two hits to pace a 10-hit Catamount attack. McDowell capped a big weekend with his game-winning RBI on Sunday. On Saturday, he was the winning pitcher in WCU's 17-5 win in game one of a doubleheader and went 2-for-5 with two RBI in game two as the Cats; designated hitter. For the season, McDowell is 5-2 on the mound with a 3.99 ERA and is batting .367, which is second-highest on the team.

Keith Sturkie (0-4) took the loss for Wofford. Freshman Andrew Hewitt made his first collegiate start and held Western Carolina scoreless until the fifth inning. Hewitt's older brother, Nick, then relieved and did not allow a run in 2.2 innings. Wofford senior Brian Casey had two hits in his final home game and flew out to the wall in right to end the game.

Western Carolina will host Appalachian State in a SoCon set next weekend. The games are scheduled for Sunday and Monday at Childress Field/Hennon Stadium due to graduation at both schools. Sunday (May 11) will be a doubleheader starting at 3 pm and Monday's contest will start at 6 pm. The three-game series will mark Western's final home games of the season, with the senior class being recognized prior to the first game Sunday.