STATESBORO, Ga. – Sophomore Andy Moye (Alpharetta/Alpharetta) pitched eight innings and the offense hit three home runs as Georgia Southern defeated Charleston Southern 12-1 Tuesday night (April 21) at J.I. Clements Stadium. The 28th-ranked Eagles (29-9 overall) won their sixth straight.
The Buccaneers (13-27) scored in the first inning off a RBI double by Tyler Thornburg with two down. From there Moye went into cruise control and the offense took over.
From the second through seventh inning Moye faced the minimum three batters. A leadoff single in the fourth was erased on a 6-4 3 double play. In the fifth Brantley Meier hit a one-out single and advanced to second on Moye’s throwing error off a failed pickoff attempt. Moye ended the inning when he picked off Meier on a timing play with shortstop Brian Pierce (Roswell/Roswell). The sophomore right-hander walked two batters in the eighth but he got a groundout and strikeout to close out his stellar outing.
“I have definitely been feeling comfortable out on the mound the last couple of weeks. I felt like I was getting more comfortable, getting into a good rhythm as the game wore on,” said Moye. “Our defense is playing great. As a pitcher it’s a lot of fun to go out there knowing they have your back.”
In the second Pierce tied the game on a two-out RBI double scoring Phillip Porter (Marietta/Sprayberry). The Eagles added another in the fourth thanks to Scotty Radabaugh’s fielding error which allowed Will Southwell (Moultrie/Colquitt County) to score for a 2-1 lead.
The Eagles scored three more times in the fifth. Kevin Bowles (Statesboro/Statesboro) lined a RBI single then Griffin Benedict (Dunwoody/St. Pius) doubled down the right field line to score Bowles. Porter singled through the left side for a 5-1 lead.
Ty Wright (Montrose/ABAC) hit a 2-run homer in the sixth, his fifth round-tripper of the year. Randy J. Williams (Valdosta/Andrew College) hammered a 2-run shot in the seventh then later in the inning Kyle Blackburn (Marietta/Walton) dropped a 3-run bomb, a shot that nearly cleared the 55-foot batters eye in centerfield.
CSU loaded the bases in the ninth with no one out. Kyle Kamppi (Savannah/Benedictine) got a lineout double play then struck out Ryan Shea to end the game.
Moye (5-0) gave up the one run on five hits, matching a career-high of eight innings pitched. He walked two and struck out three.
The Eagles out-hit CSU 11-6, led by Wright, Benedict and Porter with two hits apiece. Benedict extended his hitting streak to a career-high 17 games.
Patrick Dolan (1-2) suffered the loss, allowing five runs (four earned) on seven hits in five innings of work. Nick Chinners and Thornburg had two hits apiece.
The Eagles return to Southern Conference play this weekend, traveling to The Citadel for a three-game series. First pitch on Friday night is scheduled for 6 p.m.
