VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State baseball team downed visiting Georgia Southwestern 11-3 Tuesday evening to complete the season sweep of the Hurricanes. VSU, ranked No. 22 in the newest Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Top 25, Improved to 24-10 on the year, while GSW fell to 21-14. GSW entered after taking two of three over the weekend from No. 10 Columbus State and beating No. 15 West Georgia last week in a midweek matchup.
The Blazers scored two runs in the bottom of the second as they loaded the bases with nobody out. A single from graduate student
Jakob Sessa began the inning, followed by a walk and back-to-back singles, including an RBI single from junior
Preston Joye for a 1-0 lead. A sacrifice fly from senior Ralph Morla, Jr., made the score 2-0 in favor of the red and black. Morla, Jr., just missed a home run as the ball was caught on the warning track in left center field.
VSU put two on with one out in the bottom of the fourth courtesy of a walk, a hit batsmen and a great sacrifice bunt from Joye. From there, sophomore
Trent Lewis laced a double off the wall for two runs and a 4-0 lead. Junior
David Crawford used great speed to beat out a play at first, plating Lewis for a 5-0 lead.
A single and a hit batsmen put two on with nobody out for the 'Canes in the top of the fifth. The Blazers went to the bullpen for the second time in the game following the first out as senior
Brandon Raiden replaced graduate student
Jeremy Adams on the bump with runners at second and third. A two RBI single from Jake Blinstrub got the Hurricanes on the board for a 5-2 score.
VSU answered back in the bottom of the fifth with a hit batsmen, single and a double steal, followed by an error on GSW which plated a run and a 6-2 score. Senior
Bryson Gandy singled up the middle for an RBI and a 7-2 lead as GSW went to the bullpen. A balk moved the runners to second and third. A passed ball on a walk plated a run for an 8-2 lead and runners at the corners with one out. Morla, Jr., plated another run with a sacrifice bunt for a 9-2 score.
A double from GSW's Paul Hegeman and an RBI single from Brice Mortillaro scored a run for Georgia Southwestern in the top of the seventh and a 9-3 score. VSU made a change on the mound as junior
Nick Ferrara replaced Raiden. Ferrara got a pitcher's best friend in a double play to end the inning.
A walk and a sacrifice bunt put a runner at second for the Blazers in the bottom of the seventh. VSU, with runners at first and third, induced a run down and plated a run on the third out for a 10-3 score. In the bottom of the eighth, the Blazers loaded the bases with nobody out on a pair of hit batsmen and a single. A sacrifice fly from sophomore
Jovanni Canegitta made the score 11-3.
For the game, VSU scored 11 runs on nine hits with three errors, while GSW had three runs on seven hits and one error. Raiden (2-1) earned the win in relief, going two innings, allowing three hits, one earned run, walked none and fanned two. Sessa finished 2 for 4 with two runs scored, while Gandy was 2 for 3 with three runs scored, one RBI and a walk earning Guardian Bank Blazer Player of the Game honors.
The Blazers return to the road this weekend in a key Gulf South Conference series at Alabama Huntsville. The series gets underway Friday with a 4 p.m. ET first pitch, followed by a doubleheader Saturday at 1 p.m. ET. VSU enters the series tied with Montevallo for the league-lead as both teams are 14-7 in league play. VSU then returns home to host Saint Leo on Tuesday, Apr. 18 at 5 p.m. at Billy Grant Field at Tommy Thomas Park.
