Gamecocks Lose 4-1 To No. 1 Tennessee, Suffer Back-To-Back Sweeps For First Time Since 2019

Andrew Lyon | May 18, 2024

A snapshot from the backstop of Founders Park (January 26th, 2019) / BART BOATWRIGHT/Staff/File

For the second straight weekend, South Carolina's baseball team was unable to salvage a single game against a ranked opponent, with this sweep coming courtesy of the No. 1 Tennessee Volunteers after losing 4-1 in game three on Saturday afternoon. It's the first time that the Gamecocks have been swept in consecutive weekends since April 26th-28th and May 3rd-5th of the 2019 season.

Dylan Eskew got the start on the bump for Carolina in game three, and despite giving up some loud outs, didn't allow any damage, giving up just two baserunners in two innings on just 29 pitches of work. In the third inning, left-handed pitcher Matthew Becker would come onto the mound to give the Tennessee batters a different look and would get a 4-6-3 double play and another groundout to end the inning. However, things wouldn't go as swimmingly in the fourth and fifth innings, as an RBI double in the fourth and multiple fielding miscues in the fifth would lead to four Volunteer runs.

At the plate, the Gamecocks struggled against Tennessee starter Zander Sechirst, who only allowed four Carolina baserunners in six innings. In the eighth inning, the Gamecocks would threaten, with Dalton Reeves and Talmadge LeCroy hitting singles, the latter scoring a run, to give South Carolina two baserunners with one out. However, pinch hitter Will Tippett and centerfielder Austin Brinling would strike out and fly out, respectively, and the Gamecocks wouldn't get anyone on base in the ninth.

South Carolina will play an opponent TBA in a single-elimination first-round game in the SEC Baseball Tournament this coming Tuesday.

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