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Associated Press
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Ethan Walker's strong bullpen outing leads Kentucky past USC Upstate 7-3 at the Clemson Regional
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Luke Lawrence went 3 for 4 with a run scored, Ethan Walker only allowed one hit in five innings of relief and Kentucky beat USC Upstate 7-3 on Saturday at the Clemson Regional. Kentucky (30-25) moves on to take on the loser of the Clemson-West Virginia matchup in an elimination game on Sunday. The first trip to the NCAA Tournament for USC Upstate (36-25) came to an end. Kentucky starter Nic McCay allowed three earned runs in the fourth as USC Upstate tied it at 3. Walker (2-1) struck out the side in the sixth and Kentucky retook the lead in the bottom half on a bunt by Patrick Herrera for a well-executed squeeze play. Kentucky added three runs in the eighth. Lawrence singled for the third time, stole second and scored an insurance run on Cole Hage's single through the left side. Then Hudson Brown singled with the bases loaded to score two on his first hit of the tournament. Walker did not allow a hit until there were two outs in the ninth. He finished with seven strikeouts, two in the ninth, and only allowed three base runners. Carson Hansen hammered an opposite field three-run homer in the first for Kentucky. James McCoy went 2 for 2 to tie his career-best eight-game hit streak. Upstate reliever Darin Kuskie (5-2) allowed three earned runs in two innings. __ AP sports:
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Kentucky drops NCAA Tournament opener vs. West Virginia, faces elimination
For the third time in five games Kentucky baseball lost a game in walk-off fashion, this time in the ninth inning of its NCAA Tournament opener against West Virginia on Friday. The 4-3 loss forces Kentucky into an elimination game Saturday. Here is what you need to know. KEY MOMENT After blowing two ninth-inning leads in the final regular season series at Vanderbilt, Kentucky entered the ninth inning tied at 3. The Wildcats put two runners on in the top half of the inning but were unable to score. West Virginia shortstop Brodie Kresser led off the bottom of the ninth with a double then moved to third base on a wild pitch and scored on a sacrifice fly to center field from third baseman Armani Guzman. AT THE PLATE Kentucky was unable to score in the first inning after loading the bases with one out, but broke through in the fourth inning when designated hitter Kyuss Gargett drove in the first run of the game with a squeeze bunt. Gargett and third baseman Patrick Herrera then scored on a throwing error by Kresser to stretch the lead to 3-0. Advertisement No Kentucky player tallied more than one hit in the game. Shortstop Tyler Bell did walk twice but appeared hampered by a foul ball off his knee in the first inning. Kentucky baseball coach Nick Mingione has led the Wildcats to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, but the Wildcats will need to win four games in three days to reach a third straight super regional after a lost to West Virginia. ON THE MOUND Mingione's decision to move normal Sunday starter Ben Cleaver, who has been UK's best pitcher throughout the season, to Game 1 of the regional paid off with six strong innings from the sophomore left-handed pitcher, but Cleaver's defense let him down over his final two innings. West Virginia scored two runs in the fifth inning with the help of throwing errors by Herrera and second baseman Luke Lawrence then tied the game at 3 in the sixth inning on an RBI groundout following a leadoff double and sacrifice bunt. Advertisement Cleaver was charged with three runs, only one of which was earned, in six innings while striking out five batters and walking one. Right-handed reliever Simon Gregerson pitched two scoreless innings before surrendering the leadoff double in the bottom of the ninth that eventually became the winning run. Left-handed reliever Jackson Nove came on with a man on second and no outs in the ninth inning. His wild pitch allowed the runner to move to third before the game-winning sacrifice fly. WHAT'S NEXT Kentucky returns to action in the double-elimination regional in a must-win game Saturday at noon. The Wildcats will play the loser of Friday's game between regional No. 1 seed Clemson and No. 4 seed South Carolina Upstate. To advance out of the regional, Kentucky will now need to win four games in three days without a loss and without Cleaver available to pitch again. Advertisement One of country's top freshmen will lead Kentucky baseball into NCAA Tournament Now that Kentucky baseball has made the NCAA Tournament, can the Cats surprise? Kentucky baseball NCAA Tournament games: Start times, TV, streaming and more
