Will Palmer pitched six solid innings and Georgia State's 4-5-6 batters in the lineup - Luke Gordon, Matt Van Horn, and Aeden McQueary - combined for six RBIs as the Panthers (20-19, 9-8 CAA) ended Northeastern's winning streak at nine games with a 7-4 victory in Colonial Athletic Association play from Brookline, Mass.
State drew first blood in the first inning as the first two batters of the game each reached and scored. Senior Eric Suttle singled, stole second, then scored on junior second baseman Jean-Michel Rochon-Salvas' double down the line in left. Then with one out, Gordon drove home Rochon-Salvas with a double into right-center, putting State up 2-0.
The score stayed the same until the fourth when Northeastern (18-10, 9-7) scored their first run when James Donaldson's single scored Mike Lyon thanks to a fielding error. Palmer would get out of the inning unscathed any further, and State took their lead into the fifth.
The Panthers would answer with a pair of unearned runs in the fifth. With Suttle and Rochon-Salvas on following an error and a single, senior Charlie Pelt bunted the two runners into scoring position. After a groundout, Van Horn singled back through the middle, scoring both runners and giving State a 4-1 edge.
Both teams would score three runs in the seventh, as Van Horn drove in his third run of the game on an RBI double to left-center. McQueary followed by doubling to left, scoring Pelt from third and Van Horn from second to give State a 7-1 lead. Northeastern would follow with three runs against Palmer, but junior closer Kevin Dooley came in and notched the final nine outs of the contest to earn the save.
Palmer (4-4) went six-plus innings, as he was charged with four earned runs on nine hits with a walk and four strikeouts. Joel Reeves pitched in the seventh but did not retire a batter, giving way to Dooley who did not allow a hit or a walk in his three innings of work.
Jeff Thompson (4-3) took the loss for Northeastern, giving up five earned runs on 11 hits in seven innings of action.
State outhit Northeastern for the second consecutive game. But unlike the day before when three unearned runs did State in, the Panthers took advantage of the only Northeastern error in the game to score two unearned runs and put the distance between themselves and the Huskies.
The two teams will match-up tomorrow in Brookline for the final game of the series. If the Panthers get the victory, they will pass Northeastern in the standings.
