Box Score
Updated Stats
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Samford reliever
Wyatt Burns entered the game ranked seventh in the nation in saves. The Bulldogs' junior right-hander didn't receive a save opportunity against the Furman Paladins this weekend, but he did save Sunday's game by hurling six innings of shutout baseball en route to Samford's 4-3 Southern Conference victory held at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Â
Burns (4-0), the Bulldogs' native of Pinson, entered the game from the bullpen in the top of the fourth inning. At the time,
Samford (27-21, 8-10 SoCon) was trailing
Furman (25-22, 12-9 SoCon) by a score of 3-0.
Â
The Paladins opened the contest with tons of momentum and quickly tallied a run in the second inning, as well as a pair in the third.
Â
The Bulldogs' Burns then came in and limited Furman to only four hits in the final six innings of action, while keeping the Paladins' red-hot offense scoreless for the remainder of the game. Burns tallied two strikeouts in the outing and didn't allow a single runner past second base.
Â
Samford exploded for four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning and that proved to be the difference in Sunday's win. The Bulldogs received huge home runs from
Austin Edens and
Ayrton Schafer in the frame as they were able to rough up Furman's starting pitcher
Matthew Quarles (6-3).
Â
Edens powered a momentous solo home run in the frame, his second of the weekend, while Schafer gave Samford's its decisive lead with an impressive three-run bomb. Schafer's homer proved to be his eighth of the season, while Edens' was his ninth.
Â
Once in the lead, the Bulldogs' Burns shut the door on the Paladins and snapped Furman's 11-game SoCon winning streak.
Â
Offensively, Samford also received key base hits Sunday from
Jordan Fucci,
Taylor Garris and
Troy Dixon. Dixon has been on fire at the plate as of late and turned in a perfect 3-for-3 outing against Furman. In his last 13 games, Dixon is batting a sizzling .511 with 11 runs, eight RBI and two home runs.
Â
The Samford University baseball team will next be in action Tuesday at 6 p.m. (CT) as the Bulldogs remain at home to play host to in-state rival Alabama in a high-profile nonconference game to be held at Joe Lee Griffin Field.
Â
For quick score updates, breaking news and links to all of your favorite articles featuring the Bulldogs, please follow
@SamfordBaseball and
@Samford_Sports on Twitter.
Box Score
Updated Stats
Â