Pacers Squeeze Indians from NCAA Regional 7-2

AIKEN, S.C. – Fifth-ranked and top-seeded USC Aiken used three squeeze RBI bunts by senior catcher John Sherrer and a complete-game pitching effort from junior righty Clayton Knight to capture a 7-2 win over 21st-ranked and fourth-seeded Catawba College on Saturday afternoon (May 16) in an elimination game at the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Baseball Tournament.

USCA (41-18) advances to play seventh-ranked and second-seeded Francis Marion University in an elimination game on Saturday evening at 7 p.m. The winner of that contest will face unbeaten (in Southeast Regional tournament play) and sixth-seeded Belmont Abbey College in Sunday’s championship game at noon.

The game was interrupted for 45 minutes in the top of the eighth by a lightning delay.

Squeeze bunts by Sherrer in the second and fourth innings staked the Pacers to a 2-0 advantage. Catawba trimmed the margin in half (2-1) with a sacrifice fly by Ryan Query in the bottom of the fifth.

USCA plated three runs in the sixth to lead 5-1. Sherrer’s third RBI bunt pushed across the first run while Cody McMorris hit a sacrifice fly and Alex Franklin followed with an RBI single to center field.

The Indians scored a single run in the last of the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Craige Lyerly, but the Pacers matched that run with a tally in the top of the seventh on a solo homer by Ken Raborn. For Raborn, he extended his school career records for home runs (40) and RBIs (208).

Travis Howard accounted for the final Pacer run in the ninth with a sacrifice fly, an RBI that tied the Peach Belt Conference single-season mark of 103. Howard is now just one RBI away from tying the NCAA Division II RBI single-season record.

Designated hitter Gary Asbill was 3-for-3 to lead USCA, while Sherrer was 2-for-2 with the three runs batted in. Both Franklin and Raborn also had two hits.

Query paced the Indian attack with a 3-for-4 day with an RBI. Right fielder Josh Hohn was 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Knight (5-3), seeing his first action in three weeks, pitched his second complete game of the year, allowing only one earned run on 10 hits, while matching his season-high of 10 strikeouts. Knight has now captured three 10-strikeout games from the hill in 2009.

Catawba junior righty Trevor Mullins (5-4) was saddled with the loss despite the fact that half of the six runs he allowed were unearned. He struck out five in seven innings.

Catawba Head Coach Jim Gantt – “I thought Aiken’s pitcher (Clayton Knight) did a great job. There early on, I thought he had thrown enough strikes to get us swinging. Then he started pitching around making us chase it.”

“They had several key hits, two key sacrifice squeezes, and the bunt over our first baseman’s head.”

“We had our chances, we just didn’t execute with men on base. But a lot of that has to do with team you’re playing and pitcher.”

“We had the delay and I didn’t think it would affect him (Nathan Furr) at all, their guy (Knight) already had some pitches so I wasn’t sure if they would bring him back. But the layoff didn’t really change much with pitching there.”

“I was surprised with Knight, he is one of their top, if not best, pitcher. I was surprised because three weeks ago it sounded like he had a separated shoulder and he battled through it.”

“I thought we had a good season, the team didn’t over achieve, they played closer to their ability. We were fortunate to be here, but our guys earned it.”