The No. 8 Georgia Gwinnett baseball team is off to its best start in program history as they reached 6-0 this afternoon defeating Saint Francis 9-1 for the series sweep.
Through six games, the Grizzlies have outscored their opponents 54-21, producing their most runs, 11, in the sixth inning.
Senior William Paschal had a career day for the Grizzlies going 3-for-3 at the plate. The Norcross native accumulated eight total bases connecting on a school-record two triples. The third baseman also had a single and a walk in his four plate appearances.
The Grizzlies took a 2-0 lead in the opening inning over the visiting Cougars. Right fielder Trumon Jefferson initially reached on a throwing error and would come around to score on a sacrifice fly to center by catcher Brady Shoppe. GGC plated the second run of the inning when Saint Francis' starter, Keaton Sullivan, threw his second wild pitch of the inning to the backstop.
An inning later, another Grizzly would cross the plate for the 3-0 lead when designated hitter Kyler Timmerman ripped a double down the left field line.
The Cougars' offense collected their lone run of the game in the top of the third when right fielder Adam Book lifted a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Chaise Kahlenbeck. Previously, Kahlenbeck reached on a five pitch walk.
Paschal's first triple of the day came in the bottom of the fourth. He would score the Grizzlies' fourth run of the contest on a grounder to third by second baseman Jabari Gayle.
Georgia Gwinnett's most productive inning at the plate came in the bottom of the sixth. The Grizzlies, who scored four insurance runs to take the 8-1 lead, connected on two straight hits to plate the first run of the inning. With the bases loaded, center fielder Trey Haygood (2-for-4, 3 RBIs) launched a double to the right-center gap, clearing the base paths. Later in the inning, Haygood would score the eighth Grizzly run of the game on a single by shortstop Trevor Bradley.
Paschal's record breaking, second triple came in the bottom of the seventh. His shot would score first baseman Angel Soto, who previously reached on a five pitch walk earlier in the inning, giving the Grizzlies the 9-1 lead.
Reliever Nikolay Uherek (2-0) picked up the win for GGC pitching four shutout innings. The right-hander struck out three of the 14 batters he faced and surrendered just two hits and a walk. Saint Francis' Sullivan was credited with the loss.
Georgia Gwinnett's head coach Brad Stromdahl reflected on the weekend series, "It's great to start the season out with six wins in a row. Our guys have shown up and produced when we needed them to and continue to make timely adjustments when we are faced with adversity. We have got some things here and there that we will need to address and will put those changes into action this week in practice."
Due to impending inclement weather on Tuesday in Montgomery, Ala., the battle between the No. 8 Grizzlies and No. 13 Auburn-Montgomery has been cancelled and will be postponed for a future date. Check back with GrizzlyAthetlics.com for schedule updates and a reschedule date and time for this contest.
The Grizzlies are back on the diamond on Friday, Feb. 12 when they host Williams Baptist (Ark.) in a three game set. Friday will play host to a doubleheader starting at 1:00 p.m. with the series finale taking place on Saturday starting at 1:00 p.m. The first 100 fans Friday will receive a 2016 spring sports poster while one lucky fan each game this year will win the Autobell Car Wash Grizzly Prize Pack.
Tickets for this weekend's action are $5 per game for adults, $3 for youth, seniors, and military, and free for children under five. All members of the GGC community receive free admission with their Claw Card. Season ticket packages are also on sale for all regular season contests. For more information on ticketing, click here. Free game day parking is available in the deck at the entrance to the GGC campus.
Game Day Central
Video coverage:
http://portal.stretchinternet.com/ggc/
Live stat links:
Feb. 12 - Game 1: http://bit.ly/1QldDRi
Feb. 12 - Game 2: http://bit.ly/1oifGiL
Feb. 13: http://bit.ly/1QldNbr
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