Courtesy of USM Athletics
Charlie Fischer, Christopher Sargent and Reece Ewing all homered and Drew Boyd threw six strong innings to lead Southern Miss to a 14-4 run-rule victory in eight innings over UAB Sunday afternoon at Pete Taylor Park to complete a four-game sweep of the Blazers.
The Golden Eagles (21-9 overall, 8-3 in Conference USA) continues its perfect April thus far with seven-straight wins to open the month. Southern Miss completes a five-game homestand when they entertain South Alabama in a Tuesday night game. Game time is set for 6 p.m.
Southern Miss, which never trailed in the series, scored in the opening frame for the first time over the weekend with three runs. After a leadoff walk to Gabe Montenegro, Reed Trimble singled. Montenegro then was thrown out at third on a pitch that bounced to the plate. That did not stop the Golden Eagles offense, though, as Fischer walked as well.
With two on, Sargent got the Golden Eagles on the board with a homer to center in giving the home squad the early 3-0 lead. It was the fifth round-tripper of the year for Sargent, who finished the day with a team-best four RBI.
After UAB collected two unearned runs in the third coming with on a RBI groundout from Jess Davis and a run-scoring single by Colton Schultz, Southern Miss answered in the bottom half of the frame. With one out, Fischer homered to right – his fifth of the year – before Sargent tripled to center and scored a batter later on a home run by Reece Ewing to right – his fifth as well – to make the score 6-2.
The Blazers cut into the deficit with a run in the fourth for the only earned run allowed by Boyd during the contest. The left-handed hurler limited the Blazers (10-20, 3-9) to six hits and no walks with five strikeouts over six innings. All four Golden Eagle starters registered quality starts over the weekend, six or more innings thrown with three or fewer earned runs allowed, as all four starters registered wins.
UAB added another run in the seventh off of reliever Matt Adams, but Ryan Och came on to retire five of the final six visitor hitters to earn his first save of the year.
Run-scoring singles by Danny Lynch and Blake Johnson in the seventh increased the advantage to 9-4, before the Golden Eagles ended the game with five more runs in the eighth.
Sargent knocked in the first run in the final inning with a groundout, followed by a RBI single from Lynch, a two-run single from McGillis and an infield chopper from Cade Crosby, in which Lynch scored from second to end the game.
UAB starter Dylan Cunningham, who made his first career start for the Blazers, gave up three runs on two hits and two walks with a strikeout over an inning-plus of work to fall to 1-3.
