Clemson Sinks Buccaneers in Extra Innings

It’s a scene Clemson baseball fans have seen often this season, and once again the Tigers provided a fantastic finish. After Charleston Southern scored four runs off of five singles to jump out to a 5-1 lead, Seth Beer showed off his arm by throwing out a runner at the plate to end the fourth inning. Clemson got three runs back when Logan Davidson went yard in the sixth. This was the Tiger short stop’s sixth homer of the season. Drew Wharton flashed the leather in the top of the seventh by making a phenomenal catch at the top of the fence that robbed CSU second baseman of a homer. Andrew Cox followed up that catch by reaching over the fence in foul territory to snag the last out of the inning. Things got a little chippy in the bottom of the eight after Davidson scorched a grounder in the infield and reached on a fielder’s choice. Chris Williams was originally called out at second, however it appeared as Buc short stop Kyle Vesnesky never touched the bag. Monte Lee came out to argue, and second base umpire Ken Fitts called a meeting of the umps to discuss the call. Eventually, they overturned it and awarded Williams second, much to the chagrin of former Clemson catcher and current CSU head coach Adam Ward. In a possible attempt to fire up his squad, Ward proceeded to get in a heated argument with Fitts until Fitts finally ejected him. Despite all of the commotion, Clemson was unable to score in the eight. Clemson trailed 5-4 going into the bottom of the ninth. After getting two runners on, Seth Beer hit a sacrifice fly to right field to move Chase Pinder to third. Chris Williams followed that with another sac fly that scored Pinder, tying the game. The Bucs would keep Clemson from scoring again, bringing the game to extra innings. Charleston Southern threatened with two runners in the top of the eleventh, but Jeremy Beasley was able to get out of the jam unscathed. With bases loaded and one out, Andrew Cox came to the plate. Cox worked the count to 3-1 before roping a walk off single down the right field line to give Clemson the 6-5 win.

The victory moves the Tigers to 29-5 on the year. The Tigers are also 10-0 in midweek games this season. Clemson resumes ACC play this weekend by heading to Tallahassee for a 3 game, Saturday through Monday series with the #25 ranked Florida State Seminoles. The Noles come in with a 21-14 record (7-8 ACC). Saturday and Sunday’s first pitches are at 6:00 PM and 2:00 PM, respectively, and can both be seen on ACC Network Extra. Monday’s first pitch is set for 7:00 PM and will be broadcasted on ESPNU. Charleston Southern’s record drops to 16-15. The Bucs host cross town rival College of Charleston tonight a 6:00, and will host Gardner Webb in a three game, Thursday through Saturday series.