Kershaws Corner: Tennessee series
South Carolina versus Tennessee
* USC leads the overall series 51-34
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* The Gamecocks have won 13 of the last 14 in the series including five in a row.
* Tennessee's last win in the series was a 5-4 victory on April 6, 2012 in Columbia.
* Tennessee has not won a weekend series against South Carolina since the 2006 season. Tennessee won 5-4, and 8-7 in the first two games of the series and the Gamecocks avoided the sweep with a 9-2 win on Sunday.
* The Gamecocks have swept three of the last four series against the Vols.
Recently …. The Home Team Usually Wins in USC-UK Series
The Gamecocks dropped their first series of the season last weekend in Lexington against the Wildcats. Kentucky took the first two games 13-5 and 2-1 while Carolina avoided the sweep with an 8-3 win on Sunday.
The home team in this series has won the weekend matchup every year since 2010. UK won two out of three in 2010 in Lexington, and swept the Gamecocks in Lexington in 2012. USC swept the Wildcats in Columbia in 2011 and 2013.
USC was the last team to go into the others stadium and win the weekend series. That happened in 2009 when USC won two out three against the Wildcats. The home team has won 13 of the last 14 games in this series.
In those 14 games, there have been two extra-inning games and six games decided by one run. The Wildcats have won four of those six games. Carolina's two wins by one run came in the two extra-inning games that were played.
Bouncing Back After a Trip to Lexington
In 2012, the Gamecocks opened SEC play in Lexington and were swept by the Wildcats. USC played Florida the following weekend in Columbia. The Gators won two of the three games including a one run game on Sunday that clinched the series. USC went on to play for the National Championship that season but were swept in two games by Arizona.
USC lost two of three in 2010 in Lexington and bounced back the following weekend to sweep Arkansas in Fayetteville. That series was played in May. As you may recall, the Gamecocks won the National Championship in 2010.
Allowing 13 Runs
The Gamecocks allowed 13 runs in the series opener to Kentucky on Friday night. It was actually the first time this season that Carolina allowed more than 10 runs in a game. It is the most allowed by USC since they allowed 14 to Florida on April 13, 2013 in Gainesville. The only other game in 2013 that the Gamecocks allowed more than 10 runs in was the series opener against Arkansas on March 22, 2013 where the Razorbacks scored 15 runs.
Between Kentucky and Tennessee
Carolina played a couple of midweek games against College of Charleston and Coastal Carolina. USC defeated CofC 4-2 and Coastal Carolina 4-0.
USC is 48-6 all-time against the College of Charleston and 13-5 against Coastal Carolina. The Gamecocks defeated CofC 3-1 in Charleston and 10-6 in Columbia last season. The game with Coastal Carolina was the first between the two teams since the 2010 Super Regional.
Gamecocks Since Their Last Loss Against a Non-Conference Opponent in Carolina Stadium
* USC has won 36 straight games at Carolina Stadium against non-conference opponents. That includes the 2013 Columbia Regional. The last loss at Carolina Stadium for the Gamecocks against a non-conference opponent was against Liberty on February 17, 2013. Liberty defeated Carolina 3-2 in a seven inning game. That was the second game of a Sunday double header.
* USC has 14 shutouts in the 36 games.
* Carolina has allowed four runs or less in 31 of the 36 games.
* USC has scored 10+ runs in 11 of the 36.
