The South Carolina Gamecocks stay alive in the 2017 SEC Baseball Tournament by eliminating Missouri 10-2.
Carlos Cortes had an outstanding day at the plate for the Gamecocks hitting a pair of 3-run home runs. The freshman outfielder now has 3 home runs in the 2017 SEC Baseball Tournament.
The 6 RBI from Cortes was more than enough for South Carolina starting pitcher Will Crowe as he gave up just 1 run on 4 hits over 6 innings with 9 strikeouts.
The one run should have been unearned in my opinion as there was miscommunication between shortstop and left field on a pop up that fell in. It was ruled a double and that runner eventually came around to score.
It wasn’t a stress free outing for Crowe who had to work out of jams in the third in fourth innings, but it was one of the more dominating pitching performances of the 2017 SEC Baseball Tournament so far.
Alex Destino put the Gamecocks on the board first with a solo home run in the second. That would end up being the first of four home runs for South Carolina on the afternoon. Jonah Bride hit the other one.
Danny Blair had a big day for the Gamecocks going 3-4 with 2 runs and an RBI. Justin Row had a pair of hits, scored 2 runs and drove one in. South Carolina finished the game with 14 hits.
This was not the best showing for Missouri’s typically high-flying offense. They managed just six hits the entire game. Nelson Mompierre hit a pinch-hit home run in the ninth. His second of the tournament in as many at-bats.
Missouri finishes the regular season and SEC Tournament with a record of 36-23, but I don’t think they did enough in conference play to earn an NCAA Tournament bid. The Tigers’ season is most likely over.
The Gamecocks live to see another day and keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive. They will face the loser of LSU and Kentucky on Friday.
NCAA Tournament Picture: I noted yesterday that this was not only an elimination game for the 2017 SEC Baseball Tournament, but for the NCAA Tournament as well. Missouri is out in my opinion. Even with a good finish to the season, they struggled far too much in the middle and couldn’t catch up. The Gamecocks sure looked like an NCAA Tournament team today. I would say they are on the good side of the bubble right now, but a win over either LSU or Kentucky on Friday would solidify things.
