The Georgia State baseball team split a doubleheader with Cleveland State on Saturday afternoon, with the Vikings (1-2) taking game one and Panthers (2-1) taking game two. In the nightcap, Georgia State used six strong innings from transfer Ryan Moore to shutout the Vikings 10-0, after Cleveland State took game one, 6-5 in 10 innings.
“Ryan Moore really pitched outstanding for us in the second game,” commented Head Coach Greg Frady. “However, the two-out RBI double by Mike McCree in the bottom of the second inning really sparked our team today. It broke the ice after the first game where we stranded several two-out opportunities.”
Moore started game two for the Panthers and pitched six strong innings, striking out nine and allowing just one hit in the victory.
“It felt really good to finally get on the mound after all of the practice we have gone through,” commented Moore. “I wanted to come out, make a statement and set the tone for the second game because we were disappointed in the result from game one.”
The Panthers got on the board in the second on a single by Theo Asher, scoring Joey Wood. A double by senior Mike McCree scored Wood to put the Panthers up 2-0.
“When I watch the two guys get on in front of me with two outs, that was big for us,” commented McCree. “It put me in a position to just sit back and hit the ball hard and see what I could do. With Ryan on the mound, it was a pleasure to play behind him. He was striking guys out, getting ground balls and when you are on defense, it is easy to play behind him since I think as a defense, we actually play better.”
Georgia State would score another pair of runs in the third and two more in the fourth to take a commanding 6-0 lead. In the third, senior Chase Childers scored on a Marc Mimeault single, advancing junior Bradley Logan to third. With Theo Asher at bat, the Vikings attempted to catch Mimeault stealing, allowing Logan to steal home.
In the fourth, Childers singled home senior Nick Hogan to give the Panthers a 5-0 advantage. With the bases loaded, senior Matt Van Horn dribbled a hit down the third base line, scoring senior Derek Simmons.
The Panthers would tack on four more runs in the bottom of the eighth, highlighted by a Chris Hallum double to center, scoring Van Horn and Logan.
Justin Malone and Will Campbell would pitch the final three innings to give the Panthers the combined two-hit shutout.
Dylan Henry (0-1) got the loss for the Vikings. Henry allowed four runs, three earned in just 2 2/3 innings pitched.
Cleveland State would take game one a single by Alex Johnson in the top of the tenth, scoring Josh Hungerman. Georgia State would put two runners on in the bottom of the inning, but would not be able to get a runner across in the loss.
The Panthers got on the board first in game one on senior Marc Mimeault's single to right to score junior Logan in the second inning.
State tacked on another run in the third on a Chase Childers home run, the Panthers first home run of the season.
The Vikings would get on the board in the top of the fourth on a home run by Josh Hungerman.
The Panthers would strike again in the fifth as senior Matt Van Horn led off the inning with his first home run of the season. Childers would drive in senior Derek Simmons for the second run of the inning and score on a double by Logan to left field to five the Panthers a 5-1 lead.
Senior Adam Knight, who started the game for State, would last 5.0 innings, allowing just one hit and striking out seven, but would not factor in the decision.
Junior David Ferrer would relieve Knight and allow four runs, three earned over the next two innings. The Vikings would put one on the board in the top of the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Alex Johnson, scoring Kyle Shaffer.
The Vikings would tie the game in the top of the seventh with three more run, capped by a Hungerman single to left, scoring Tom Carter.
Senior Will Palmer (0-1) would get the loss for the Panthers, allowing one run in three innings of relief.
Drew Fronczek (1-0) earned the win for the Vikings, pitching 2 1/3 innings of no-hit relief, facing the minimum of seven batters.
The two teams will conclude the four-game series on Sunday, with the first pitch coming at noon.
