JSU baseball: Jacksonville rallies to hand Gamecocks series loss

Apr. 16—JACKSONVILLE — You could see it etched all over the faces of Jacksonville State's players. This one stung a little more than most.

The Gamecocks took control early and held the momentum through the seventh inning, but Jacksonville rallied in the final two frames to take the series with a 6-5 victory.

"A loss is a loss, but I think this one hurts a little worse, because we were pretty dominantly in control," JSU head coach Jim Case said.

The Gamecocks started fast, taking a 4-0 lead through two innings. Mason Maners got things started with a first-inning solo home run, his seventh of the season.

JSU added three more runs in the second, but the Gamecocks left plenty of meat on the bone.

Derrick Jackson Jr. led off the inning with a double that Jarrett Eaton followed up with a single. Jackson came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Will Fincher, and Eaton came home on an RBI single by Caleb Johnson. Bear Madliak reached with a single before Javon Hernandez drove in Johnson from second base.

After Maners walked, T.J. Reeves stepped to the plate with one out and the bases loaded. JSU's RBI leader grounded weakly to Jacksonville starting pitcher Richard Long, who threw home for the force out before catcher Colin Wetterau fired to first base for an inning-ending double play.

The Gamecocks wouldn't score again until the ninth inning.

"The problem was, we didn't add," Case said. "We got ahead, and in college baseball, a 4-1 lead is not that much. Their guy did a great job. I give him credit. Started throwing up zeroes from the third inning through the eighth inning. They had an opportunity to come back, and they did."

Jacksonville cut its deficit to 4-1 in the top of the fourth inning after Justin Nadeau opened the frame with a triple and scored on a groundout by Kris Armstrong. Hunter McIntosh made it 4-2 in the top of the seventh with a solo home run.

That's when the wheels fell off for the Gamecocks. Armstrong's two-run home run, his 19th of the season, tied the game at 4-4 in the top of the eighth. The Dolphins added two more runs in the top of the ninth to take a 6-4 advantage.

JSU attempted to rally in the bottom half of the inning but came up just short. Hernandez singled to open the frame and scored on a double by Maners. Maners advanced to third on a groundout by Reeves, but Brennen Norton struck out before Jackson grounded out to end the game.

The late-inning collapse spoiled a fantastic start from pitcher Eli Zielinski. The freshman from Daphne set new career highs for innings pitched and strikeouts, fanning 11 over 6 2/3 innings. Zielinski allowed two earned runs on five hits and two walks.

"We can't ask for more than that," Case said. "If you get a guy that throws that way on Sundays, you're going to be in great shape. You are going to win a lot of Sundays. I thought he was fantastic."

What to know

—After going 5-for-5 Saturday, Hernandez didn't slow down Sunday. He finished 4-for-5 with four singles, one run and one RBI. Hernandez has gone 39-for-64 in ASUN Conference games. He's hitting .609 against league competition.

—Maners and Johnson finished 2-for-4, and Eaton was 2-for-3.

—Reid Fagerstrom relieved Zielinski and struck out the final batter in the seventh inning. He allowed just one hit over 1 1/3 innings, but it was a big one — Armstrong's two-run homer. Will Baker took the loss, allowing two unearned runs on one hit and one walk over one-third of an inning. Sam Maynard got the final two outs for the Gamecocks, allowing just one hit.

Who said

—Case why Hernandez is so hard to get out: "He sees it good. He takes swings that are within himself. You don't see him trying to hit the ball to the moon. You go into it, and you're gonna mix if you are the other team. You're going to throw fastballs, breaking balls, changeups, and you are going to try to go in and out, but he's seeing the ball so good he just makes solid contact almost constantly."

Next up

—The Gamecocks (17-17, 10-5 ASUN) are currently in a tie for third in the ASUN standings with Austin Peay. JSU will host Troy on Tuesday at 6 p.m. before traveling to Fort Myers, Fla., for a three-game weekend series against Florida Gulf Coast, which is tied with Lipscomb for the league lead at 11-4.

Assistant Sports Editor Jared Gravette: 256-235-3572. On Twitter: @Jared_Gravette.