They needed an answer, and found one.
With the series against No. 4 Kentucky at stake and quite possibly the regional-hosting chances along with it, South Carolina baseball pounded out 10 runs on 10 hits and got its best start of the season from Dylan Eskew to clinch a vital series victory with a 10-0 run-rule win.
"For me, just landing my sinker, trusting it, throwing it for strikes, that’s where everything starts," Eskew said. "If I’ve got that thing going, it’s going to be usually a good day.”
Eskew set the tone with his longest start of the year, firing 6 1/3 shutout innings and only surrendering five hits, all singles, and one walk. He established his control early with three quick outs on 12 first inning pitches, and even erased a baserunner on a pickoff in the third. His slider kept Kentucky (33-9, 16-5 SEC) hitters off-balanced all day, and led to two double play balls including a crucial one with runners on the corners in the fourth.
Those defensive plays, while mostly routine, were no sure things after two errors last night with a newly constructed defense. Mark Kingston gambled with an offense-first approach to his lineup. Mixed results for the series, but only positive returns Sunday.
"I threw more strikes today," Eskew said. "Kept the innings quick, kept the defense engaged. So I think those guys go hand and hand.”
One run would have been enough for him given the mound dominance, but South Carolina (29-14, 11-10 SEC) provided plenty more.
Ethan Petry appeared to make it three with a towering third inning home run into the left field bullpen, but an unusual play knocked one off the board. Petry passed Austin Brinling on the basepaths during his trot, meaning his run would not count.
A 2-0 lead which should have been three, and enough to plant some seeds of doubt in the back of minds everywhere following the chaos of the first two games this weekend.
“Basically what you had there was a very excited Ethan Petry who saw the ball leave the park and forgot to look at the guy in front of him," Kingston explained. "He’s hit probably 150 homers in his life, and it’s probably never happened to him before and will never happen again because he’s learned the lesson.”
There was not to be any drama this time around, though.The Gamecocks tacked on one more run in the fourth, then busted the game wide open in the fifth with their second six-run inning in as many days.
It was another instance of keeping the line moving, a big inning without a home run. Brinling had two singles in the frame, the second of which drove in a run. Blake Jackson continued his weekend MVP level performance with a bases loaded hit, and Kennedy Jones hit a bullet of his own with the bases loaded to drive in two runs. Jones finished the game with four RBIs, bringing his total to 34 for the year.
"I came up big a few times," Jones said. "I don’t think I really tried anything new, I was just trying to trust the process and just stay confident. I think that’s the biggest thing as a hitter. When you stay confident, you’ll come up in those situations.”
It was an offensive flurry. This time, Eskew made sure nothing went the other way. He picked up four more outs before turning it over to Connor McCreery, who cleaned up the final two batters to clinch the series with a run-rule win.
Up next South Carolina will host East Tennessee State in midweek action, before traveling to Missouri for three more critical SEC games next weekend.
But it needed this one to maintain the importance of those and thanks to Eskew and his offense, it happened.
“I’d say everything was put together today," Eskew said. "Hitting, defense, pitching. That’s the most complete game I think we’ve played thus far this year.”
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