May 21, 2011

Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Samford's Phillip Ervin reached base on an infield single to drive in Michael Johnson to give the Bulldogs a 6-5 win over the College of Charleston in the final game of a three-game Southern Conference series Saturday afternoon at Joe Lee Griffin Field.

The Bulldogs win the series with the Cougars, two games to one. Charleston took game one on Thursday, 11-8, and Samford came back to win game two on Friday by a score of 4-1.

"We've had a couple of exciting games in a row," Samford head coach Casey Dunn said. "To win it in the ninth inning and leave them standing on the field was exciting. Today was another good job by our pitchers. I was proud of the way our kids battled today."

The game was the regular-season finale for both teams. Samford improves to 34-22 overall and 18-12 in SoCon play. The 34 wins ties the school record for wins in a season. Charleston drops to 36-20 overall and 18-12 in league play.

Samford, Charleston and Georgia Southern end the regular season in a tie for third place in the league standings. Samford, however, won the season series with both Charleston and Georgia Southern, so the Bulldogs will be the No. 3 seed in next week's Southern Conference Tournament.

For Samford at the plate, Johnson went 3-for-5. Ervin drove in two runs in a 1-for-4 performance. Stephen Ballard also drove in two runs, going 1-for-3 at the plate.

Samford's Grant Sides (1-0) pitched the final 2.0 innings, giving up no runs on one hit to earn the win. Sides was the last of five pitchers used by Samford in the game. C.K. Irby started the game for the Bulldogs, and Tyler Vanderheiden, Lex Rutledge and Joshua VanFleteren also saw time on the mound.

For Charleston, Rob Kral, Jose Rodriguez and Cole Rakar each homered in the game. Rodriguez drove in three runs, while Kral and Rakar drove in one run each. Jake Zokan (3-2) pitched 2.1 innings in relief, giving up one run on one hit to take the loss for the Cougars.

The teams entered the bottom of the ninth inning tied at 5-5. With one out in the inning, Johnson singled to right field. With two outs, Saxon Butler and Brandon Miller walked to load the bases. Ervin then hit a ground ball to second base, but he beat out the throw as Johnson scored to give the Bulldogs the 6-5 win.

Samford got the scoring started with four runs in the bottom of the first inning. The first two runs in the inning were scored on bases loaded walks of Ervin and Tripp Swann. Ballard then singled to center field to drive in Ervin and Miller for a 4-0 Samford lead.

Charleston came back with four runs in the top of the fourth inning to tie the score. Rodriguez hit a three-run home run with Matt Leeds and Daniel Aldrich on base for the first three runs of the inning. Rakar then hit a solo homer to tie the score at 4-4.

The Cougars took the lead with a run in the top of the seventh inning. Kral hit a solo home run to right field to give Charleston the 5-4 lead.

Samford answered with a run in the bottom of the seventh inning to once again tie the score at 5-5. Johnson singled to lead off the inning. Johnson then advanced to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Brad Moss and then scored on a Charleston throwing error for the Bulldogs' fifth run of the contest.

Samford's seven seniors, Ballard, Gary Cramer, Rumiko Forrester, Johnson, Andrew Jones, Swann and VanFleteren were honored in a ceremony prior to the game, which was their final game at Joe Lee Griffin Field.

The Southern Conference Tournament will begin on Wednesday, May 25, at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park in Charleston, S.C. Samford, as the No. 3 seed, will play at 12 p.m. (CT) on Wednesday. The official bracket will be released later tonight by the Southern Conference.