Princeton baseball (3–9 overall, 0–0 Ivy League) traveled south last weekend to take on the University of South Carolina (12–6, 0–0 Southeastern Conference), a tough SEC opponent. The Tigers showed impressive defensive quickness and offensive consistency in the first two games of the series. Though Princeton ultimately fell to the Gamecocks in all three match-ups, the team demonstrated they can compete with high-caliber teams.
Game One: University of South Carolina 10, Princeton 7
Princeton etched the first points on the board in the top of the first when senior infielder Jake Koonin doubled to left field, bringing first-year utility Joe Montembeau home. Sophomore catcher Will Robbins followed with a double to right field, allowing Koonin to score from second base. The Tigers opened the series with an impressive offensive showing and strong 2–0 lead.
South Carolina catcher Talmadge LeCroy responded with a home run to left center, narrowing the Tiger lead 2–1 in the bottom of the first.
The Princeton offense made waves in the top of the fourth, beginning with junior infielder Tommy Googins’ single up the middle to advance first-year pitcher/utility Brady Kaufman to second. A failed pickoff attempt and throwing error by South Carolina’s catcher allowed Kaufman to move to third, and Googins to enter scoring position. The Tigers finished the job when sophomore infielder Grant Werdesheim singled through the right side bringing Kaufman and Googins home. The Black and Orange furthered their lead 4–1.
“As a team, we’ve really just bought into the approach that Coach [Scott] Bradley and Coach [Kyle] Bonicki have been preaching since the fall, which is staying up the middle and to the opposite field,” Werdesheim wrote to The Daily Princetonian postgame.
“As an offense, we’ve been hammering in this approach since we got to campus in the fall, and whether it’s South Carolina or Harvard, the approach doesn’t change,” he added.
The Gamecocks scored two more runs off of infielder Logan Sutter’s homer, which brought outfielder Ethan Lizama on second and Sutter past the home plate.
Robbins’ single in the top of the fifth brought Montembeau home for his second score of the night and increased the Tiger lead to 5–3.
Four hits and three runs — including a home run from infielder KJ Scobey — in the bottom of the fifth marked a momentum shift for the Gamecocks, who then took the lead.
A series of successful hits including a two-run triple for South Carolina delivered four additional runs in the bottom of the seventh.
While the gap between the teams had widened, the Tigers were not discouraged. Princeton immediately responded with strategic offensive positioning to secure two additional runs of their own across three hits.
Though the score stalled at 10–7 in favor of the Gamecocks, the Tigers held their own throughout the match-up. They maintained a strong lead across the first five innings, and demonstrated their ability to respond to a competitive and challenging opponent.
Game Two: University of South Carolina 4, Princeton 3
In their second game against South Carolina, Princeton again took the initial lead, scoring in the first inning. After doubling to right center when at bat, first-year infielder Bennett Crerar ran home on Koonin’s single to center field.
The Tigers furthered their lead 2–0 as first-year outfielder Christian Clarke crossed home on a double from Werdesheim. Princeton started five first-years in this second game.
“Our first-year players are showing us that they belong at this level!” head coach Scott Bradley wrote to the ‘Prince’ postgame. “We need for them to continue to develop and gain experience in these pre-Ivy League games!”
The scoreboard remained unchanged across three innings, with the only ball contact coming from two hits from South Carolina.
The Gamecocks tied it up in the bottom of the fifth with runs scored by outfielder Tyler Bak and infielder Dawson Harman. Infielder Will Craddock singled out, marking the team’s second out of the inning, but not inhibiting South Carolina’s evening of the score.
Princeton answered by reaffirming their lead. Koonin launched a home run through left field to up the score 3–2.
After a series of walks in the bottom of the seventh, Gamecocks’ infielder Erik Parker made his way across the diamond and home, heightening the gameplay as the teams entered the eighth inning tied 3–3.
Another home-run hit from Sutter allowed South Carolina to pull ahead and emerge victorious 4–3. The match-up was closely contested, the lower score suggestive of both teams’ dominant defense and precision.
“We played two good games on Saturday especially coming off midterms and a long travel day,” Bradley told the ‘Prince.’
Game Three: University of South Carolina 13, Princeton 1
The bottom of the first saw South Carolina on the board 1–0, when Scobey doubled to right center, allowing LeCroy to run home. Scobey advanced to third on the throw, but the inning ended with him left on base after Lizama grounded out.
Princeton responded immediately. In the top of the second, Robbins made his first collegiate home run to tie it up 1–1. The sole error of the game came next, with South Carolina pitcher Amp Phillips’ failed pickoff attempt, which advanced junior infielder Jake Kernodle to second after walking to first one play earlier.
The full count homer which belted left gave the Tigers momentum, but the inning ended in strike-outs with Kernodle left on base.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, they did not garner the same effective defense on Sunday as they did the day prior. The Gamecocks answered with two scores and bases loaded at the bottom of the second and, similarly, four runs and two players left on base during the bottom of the third.
Princeton made moves to make up the now six-run deficit, notably getting into scoring position with Koonin on second and Robbins on first. The Gamecocks, however, retired the side before the Tigers could lob any runs.
Bases loaded in the bottom of the fifth, LeCroy hit a home run through right field — driving in Bak, Craddock, outfielder Caleb Hoover, and himself. South Carolina’s dominant performance in the fifth secured their 13–1 win over Princeton, and posted an impressive six runs and five hits.
The Tigers’ remaining two innings at bat resulted in groundouts and strikeouts, while the Gamecocks continued to make moves, successfully hitting and getting on base in the sixth.
The series drew to a close, and the University of South Carolina came out on top.
“The guys were a little disappointed after this weekend, but it ultimately was a big confidence booster for us,” Googins wrote to the ‘Prince.’ “In the two games on Saturday, we out-hit them 21–19, we did not make a single error, and we had leads in the latter half of both games. We were just a few timely hits or pitches away from taking both games from a very talented SEC team.”
“Despite losing, I think the guys are all proud of the brand of baseball we have played up to this point in the year and are confident that we can build on it and compete to win the Ivy League,” he continued.
After facing Wofford College (13–8, 0–0 Southern Conference) in a three game series, the Tigers will next take on their first Ivy League opponent Cornell (1–9, 0–0 Ivy League) at home on Clarke Field March 21 and 22.
Siena Sydenham is a Sports contributor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
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