Chase Childers put Georgia State ahead with a two-run single in the eighth inning, and rightfielder Matt Van Horn threw out the potential tying run at the plate on the game's final play as the Panthers defeated Presbyterian, 8-7, Tuesday afternoon in Clinton, S.C. The win is Georgia State's school-record 32nd victory of the season.
Bradley Logan, the reigning conference player of the week, extended his hitting streak to 19 games and belted his team-leading 11th homer of the season to lead the Panthers (32-21). The sophomore infielder from Augusta, Ga., went 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored and has a set new school record for hits in a season with 79.
Georgia State trailed 6-5 in the eighth inning before Marc Mimeault tied the game with a two-out, run-scoring single. Nick Hogan followed with a single, and then Jean-Michel Rochon-Salvas was hit by a pitch. That loaded the bases for Childers, and the junior shortstop from Kennesaw delivered his two-run single to put the Panthers ahead, 8-6.
With State still holding that two-run lead, Presbyterian (12-36) led off the ninth inning with singles by Drew Wingo and Robert Anders. Reliever Joel Reeves, who earned his first save of the season, struck out Steven Henry and then got Kyle Craven to pop up. After the runners moved up to second and third on a wild pitch, Casey Carlson singled to right field. Wingo scored easily from third, but Van Horn gunned down Anders at the plate to preserve the Panthers' one-run victory.
“It was a hard-fought game, and that's what we expected,” said Georgia State head coach Greg Frady. “It came down to the last inning and the last play, but so many guys contributed big plays today. Chase Childers had a huge two-out hit, Bradley Logan had another great day, Marc Mimeault's two-out hit was huge, and we thought Dusty Bennett's single in the eighth inning was really big, too.”
With the win, the Panthers bettered Georgia State's 2000 club that won 31 games.
“To win a non-conference game on the road, between two huge conference series, is really big, and then to set the school record for wins makes it even more special,” said Frady.
Senior Kenny Camp (3-1) earned the win in relief by pitching two scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth. Andrew Cockerham (1-3) took the loss.
State jumped in front with two runs in the first inning on a passed ball and a run-scoring single by Van Horn, but Presbyterian answered with five in the bottom of the inning to take a 5-2 lead. Jesse Harmon's three-run homer highlighted the scoring for the Blue Hose.
Logan closed the gap to 5-4 with his two-run homer over the centerfield fence in the third, but the Blue Hose picked up an unearned run in the sixth inning to extend their lead to 6-4. State countered with one run in the seventh as Hogan scored on a wild pitch.
Georgia State starter Adam Knight surrendered five runs in the first inning but then settled down and pitched four scoreless innings. He allowed five runs on seven hits with one walk and two strikeouts.
“We got off to a rough start, giving up five runs in the first inning, but after that we pitched very well,” said Frady. “That kept us in the game, and we made a couple of key plays in the field.”
The Panthers, one of four teams battling for the final two spots in next week's Colonial Athletic Association Tournament, conclude the regular season with a three-game CAA series at Towson, Thursday through Saturday.
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