The Georgia State baseball team battled for over five hours before falling to William & Mary, 9-8 in 15 innings on Saturday afternoon in Williamsburg. It marked the second consecutive game in the series that went extra innings after the Panthers earned a 6-4 win in 10 innings on Friday night.
The Panthers (13-7, 1-1 CAA) looked to have things in control with a 6-1 lead heading to the eighth inning before William & Mary (6-12, 1-1 CAA) was able to score two runs in the bottom of the eighth to cut the deficit to three. The Tribe got three more runs in the bottom of the ninth to send it into extra innings.
“We had so many opportunities tonight that just slipped away,” commented head coach Greg Frady. “However, with that said, I am extremely proud of how hard we played tonight. We gave ourselves chances to win, but the breaks just did not go our way. We are a proud organization and when we load up on the bus for tomorrow's game, I am confident that we will give 100 percent and be ready to play.”
The two teams battled through extra innings before, with both teams being held scoreless after the tenth inning. In the bottom of the 15th, Chris Jensen singled to lead off the inning for William & Mary. After Derrick Osteen doubled down the right field line, Jensen scored to give the Tribe the victory.
Senior Bradley Logan (1-1) pitched 5.1 innings of relief, scattering eight hits over the extra frames and earned the loss.
Logan Billbrough (1-1) earned the win after pitching 6.0 innings of relief, allowing the Panthers to score just two runs over that time.
Senior Nick Hogan moved back into the top spot in the line-up and had a stellar day at the play, going 4-for-6 with two walks, but the Panthers left 12 runners on base and could not hold a lead after scoring two runs in the top of the tenth.
“Nick did a great job for us today and really got things going,” stated Frady on Hogan's performance. “On several occasions he really sparked the line-up and I am extremely proud of his play today.”
Logan led off the top of the tenth with a single down the line and would later score as senior Michael McCree reached on an error. When senior Chase Childers scored on the second error in the inning by the Tribe's Tyler Stampone, McCree scored to give the Panthers a two-run lead.
Stampone would make up for his errors in the bottom of the tenth as after walking, would score the game-tying run.
Senior Will Palmer pitched 5.0 innings of three-hit ball, striking out four and walking six. He would not factor into the decision.
Junior Carl Moniz extended his hitting streak to 11 games.
The two teams will play the final game of the three-game series on Sunday. First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m.
The Panthers will return to Atlanta for a game against cross-town rival Georgia Tech next Tuesday at Russ Chandler Field, first pitch is set for 6:00 p.m. The game will be televised live on Fox Sports South and on WRAS-FM 88.5.
