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BSB SOCON TOURNAMENT CHAMPS
Chase Cochran | Samford Athletics
5
UNC Greensboro UNCG 25-34
9
Winner Samford SAM 34-23
UNC Greensboro UNCG
25-34
5
Final
9
Samford SAM
34-23
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
UNC Greensboro UNCG 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 3 5 9 0
Samford SAM 0 0 0 0 2 5 0 2 X 9 13 0

W: Lynch, Will (5-4) L: Caleb Cozart (0-5)

7
Winner Samford SAM 35-23
2
Wofford WOF 40-18
Winner
Samford SAM
35-23
7
Final
2
Wofford WOF
40-18
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Samford SAM 1 0 0 3 0 2 1 0 0 7 10 1
Wofford WOF 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 2 6 2

W: Newman, Jacob (3-2) L: Mike Eggert (4-2) S: Petschke, Ben (14)

2
Wofford WOF 40-19
5
Winner Samford SAM 36-23
Wofford WOF
40-19
2
Final
5
Samford SAM
36-23
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Wofford WOF 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 2 4 2
Samford SAM 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 X 5 7 0

W: Clevenger, Heath (1-1) L: Matthew Marchal (11-4) S: Cravey, Jacob (1)

Game Recap: Baseball |

SOCON CHAMPIONS! Baseball Sweeps Saturday Triple-Header to Claim SoCon Tournament Title

GREENVILLE, S.C. – In a plot fit enough for the big screen, the Samford Baseball team won three-consecutive elimination games in an all-day marathon on Saturday to take home the program's fourth Southern Conference Tournament Championship.
 
In a contest that began at 8:00 a.m. local time, the Bulldogs bested UNCG 9-5 and then knocked off Wofford 7-2 to force a winner-take-all 13th game of the tournament, where they topped the Terriers 5-2 to claim the tournament championship.
 
Impending inclement weather from a nearby area of low pressure forced the tournament to move to a Saturday Championship Day.
 
The Bulldogs complete the outright championship sweep of the Southern Conference, having captured the regular-season crown with a three-game sweep at Mercer last weekend. The title marks Head Coach Tony David's first tournament Championship as head coach of the Bulldogs.
 
Josh Rodriguez and Heath Clevenger, whose 6.2 innings of 2-hit baseball in the clincher earned him Walt Nadzak Tournament Most Outstanding Player, were both named to the All-Tournament Squad. Senior pitcher Brody Westbrooks earned the Pinnacle Award for sporting the highest GPA on the championship-winning team (3.98).
 

UNCG GAME 
 
Kaden Dreier, who caught all 27 innings of the day's action, led the Bulldogs with a three-hit performance while driving in a pair. Josh Rodriguez, Andrew Bennett, Garrett Howe, and Jayden Davis all knocked a pair of hits, with Rodriguez belting a two-run homer.
 
Will Lynch (5-4) was razor-sharp in the win, giving up just 2 runs on five hits with seven strikeouts. Jake Holifield tossed the final two innings for the Bulldogs out of the Bullpen, striking out a pair.  
 
UNCG cracked the scoreboard first in the contest, using a two-run triple in the fifth inning by Mitchell Smith to grab a 2-0 lead.
 
The Bulldogs answered by tallying a pair of runs in the bottom half of the fifth, with a bases-loaded 6-4-3 double play bringing in the first run and a two-out single to right by Bennett tying the game at two.
 
Samford broke through for five runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 7-2 lead. Anderson started the scoring action with a two-run double down the left-field line while Dreier logged an RBI single and Rodriguez belted a two-run homer.
 
The Bulldogs added two more runs in the bottom of the eighth, courtesy of an RBI double by Dreier and a Spartan wild pitch.
 
UNCG didn't go quietly in the top of the ninth, plating three runs on three hits before eventually giving way to the 9-5 final score.

 

 WOFFORD GAME ONE
 
Lucas Steele led the Bulldogs with three hits while Josh Rodriguez, Stephen Klein, and Kaden Dreier all knocked in a pair. Rodriguez knocked a pair of hits, including a two-run homer in the fourth inning.
 
Steele, Garrett Staton, and John Anderson all scored twice in the game.
 
Jacob Newman (3-2) dazzled on the mound, tossing a career-best six scoreless innings to earn the win. Newman gave up just three hits while striking out a pair and walking only one.
 
Ben Petschke (14) struck out the side after entering the game with the bases loaded in the ninth inning to log his 14th save of the season, setting a new single-season SoCon record. Turner Thompson scattered two runs over two innings out of the bullpen, striking out three.
 
The Bulldogs cracked the scoreboard first, courtesy of a sac fly by Klein to center. A leadoff walk, followed by a single by Jayden Davis that moved Staton up to third.
 
Samford added three more runs in the top of the fourth on a sac fly from Dreier and a two-run blast by Rodriguez, his second of the day and 11th of the season.
 
Three more insurance runs for the Bulldogs came across the plate in the sixth and seventh innings. An RBI double from Steele and an RBI single from Dreier accounted for the damage in the sixth while Klein put the Bulldogs up 7-0 in the seventh on an RBI single up the middle.
 
Wofford fought back by scoring a run in the bottom of the seventh on an RBI single by Cameron Gill and one more in the bottom of the ninth on a bases-loaded hit batsman by Gill. Upon entry from the bullpen, Pestchke sat down the next three batters via punchout to end the contest.
 

WOFFORD GAME TWO
 
Clevenger (1-1) filled up the strike zone for a career-high 6.2 innings, conceding just 1 run while striking out four and walking just two. Ben Petschke successfully navigated the seventh and eighth while Jacob Cravey (1) worked a scoreless ninth inning to pick up his first save of the season.
 
Andrew Bennett and Jayden Davis both knocked a pair of hits with a run scored on the day while Davis drove in one. Lucas Steele and Josh Rodriguez both collected an RBI while Garrett Howe added a double.
 
The Bulldogs grabbed three runs in the bottom of the first, beginning with a sac fly from Steele. Samford took advantage of a dropped pop fly in right field by the Terriers with two away to bring in the next two runs.
 
Davis padded the Bulldogs' lead with an RBI single to center that brought in Bennett, who led off the inning with a single and was advanced to second on a sac bunt from Staton.
 
Wofford added runs in the seventh and eighth innings to cut Samford's lead to 4-2, but Josh Rodriguez added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth via a sac fly to put Samford up 5-2.
 
The Terriers put a pair of runners on base in the ninth, with a one-out single by Dixon Black followed by a Martinez walk making things interesting. Cravey settled things back down with a strikeout, followed by a game-ending fielder's choice from Howe to Davis.
 
The Bulldogs turn their attention to the NCAA Baseball Selection Show on Monday, May 29 at 11:00 AM CST at ESPN 2, where they will learn where they are headed to play in the 2023 NCAA Baseball Tournament.




 
FOLLOW THE BULLDOGS:
 For the latest news and information on Samford baseball, visit the official website for Samford Athletics at SamfordSports.com. Fans can also follow the Bulldogs on social media at /SamfordBaseball (Facebook), @SamfordBaseball (Instagram), and @SamfordBaseball (Twitter). 
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