2014 Coastal Carolina 4-0
2014 College of Charleston 4-2
2014 Furman 5-0
2014 Brown 13-0, 8-0, 1-0
2014 Bucknell 7-1, 4-2
2014 Clemson 9-6
2014 Eastern Kentucky - 4-0, 2-0, 6-0
2014 Presbyterian - 4-0
2014 Bucknell - 17-4, 12-2, 12-0
2013 Liberty - 6-4 - Columbia Regional
2013 Liberty - 19-3 - Columbia Regional
2013 Saint Louis - 7-3 - Columbia Regional
2013 Presbyterian - 4-3
2013 Wofford - 9-3
2013 College of Charleston - 10-6
2013 The Citadel - 6-5
2013 Charleston Southern - 9-5
2013 Davidson - 12-4
2013 USC Upstate - 12-3
2013 Rider - 2-0, 9-5, 1-0
2013 Ball State - 10-0, 14-4
2013 Clemson - 8-0
2013 Furman - 5-2
2013 Albany - 8-3, 14-1, 6-4
Gamecocks in Carolina Stadium
USC is 18-1 in Carolina Stadium this season. Since the stadium opened in 2009, Carolina has posted a 173-33 record at home.
Shutouts
The Gamecocks have 10 shutouts this season. They had 8 in 2013, 9 in 2012, 4 in 2011, and 8 in 2010. The USC record for shutouts in a season is 14 by the 1974 squad.
Game They Recorded Their Last Shutout
2014 - 10th shutout came in the 24th game of the season.
2013 - 8th shutout came in the 62nd game of the season.
2012 - 9th shutout came in the 66th game of the season.
2011 - 4th shutout came in the 30th game of the season.
2010 - 8th shutout came in the 50th game of the season.
1974 - 9th shutout came in the 26th game of the season and their 14th came in the 54th game.
Breaking Down the Shutouts
* 10 shutouts on the year
* All 10 are against non-conference opponents in Carolina Stadium.
* Two of the shutouts were one hit shutouts. (Bucknell on February 16 and Coastal on March 26)
* Gamecocks walked four or less batters in each game. Furman had four walks on March 11 while the others had three or less. Brown did not have a single batter in the double header on March 8th reach base by a base on balls.
* USC struck out at least eight batters in nine of the 10 games. USC struck out four Paladins on March 11.
* Allowed three extra base hits in those 10 games. All three extra base hits were doubles. EKU on February 21, and Brown on March 8, and on March 9.
* Allowed seven hits or less in each of the 10 games. Presbyterian had seven hits on February 18, Eastern Kentucky had seven on February 23, and Brown had six in game 2 of the double header on March 8. The other seven games, opponents were held to five hits or less.
Gamecock Baseball Individual Notes
Jordan Montgomery
* Allowed nine runs, seven earned in two innings of work last Friday against Kentucky. The seven earned runs allowed were a career high. His career high for runs allowed is 10 against Alabama on April 27, 2012.
* The two innings pitched last Friday was his shortest outing since going 2.2 innings against Vanderbilt on May 4, 2013.
* He received a start in 2012 and 2013 against the Vols but both games got a no decision.
* Last season against Tennessee, he pitched four innings allowing four hits and no runs. He struck out two while having no walks.
* In 2012 against the Vols, he pitched eight innings allowing three hits, and one run. He struck out seven and walked no Volunteer batters.
* 3-2 with a 4.99 ERA on the season.
* Has allowed 21 runs this season. The rest of the team has allowed xx.
* Has 32 strikeouts to 12 walks.
Jack Wynkoop
* Went seven innings last Saturday against Kentucky allowing five hits and two runs. He struck out nine while walking one.
* The nine strikeouts were a career best against an SEC opponent. His previous best against an SEC opponent was four against Arkansas in 2013.
* Has a career record of 11-4. All four losses are on the road. 2013 at Furman, at Florida, at Mississippi State and 2014 at Kentucky.
* 4-1 with 1.98 ERA on the season.
* Leads the team with 34 strikeouts.
Wil Crowe
* Made six starts and has a 5-0 record with a 1.63 ERA.
* Pitched at least 5.1 innings in each of his six starts. The 5.1 innings came against Ole Miss.
* He has allowed seven runs this season with six coming on the road. Allowed three at Clemson and three at Kentucky.
* Leads the team with 38.2 innings pitched.
Evan Beal
* Got the start on Wednesday against Coastal Carolina. He threw four innings allowing no runs while striking out three and walking only one.
