GAFFNEY, S.C. – The Limestone College baseball team scored six runs with two outs in the bottom of the second before adding four tallies in the fourth to sweep the season series against Queens University of Charlotte by a final of 11-3 in nonconference play on Tuesday, March 26 at Founders FCU Stadium.
GAME INFORMATION
Score: Limestone 11, Queens (N.C.) 3
Records: Limestone (9-22), Queens (N.C.) (8-21)
Location: Founders FCU Stadium
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
- Senior Chase Allen (Sharpsburg, Ga.) went 4-for-4 with a homerun and two RBIs
- Senior Ryan Creps (Indiana, Pa.) collected two hits, including a homerun, and three RBIs
- Senior Channing Painton (Marietta, Ga.) homered and doubled as part of a three-hit night
- Freshman Benjamin Huber (Pendleton, S.C.) added a pair of knocks and two RBIs
- Junior Trace Whetsell (Gilbert, S.C.) chipped in an RBI base hit
- Junior Alex Cornell (Columbia, Conn.) finished with two hits
- Junior starter Marcus Johnson (Lexington, Ky.) tied a single-game record with 10 strikeouts
- He gave up three runs – one earned – while scattering nine hits over seven innings
- Freshman Gehrig Spradlin (Roanoke, Va.) tossed two scoreless innings with two punch outs
HOW IT HAPPENED
Innings 1-3
Johnson worked around a one-out double in both the first and second innings for the Saints before his offense busted through with a six-spot in the home half of the second. Huber and Cornell started the frame with back-to-back base knocks, putting runners on the corners to spark the offensive outburst.
A double play ball would push across the go-ahead run for the Blue and Gold before Whetsell made it a 2-0 game with a single back up the middle. Creps then crushed a two-run shot over the wall in right-centerfield before Allen muscled up on a solo homerun to dead center, staking the Saints to a 6-0 lead.
Innings 4-6
The Royals put a pair of runners on the base paths in the fourth, but Johnson came up with two big strikeouts to keep the shutout intact. Limestone added four markers in the bottom half on consecutive RBI hits by Creps and Allen before Huber chipped in a two-run single down the leftfield chalk, making it 10-0.
Queens took advantage of a defensive miscue in the fifth, platting its first tally of the evening on a wild pitch before scoring another unearned run on a solo blast. The visitors looked like they may threaten more runs in the frame, but a full-extension diving catch by Creps in right got Limestone out of the inning.
After giving up a leadoff double to start the sixth, Johnson rebounded nicely by striking out the side as Limestone carried a 10-2 advantage into the final stretch. The Saints loaded the bags with two gone in the bottom of the inning, but the two-out rally petered out as the next batter popped up on the infield.
Innings 7-9
The Royals trimmed the edge to 10-3 with a solo homerun in the seventh, but Johnson limited the damage with two more punch outs in the inning – the last to end the frame and tie the program record for most strikeouts in a game. Painton crushed a solo shot in the bottom half to put Limestone in front, 11-3.
TURNING POINT
The Saints put runners on the corners to start the bottom of the second, but a double play ball seemingly halted any momentum despite pushing across the go-ahead run. However, Limestone pounded out five straight two-out hits, including back-to-back homeruns, to make it a 6-0 game in the early going.
NOTABLES
- A first-year program, Queens made its first ever trip to Founders FCU Stadium
- With two RBIs, Allen tied Justin Pace for second on the program's all-time career RBI list
- Allen bashed his 53rd career homerun and posted his 164th career RBIs
- Johnson tied the team's single-game strikeout record with 10 punch outs
- He is just the fifth player in program history to record 10 strikeouts in a game
- Jack Perry and Kaleb Earls accomplished that feat once while Jameson McGrane did it twice
UP NEXT
Limestone has a quick turnaround as it travels to Florence, S.C. tomorrow evening to take on Francis Marion University at 6 p.m.
