Interim Head Coach Riley Nelson Gets Win Number One for SMC Baseball

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – An eight-run first inning propelled the Spartanburg Methodist College baseball team to a 15-3 win over St. Andrews (NC) on Tuesday afternoon. 

The Pioneers (1-3) quickly erased a 1-0 deficit in the bottom of the first as they sent 12 batters to the plate in the opening frame. The big blows were a three-RBI double by Brady Jeffcoat to go along with RBI and bases loaded walks to Matthew Smith and Trevor Stickland.

The Knights (2-2) got on the scoreboard first on a RBI single by Eric Cantu scoring Cesar Morrillo from second, who led off the game with a double.

After taking an 8-1 lead, SAU cut into the deficit in the second with two more runs before Just in Dakins got one of the runs back when he led off the bottom half of the inning with his second home run of the season. Later in the inning, SMC plated another run on a wild pitch by the Knights to make it a 10-3 game after two innings. 

The fifth inning saw Parker Winfield add to the SMC lead with a grand slam and the final run came across in the sixth when Blake Exizan scored on a wild pitch.

SMC used three pitchers in the win as Payton Gardner came out of the bullpen in the third inning. He went four innings, allowing just two hits, a walk and striking out two for the win. Offensively, Brady Jeffcoat, Jarian Pinckney and Justin Dawkins each had two hits to lead a 10-hit attack. Winfield had four RBI, Jeffcoat and Pinckney added three and two, respectively.

Next, SMC will travel to Tifton, Georgia for a three-game series against Abraham Baldwin. The series gets underway with a single game on Friday, February 7 at 3 p.m.