No. 5 Wofford 10, No. 2 Samford 9
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Wofford starting pitcher Zac Cowan scattered eight hits over seven innings and the Terriers withstood a furious late rally by No. 2 seed Samford to edge the Bulldogs, 10-9, on Sunday to force a winner-takes-all Game 13 at the 2024 Southern Conference Baseball Championship presented by Holston Gases at Fluor Field.
The contest marked the eighth SoCon Tournament meeting in six years between the two teams, with the series even at four wins apiece.
Facing the Bulldogs for the second time in less than 24 hours, Wofford wasted little time in getting its potent offense going. The Terriers took advantage of four singles, scoring three times in the top half of the first inning. Marshall Toole led off the game with an infield single and quickly swiped his league-leading 41st base of the season. Two batters later, Brice Martinez drew a four-pitch walk. Daniel Jackson followed with a single through the right side to plate Toole with the game’s first run. Tyler Hare and Lucas Manning each added RBI singles to give the Terriers a quick 3-0 advantage.
The Terriers capitalized on clutch two-out hitting to add another run in the second frame. Dixon Black notched his first hit of the afternoon with a two-out single. Martinez then doubled to bring home Black, building Wofford’s lead to 4-0.
Wofford added two more runs in the fourth. Andrew Mannelly began the inning by homering beyond the right-field fence. Toole added a single and came around to score the Terriers’ sixth run when Martinez singled through the left side.
Samford’s offense woke up in bottom of the fourth when John Anderson and Andrew Bennett both doubled down the left-field line with two outs. Aaron Walton added a run-scoring single to plate Bennett, trimming the Terriers’ lead to four.
Josh Rodriguez nearly ignited the Samford offense further after opening the bottom of the sixth with a double down the left-field line but ended up stranded at third.
Wofford extended its lead to 7-2 in the seventh inning. Jackson drew a one-out walk in the top of the inning and moved to third on David Wiley’s single through the left side. Hare then laid down a bunt on an 0-1 pitch that scored Jackson.
Samford inched closer with two runs in the bottom of the seventh. Parker McDonald laid down a bunt single with one out and moved into scoring position when the ball was thrown away. Staton followed by clubbing a 1-1 pitch beyond the fence in right center field for his 19th homer of the season.
Wofford added three runs on Hare’s one-out home run in the top of the ninth to wrap up the Terriers’ scoring.
With Samford trailing by six, Rodriguez opened the bottom of the ninth with his second double of the game. One out later, Staton singled. With runners on first and third, Garrett Howe lifted a sacrifice fly to left field that brought Rodriguez across the plate. Lucas Steele walked to get two runners on base and both scored on Anderson’s second double of the afternoon. With two outs, Bennett hammered a two-run homer to get the Bulldogs within just one run. Walton followed with a single to get the tying run on base, but the late rally fell just shy.
Martinez was 3-for-4 with a double, a walk, an RBI and two runs scored. Hare was also 3-for-4 with a home run, a run scored and five RBIs. Toole added two singles and scored two runs.
Walton was 4-for-5 with a double and an RBI. Staton was 2-for-5 with a home run, two RBIs and two runs scored. Anderson added a pair of doubles, a walk, two RBIs and two runs scored. Bennett finished with a home run, a double, three RBIs and two runs scored. Rodriguez was 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and a run scored.
Cowan, a sophom*ore, improved to 9-2 on the season. A first-team all-conference selection, the right-hander scattered eight hits over seven innings of work on the mound. He allowed four runs, while striking out seven batters and walking just one.
Freshman Kenny Michaels (3-1) earned his second save of the season. The left-hander struck out two and walked one in two innings of relief.
No. 5 Wofford 15, No. 2 Samford 9
GREENVILLE, S.C. – No. 5 seed Wofford again got off to a fast start behind three four-run innings over the first four frames and went on to upset No. 2 seed Samford, 15-9, on Sunday to claim the 2024 Southern Conference Baseball Championship presented by Holston Gases at Fluor Field.
Wofford (41-18) won its second tournament championship and first since 2007. The Terriers became the lowest seed to win the tournament championship since the ninth-seeded Terriers defeated The Citadel in 2007. Samford sees its season end at 36-22.
With the win, Wofford earned the SoCon’s automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals. The NCAA field will be announced on ESPN2 at noon ET on Monday.
Dixon Black, Brice Martinez and Daniel Jackson all notched one-out doubles in the top of the first inning, putting the Terriers on top 2-0. Two batters later, Tyler Hare homered for the second time in as any games to give Wofford a quick four-run lead.
