GREENVILLE, S.C. — Headlined by dynamic performances on the mound from starter
Trip Brown and closer
Michael Gibson along with a ninth-inning offensive surge for seven insurance runs, fifth-seeded The Citadel (33-24) upended No. 1 overall Mercer (43-13) behind a 9-2 margin late Thursday morning at Fluor Field, advancing the Bulldogs into the Southern Conference Baseball Championship semifinals for the first time since 2015.
In addition to his contributions on the mound, Gibson led the offense with three hits, including two doubles, for two RBIs and a pair of runs scored, marking the senior's third consecutive game with at least three hits and two plate crossings.
Zach Hunt hit his team-leading tenth home run to drive in a pair, and now serves as the first Bulldog since Ryan McCarthy (11) to reach double-digit home runs in a season.
Additionally,
Phillips Daniels contributed a hit and two RBIs.
Jayden Williams reached a milestone of 50 hits for the season, adding one more in the game for an RBI.
TJ Anderson continued his streak by recording two or more hits for the third straight game. As a unit, The Citadel has now recorded double-digit hits in all three games of the SoCon Baseball Championship.
Trip Brown delivered a competitive outing for the Bulldogs in his sixth start of the campaign, pitching 6.0 shutout innings while striking out seven batters and allowing just five hits.
CJ Van Slooten threw 0.2 innings of relief, giving up one hit and striking out two batters before Gibson took over for the final 2.1 frames, surrendering two earned runs on four hits with one strikeout to earn his league-best ninth save of the season.
For Mercer, Titan Kamaka and Chris Katz both hit home runs. Garrett Lambert took the loss after throwing 5.2 innings, allowing five hits and one earned run while striking out 10 batters.
"
Trip Brown was big time for us. We got off to a shaky start, and a couple of guys got on base with a hit and a walk. He worked out of it. He struggled a little early in the game, but he made some big pitches with runners on base. Then he settled in and was special today," said head coach
Russell Triplett. "Michael [Gibson] keeps stepping up and getting big hits for us. As soon as we put him at the plate, he seems to deliver a big hit. He's been big for us the whole tournament. He's producing, but he's also stepping up in big moments."
Up next, the Bulldogs receive a well-deserved hiatus as the they await the winner of No. 1 Mercer vs. No. 4 Wofford in the semifinals, set for Friday, May 22 at 9 a.m. at Fluor Field.
-- #jOURney --