* His last start was on April 6, 2013 against Tennessee where he threw two innings allowing two runs on two hits and four walks. He struck out one. The last game he appeared in was on May 18, 2013 at Mississippi State. Against the Bulldogs, he allowed two runs on two hits in 1.2 innings of work.
Cody Mincey
*2-0 with a 0.53 ERA
* Leads the team with 13 appearances.
* Thrown 17 innings allowing eight hits and one run.
* The first run allowed on the season came on Tuesday night against the College of Charleston.
Joel Seddon
*1-0 record with a 0.00 ERA in 11 appearances.
* Pitched 13.2 innings allowing two hits and no runs. He has 20 strikeouts to two walks on the season.
* Opponents have a combined batting average of .045 against him.
Marcus Mooney
* Went 2 for 12 with a run scored last weekend against Kentucky.
* Hitting .279 with 12 runs batted in.
* Second on the team with six doubles.
* Tied for the team lead with three sacrifice hits.
Elliott Caldwell
* Went 1 for 6 with two walks and a run scored against Kentucky.
* Hitting .273 with nine runs batted in.
Joey Pankake
* Went 3 of 14 with two doubles in the three game series against Tennessee last season. He had three runs batted in and scored
* In the three game series in 2012 against Tennessee, he went 1 of 10.
* Has a 12 game hitting streak.
* Went 5 for 12 last weekend against Kentucky with five runs batted in.
* Hitting .325 with three home runs and 15 runs batted in.
* The three home runs are tied for second on the team with Greiner, Martin, and Arendas. Schrock leads the team with four.
* Leads the team with 25 runs scored.
Kyle Martin
* He only had one at-bat last season in the series against Tennessee.
* Went 4 for 11 last weekend against Kentucky. He scored two runs.
* Hitting .337 with three home runs and 13 runs batted in.
* Reached base in 12 consecutive games.
* Started all 24 games at first base.
Grayson Greiner
* In the 2013 series against Tennessee, he went 6 of 9 with one home run and four runs batted in. He scored three runs. His on base percentage for the series was .727.
* Hitting .338 with three home runs and 22 runs batted in.
* Leads the team with 22 RBIs.
* Second on the team with a .514 slugging percentage.
* Leads the team with six multiple RBI games.
Logan Koch
* Started the last two games at catcher and has three starts on the year.
* Hitting .286 with one RBI.
* Played in 10 games.
* Has 4 hits in 14 at bats with one double.
Connor Bright
* Last season in the series versus Tennessee, he went 5 for 14 with a double, one RBI, and four runs scored.
* 3 for 11 last weekend against Kentucky. He had one RBI and scored two runs with all coming in the game on Sunday.
* Leads the team with a .378 batting average.
* Leads the team with 10 doubles. Mooney is second on the team with six.
* Leads the team with four stolen bases.
* Leads the team with 10 multiple hit games.
* Started all 24 games in right field.
DC Arendas
* Played in 21 games with 19 starts.
* Hitting .261 with three home runs and 14 runs batted in.
Tanner English
* Last season in the series versus Tennessee, he went 3 for 11 with a double and four runs batted in. He scored three runs.
* Went 2 for 9 last weekend against Kentucky.
* Started all 24 games.
*Hitting .312 with one home run and 15 runs batted in.
* Has four doubles, and one triple on the season.
* Tied for the team lead with three sacrifice hits.
Max Schrock
* Went 7 for 12 with two doubles, one home run and seven runs batted in against Tennessee in the weekend series.
* Went 0 for 8 last weekend against Kentucky.
* Hitting .304 with four home runs and 10 runs batted in.
* The four homers leads the team.
* Leads the team with a .536 slugging percentage.
Brison Celek
* Last season in the series versus Tennessee, he went 3 for 9 with a homerun, two runs batted in and scored five runs.
* Hitting .222 with three doubles and five runs batted in.
Scouting Tennessee
* 19-4 overall and 3-3 in SEC play.
* Ranked 21st in the country.
