Spartanburg, S.C. – Jackson Lyda laced a one-out, run-scoring single past a drawn-in infield to score
Trey Spees in the top of the ninth inning to push Western Carolina baseball in front by one in the top of the final frame. Reliever
Mason Snyder then capped the series middle game with his third 1-2-3 inning as the Catamounts evened their best-of-three Southern Conference series on Saturday, upending Wofford 3-2 at Russell C. King Field.
Tied at two through eight complete, Spees drew a one-out walk before
Dominic Robinson drove a ground-rule double into the left field corner to put two in scoring position. Then, with the infielders pulled in for a first look at home to try to prevent the go-ahead run from scoring, Lyda smoked a ground ball through the right side to plate the eventual game-winning run.
Trent Turner was plunked to load the bases in the ninth, but the Terriers wiggled off the hook, preventing WCU from adding any distance heading into the home half of the frame.
Snyder and the Catamounts worked a pair of right-side infield groundouts to second and first base unassisted, before recording the final out on a fly ball to right-center field.
The series finale and rubber match is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Sunday at King Field and will be broadcast on ESPN+ (
paid subscription required). Audio from the Catamount Sports Network and live stats are available through links online at CatamountSports.com.
Pitching again took center stage in Saturday's game after Friday's showing, as the two teams combined for just five runs on nine total hits, with 20 combined strikeouts, 10 aside.
Catamount starter
James Fordham worked around five walks with five strikeouts in limiting Wofford to two runs – both scored in the third inning – coming on just three base hits before handing the ball to Snyder in the bottom of the fifth inning. Snyder (7-0) continued his seasonal relief brilliance, striking out five against two walks in five innings of hitless, scoreless relief to earn his seventh victory of the year.
Wofford got six innings out of starter Cullen Condon, who did not factor into the decision despite striking out six against a pair of walks. Condon allowed just two runs on two hits before the Terriers went to their bullpen for the first time in the series. Branton Little (3-2) was saddled with the loss, giving up the game-winning run on four hits with a walk and four strikeouts.
Making just his second start of the season, freshman
Dominic Robinson collected a pair of base hits in a 2-for-4 effort to pace WCU's offense. Benefiting from a pair of Terrier infielders colliding, Robinson reached on an infield single in the seventh inning before driving the double down the left-field line in the decisive ninth inning. Lyda reached base a team-best four times in the winning effort. The Fletcher, N.C., product walked in the first, drew a run-scoring HBP in the second, and was again plunked in the fifth before scoring on the Fox double. All that action came ahead of his ninth-inning game-winning single.
WCU's four other hits were spread among three other players, with
Walker Fox (1-for-4) delivering a game-tying RBI double in the fifth inning. Turner (1-for-4) singled in the seventh, and
Cole Jones (1-for-4) singled on the infield in the second inning.
The Terriers (31-16, 9-5 SoCon) mustered just three hits on Saturday, all singles that came in succession in Wofford's two-run third inning. Niko Brini (1-for-3) singled home Wofford's first run in the third, followed by singles from Logan Tribble (1-for-3), who reached twice, and Ben Timblin (1-for-4) with the other run driven in.
Marc Quarrie walked three times, and Cade Collins drew a pair of walks for Wofford.
Mason Holton drew a lead-off walk in the second inning, with
Cole Jones singling and Spees plunked to load the bases. Lyda then drew a two-out HBP to push Holton home for the 1-0 lead after two complete innings.
In the third, Lucas Manning drew a one-out walk to start the Terrier rally that came with two outs. Brini drove a two-out single into right field to knot the game at two before singles from Tribble and Timblin handed Wofford the 2-1 lead. However, as it turned out, it would be the best offensive inning for the home squad as WCU's pitching and defense limited Wofford to three base runners over the final six innings.
Lyda drew a one-out HBP in the fifth before Fox drove a two-out double down the right-field line with Lyda sliding across home plate ahead of the relay to score from first to tie the game at two.
Wofford put two runners on in the home half of the fifth with a pair of walks, but both were stranded. The Catamounts threatened in the seventh with Robinson and Turner reaching on singles, but could not light the scoreboard. The Terriers drew a third walk over the second half of the game as Quarrie reached for the third time on a free pass but was left standing at first, sending the game to the latter stages and setting up WCU's ninth-inning offense.
Western Carolina (30-17, 11-6 SoCon) moved back atop the SoCon standings after Saturday's win, moving percentage points ahead of the second-place tie between the Terriers and the Mercer Bears, who held on to take game two from Samford on the road Saturday evening.
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