March 21, 2008

Final Stats

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A five-run second inning and the fourth quality start of the season from senior Kyle Bowley (Apopka, Fla./Apopka) helped guide the USC Upstate baseball team to its fifth straight win and first in 23 all-time meetings with North Florida on Friday night at Harmon Stadium in the first of a three-game Atlantic Sun Conference set.

The Spartans (10-10 overall, 7-3 A-Sun) met the Ospreys for the first time since 2005 when both schools were members of the Peach Belt Conference and it broke a 23-game winless stretch against North Florida, in large part due to the complete-game 140-pitch effort from Bowley.

Bowley (4-1) labored through the first three innings, allowing three runs and five hits in that span, but settled down to allow just two unearned runs in the final six innings, as he finished with a career-high 11 strikeouts. He allowed 11 hits, four walks and five runs in the game, as he surpassed his previous-best in strikeouts, when he fanned nine at North Georgia on April 22, 2006. He also won his 16th career game to take hold of fifth by himself on the Upstate career list, passing Don Brock (1987-88).

The five-run third inning helped the Spartans take control, as they used four hits and an error to score all the runs with two outs. Freshman Keith Bisgounis (Oviedo, Fla./Oviedo) started the inning with an infield single just inside the third base line. On a 0-2 count, freshman Blake Green (Rock Hill, S.C./Northwestern) followed with a double to right center. The Ospreys recorded two outs, but freshman A.J. Clark (Colorado Springs, Colo./Colorado Springs Christian) walked to load the bases.

Senior Andrew Runion (Simpsonville, S.C./Mauldin) got Bisgounis to score when the shortstop couldn't get the ball out of his glove on an error. Junior Phillip Morgan (Campobello, S.C./Spartanburg Methodist) delivered a two-RBI single to right field and senior Casey Rivers (Hudson, Mass./Hudson) followed with an RBI double that landed just out of the diving outfielder's reach down the right field line. A wild pitch helped Morgan score for the last run of the inning.

The Ospreys (9-10 overall, 3-7 A-Sun) drew within two in the bottom of the inning thanks to a double from TJ Thompson and a single from Chad Knight, but Bowley settled down to not allow another run into two unearned tallies in the ninth.

Meanwhile, the Spartan offense sprung back into action in the sixth innings with two runs, as Rivers hustled out his second double of the game to right-center and sophomore Jimmy Tanner (Fayetteville, Ga./Stars Mill) followed with a bunt single. Bisgounis then laid down a safety squeeze and Rivers slid in just below the tag of the Osprey catcher. After a fielder's choice cut down Tanner, Green reached second on a wild pitch and scored on a single from senior Eric Guillen (Thousand Oaks, Calif./Thousand Oaks).

Upstate added two more to take a 9-3 lead in the seventh as Clark led off with a single and Runion was hit by a pitch. After a strikeout, Rivers delivered a single to right to score a run and Tanner followed with a bloop single to center field to score Runion.

Three more runs came in the eighth for Upstate as Green led off with a bunt single that got past the pitcher and Guillen added a single to right field. Junior Kyle Simpson (Lyman, S.C./Byrnes) laid down a bunt that rolled to a stop right on the third baseline to load the bases. Clark followed with a single to score a run and a sac fly from Morgan added another before a throwing error helped Simpson score.

A bad hop on a grounder to the shortstop in the second inning helped North Florida take a 2-0 lead. With runners on second and third, Andy Warren delivered the first runs home as a short hop bounced off the shortstop's glove and bounded into left field.

The Spartans had three players mash three hits as they knocked a season-high 17 hits in the win. Green led the team with a 3-for-5 game and he scored three runs. Guillen added a 3-for-5 game with a run and a RBI, Rivers went 3-for-5 with a run and two RBIs and Tanner went 3-for-5 with a RBI. Morgan led the team with three RBIs and Clark added two hits, two runs and an RBI.

Thompson went 3-for-5 with a run, Knight went 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI and Preston Hale added two hits and an RBI for the Ospreys.

Spencer Jones (2-1) took the loss for the Ospreys, allowing eight hits, two walks and seven runs in 5 2/3 innings, but just two runs were earned. He struck out three.

Upstate heads back to Harmon Stadium for a 1 p.m. doubleheader with North Florida on Saturday.