* Lost two of three to Auburn last weekend in Knoxville. (2-3, 2-4, and 8-6)
* Won two out of three at Arizona State this season. (1-3, 6-5, 6-4)
* Team has nine home runs on the season.
* Team has 49 stolen bases in 62 attempts.
* Team ERA is 2.67.
Nick Senzel
* Has 22 starts.
* Batting .352 with one home run and 21 runs batted in.
* Leads the team with 21 RBIs and the .352 batting average.
* Has eight stolen bases in nine attempts.
* Started at DH in 21 games.
Scott Price
* Started all 23 games.
* Tied for the team lead with three home runs.
* Second on the team with 20 runs batted in.
* Leads the team with eight doubles.
* Has 10 multi-hit games this season and five multiple RBI games. Leads the team in both categories.
* Enters the weekend series with a nine game hit streak.
* Has hit leadoff in all 23 games.
A.J. Simcox
* Hitting .341 with five runs batted in.
* Has no extra base hits on the season.
* Has eight stolen bases in 10 attempts.
* Leads the team with 69 assists.
* Hit in two spot in 21 games.
Taylor Smart
*Hitting .338 with 11 runs batted in.
*Has four doubles but no other extra base hits.
Christin Stewart
* Hitting .322 with three home runs and 17 runs batted in.
* The three home runs is tied for the team lead.
* He also has six doubles and three triples.
* Second on the team with a .563 slugging percentage.
* Enters the weekend series with a 10 game hit streak.
* Started all 23 games in center field.
* Reached base in 10 straight games.
Will Maddox
* Hitting .300 with two home runs and 11 runs batted in.
* Tied for the team lead with 21 runs scored.
* Has three triples and two doubles.
* Leads the team with nine stolen bases.
* Started 21 games at second base.
David Houser
* Played in 16 games with 15 starts.
* Hitting .280 on the season.
Nathaniel Maggio
* Played in 21 games with 19 starts.
* Hitting .229 with eight runs batted in.
* Has four stolen bases in six attempts.
Vincent Jackson
* Started all 23 games.
* Tied for the team lead with 13 walks.
* Hitting .213 with 14 runs batted in.
Nick Williams
* Pitched eight innings allowing three runs on six hits against Auburn on Friday.
* 3-2 with a 1.88 ERA.
* Has six appearances with five starts.
* Leads the team with 38.1 innings pitched.
* Has 25 strikeouts to eight walks.
Hunter Martin
* Pitched six innings on Saturday against Auburn allowing two runs on seven hits. Only one of the two runs were earned.
* Has five appearances with four starts.
* 2-1 record with a 0.98 ERA.
* Allowed 19 hits in 18.1 innings pitched.
* Has 10 strikeouts to six walks.
Andrew Lee
*Pitched six innings on Sunday against Auburn allowing six hits and four runs.
* 3-0 with a 3.94 ERA.
* Has seven appearances with six starts.
* Allowed 31 hits in 32 innings pitched.
* Has 19 strikeouts to nine walks.
Drake Owenby
* Recorded his fifth save on the season on Sunday against Auburn.
* Leads the team with five saves.
* Has 11 appearances and one start.
* 2-0 record with a 1.98 ERA.
* Pitched 13.2 innings allowing nine hits and four runs.
Andy Cox
* 3-0 with a 1.41 ERA.
* Has 14 appearances with 1 start.
* Leads all the Tennessee pitchers with 28 strikeouts but also leads them with 10 walks.
* Pitched 32 innings allowing five runs on 16 hits.
On Deck for the Gamecocks After Tennessee
USC plays Appalachian State (6-16) on Tuesday at 7:00pm at Carolina Stadium. The Gamecocks then travel to Fayetteville to play Arkansas (16-8, 3-3 SEC) for a three game series. The first game with the Razorbacks is scheduled for Thursday, April 3rd at 8:00pm and is scheduled to be on ESPNU.
Arkansas is at Mississippi State this weekend.