The Clemson Baseball team didn’t have time to lick the wounds of dropping two of three to Georgia Tech over the weekend.
They got right back on the bus, literally, and headed east to Mount Pleasant to take on College of Charleston on a chilly night in the low country.
Once they got off the bus, Nate Savoie was ready to go. He staked the Tigers to a quick 3-0 lead with two home runs in his first two at bats, giving Clemson all the offense it would need before many fans had even settled into their seats.
Coach Bakich talks about “QAB’s” (quality at bats) quite often when talking about his team’s performance offensively. It is hard to imagine he was unhappy with his club’s approach against an eclectic mix of Cougar pitchers. Clemson hitters consistently worked counts and put together competitive trips to the plate throughout the evening.
“That’s baseball. Sometimes the night or the field are not conducive for offensive baseball, but pitching and defense play in every ballpark.” -Coach Bakich on tonight’s game.
Many times throughout the game I looked at a counterpart and said “that ball was hit on the screws.” Clemson hit the ball hard all night, even outside of Savoie’s two swings that left the yard. Several other balls were squared up but found gloves, which helped keep the game tighter than it might have otherwise been.
Charleston scratched a run across in the bottom of the 3rd when a screaming line drive traveled over Tryston McCladdie’s head for a triple for Will Burgess, scoring a Cougar to cut the lead to 3-1.
Freshman Dylan Harrison battled through 4 innings, scattering three hits and one earned run while striking out one Cougar. Noah Samol came in to start the 5th inning and kept the Cougars at bay with 3 ⅔ innings, giving up 3 hits and striking out 6 Cougar hitters. A tremendous outing for the lefty who gave Clemson some much needed stability in the middle innings.
Hayden Simmerson came on in the bottom of the 8th and shut down a 2nd and 3rd jam with two outs with a close play at first that went to review. The call was upheld going the Tigers way, allowing Clemson to escape the inning with the lead still intact. Simmerson went 3 up, 3 down in the 9th for their 17th win of the season.
College of Charleston kept the Tigers bats nearly as cold as the weather for most of the night, forcing Clemson to rely on pitching, defense, and Savoie’s early fireworks.
Savoie led the Tigers, going 2-4 and accounting for all 3 Clemson runs batted in. The Tigers managed just 7 hits despite several well struck balls throughout the game.
Clemson now turns its attention to another midweek matchup in the Lowcountry. The Tigers will face The Citadel tomorrow night at 7 pm at Joseph Rogers Jr. Stadium in Charleston.
