ATLANTA -- Rhett Harper drove in four runs with two doubles as Georgia State pounded out 16 hits in a 10-8 victory over Furman Wednesday at the GSU Baseball Complex.
Ryan Glass drove in two runs, and Dalton Davies and Luke Leonard had three hits each for the Panthers (9-20).
Harper, the fifth-year senior, has been a pitcher the last three seasons but returned to the outfield just last week, batting for the time since 2016. In four games, he has six hits and five RBI.
Georgia State fell behind 3-0 early, but the Panthers took the lead with four runs in the fourth and then scored four more in the fifth. Furman (10-18) closed the gap with a three-run homer in the ninth inning, but right fielder Brandon Bell came on to record the final out for his third save.
Trailing 3-0 in the fourth, Davies led off with a single and then Bell's single put runners at first and second with one out. Elian Merejo doubled home Davies, and then Harper's double scored two to tie the game. With two outs, Glass added another double to score Harper and give GSU its first lead.
After Furman evened the score with a run in the top of the fifth, the Panthers answered with four more in the bottom of the inning. Davies' single again started the rally, and then Griffin Cheney executed a hit-and-run to put runners at first and third. Bell singled home Davies, and then Merejo's infield single loaded the bases again. That brought Harper to the plate, and he again doubled to left field to drive in two more runs and put the Panthers up 7-4. Leonard's single to hole scored Merejo and made it 8-4.
The Panthers added two insurance runs in the seventh which proved to be important. Glass brought home one run with an RBI-single, and then Chase Frady singled on a ball that dropped into shallow center field to put GSU ahead 10-4.
Furman got one run back on a solo homer in the eighth, and then with two outs in the ninth, Sterling Turmon's three-run homer made it 10-8 before Bell came on for the final out.
Three Georgia State freshmen pitched the bulk of the game, including Seth Clark (2-0), who allowed one run and struck out four in 3.1 innings of relief to earn the victory.
"It was good to see the bats get going," head coach Greg Frady said. "We had 16 hits, we scored 10 runs and we made no errors, so from a positional player standpoint, it was a good night. From a pitching standpoint, we had moments where we really pitched outstanding. And they had a couple of moments where they hit the three-run homer and took advantage of a pitch or two. But in the end we won the baseball game. I was glad to see Brandon Bell get in to finish the game."
Georgia State continues its homestand as ULM visits for a Sun Belt Conference series this weekend, beginning Friday at 6 p.m. at the GSU Baseball Complex.