Samford took advantage of two errors by the Terrier defense in the bottom of the first to slice the deficit in half.
Wofford sent eight batters to the plate in the top of the third inning, building an 8-1 advantage. The Terriers loaded the bases with one out after Hare singled to right field, with both Lucas Manning and Andrew Mannelly reaching base after getting hit by a pitch. Jack Renwick followed with a two-run double, and the Terriers plated two more runs on an infield single and a sacrifice fly.
John Anderson delivered a double in the bottom of the third, as Samford pulled within five after capitalizing on a pair of hits and an error to score two runs.
Back-to-back walks by Jackson and David Wiley put the first two Terrier runners on base to open the fourth inning. Both runners moved up on Hare’s sacrifice bunt and scored when Manning singled to center. Mannelly put Wofford ahead, 12-3, with his 12th home run of the season.
Wofford claimed a 10-run advantage when Manning again singled with one out in the top of the sixth. He stole second and went to third on a wild pitch. Mannelly brought him home with a double to left field.
The Terriers opened a 15-3 lead when Black and Jackson sandwiched solo home runs around a groundout in the top of the seventh.
Samford countered by scoring three runs in the bottom of the frame when Jackson Harris tripled and scored on Garrett Staton’s single. Garrett Howe followed with a single to get runners at second and third and Steele followed with a two-run double.
Harris led off the bottom of the ninth by doubling to right field. Two batters later, Howe singled and both runners scored on Lucas Steele’s three-run homer over the wall in left field but that was as close as Samford would get.
Jackson was 3-for-5 with a walk, a home run, two RBIs and three runs scored. Manning was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored. Toole added three singles and an RBI in six trips to the plate. Black, Hare and Mannelly each added two hits, including a home run apiece.
Steele was 3-for-5 with a double, a home run, two runs scored and five RBIs. Harris was 2-for-4 with a double, a triple and two runs scored. Howe added two hits, including a double and a single, while scoring twice. Anderson was 2-for-5 with a pair of doubles.
Wofford freshman Camden Wicker was the beneficiary of the Terriers’ offensive prowess. The right-hander earned his second win of the tournament, pitching into the seventh inning for just the second time this season. He allowed six runs (three earned) on six hits over 6.1 innings. He struck out three and walked two.
Walt Nadzak Award (Tournament Most Outstanding Player)
Zac Cowan, So., RHP, Wofford
Pinnacle Award (highest GPA on championship-winning team)
David Wiley, Jr., OF, Wofford
2024 All-Tournament Team
SP – Jace Hyde, ETSU
SP – Miller Riggins, Samford
SP – Zac Cowan, Wofford
RP – Daniel Thompson, UNCG
RP – Carson Lore, Samford
C – Lucas Steele, Samford
1B – Ty Dalley, Mercer
2B – Brice Martinez, Wofford
SS – Bradley Frye, Mercer
3B – Garrett Staton, Samford
OF – Conner Todaro, Mercer
OF – Andrew Bennett, Samford
OF – Marshall Toole, Wofford
DH – Nick Iannantone, ETSU
2024 SoCon Championship presented by Holston Gases (Fluor Field; Greenville, S.C.)
May 22 (Wednesday)
SoCon Championship presented by Holston Gases (ESPN+)
(Fluor Field; Greenville, S.C.)
Game 1: #5 Wofford 8, #8 The Citadel 3
Game 2: #7 Mercer 19, #6 VMI 14
May 23 (Thursday)
SoCon Championship presented by Holston Gases (ESPN+)
(Fluor Field; Greenville, S.C.)
Game 3: #5 Wofford 12, #4 Western Carolina 1
Game 4: #7 Mercer 7, #3 ETSU 4
May 24 (Friday)
SoCon Championship presented by Holston Gases (ESPN+)
(Fluor Field; Greenville, S.C.)
Game 5: #5 Wofford 5, #1 UNCG 2
Game 6: #2 Samford 9, #7 Mercer 7
Game 7: #3 ETSU 10, #1 UNCG 7
Game 8: #7 Mercer 10, #4 Western Carolina 8
May 25 (Saturday)
SoCon Championship presented by Holston Gases (ESPN+)
(Fluor Field; Greenville, S.C.)
Game 9: #2 Samford 10, #5 Wofford 1
Game 10: #3 ETSU 12, #7 Mercer 4
Game 11: #5 Wofford 13, #3 ETSU 10
May 26 (Sunday)
SoCon Championship presented by Holston Gases (ESPN+)
(Fluor Field; Greenville, S.C.)
Game 12: #5 Wofford 10, #2 Samford 9
Game 13: #5 Wofford 15, #2 Samford 9
