NORFOLK, Va. ? After winning late on Saturday, the Georgia State baseball team repeated the feat Sunday against Old Dominion in the finale of their Colonial Athletic Association series. With two outs and runners at first and second, Bradley Logan hit a home run to center field that extended his hitting streak to 18 games and gave the Panthers a 5-4 lead. Reliever Bobby Bennett made quick work of the Monarchs in the ninth to pick up the win.
Trailing 4-2 entering the ninth, Georgia State (31-21, 11-5 CAA) needed some late-inning heroics again. Jonathan Kolowich led off the frame with a single, but was erased on a double play. Back-to-back two-out singles from Jean-Michel Rochon-Salvas and Chase Childers set the stage for Saturday's hero: Bradley Logan.
Logan took a two-strike pitch from Bergh and belted it to center field to give the Panthers a 5-4 lead. Reliever Bobby Bennett (2-3) sandwiched a strikeout between two groundouts to pick up the win in relief, after pitching four innings.
“Only thing Bradley Logan is missing right now is a cape. He's playing great defensively and comes through in the clutch offensively,” head coach Greg Frady said about the star of the series. “Bradley is a great player and has emerged as a team leader. We all feed off his energy.”
After finishing strong at the plate Saturday night, Georgia State got off to a quick start against Bergh (5-5). With two outs, Childers and Logan earned walks, bringing Derek Simmons to the plate. Simmons singled to center field to give State a 1-0 lead. Matt Van Horn reached on an infield single to bring in Logan and give the Panthers a 2-0 lead.
Old Dominion (23-23, 13-12 CAA) answered back in the fifth off State starter Drew Grant. After walking the second batter of the inning, Grant surrendered a double to Gerard Hall to put ODU on the board. A sacrifice fly after an error allowed Hall to score from third and tie the game at 2-2.
A solo homer from Max Most in the sixth put ODU up 3-2. After giving up a double, Grant was lifted in favor of Bennett. Bennett got three groundouts to prevent any further damage.
Bennett got into a jam in the seventh after quickly recorded the first two outs. The lefty gave up a single to Chris Keenan, who moved to second on a wild pitch. A single from Jimmy Miles brought in Keenan and gave the Monarchs a 4-2 lead.
“Bobby Bennett was outstanding. We got a good start from Drew Grant, but Bobby got everything stabilized and gave us a chance to win the game,” Frady said about the senior's performance on Mother's Day. “It was a really special day for Bobby. His mom passed away last year, and we talked about that before the game. I told him that today was going to be a special day for him. He had calmness about himself, and I think we would dedicate this day to his lost mother.”
While Logan delivered the fatal blow, Van Horn and Rochon-Salvas sparked the Panther offense. Van Horn went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Rochon-Salvas went 3-for-5 with a run scored.
The win is Georgia State's 31st of the season, tying the school record for wins in a season set during the 2000 campaign when the Panthers went 31-28. “We haven't spent a lot of time thinking about the school record for wins because the team has been focused on playing well and getting into the conference tournament,” Frady said. “But knowing all of the great players and coaches associated with Georgia State; it means a lot to everyone for our team to be in this position.”
Georgia State stays on the road and finishes its non-conference schedule on Tuesday, May 13, at Presbyterian. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.
NOTES: Bradley Logan's homer in the ninth extended his hitting streak to 18 games, and tied him for the most hits in a season in Panther history at 77 with Jay Langston (1998), Scott Youngbauer (2000) and Luke Gordon (2007) ... Drew Grant registered eight outs before giving up a hit in the bottom of the third ... The 2008 Panthers are now one of three teams in school history with 30-plus wins in a season, tying the mark of the 2000 squad (31-28) and surpassing the 1980 club (30-25).
