#18 Francis Marion sweeps Knights 23-8 and 16-2

LAURINBURG, N.C.— Junior Jacob Wallace went a combined 7-for-9 with six doubles and senior Jared Barkdoll homered in both games as 18th-ranked Francis Marion University swept a non-conference baseball doubleheader from St. Andrews Presbyterian College, 23-8 and 16-2, on Sunday afternoon (April 26) at Clark Field.

FMU scored its 39 runs on 42 hits while extending its win streak to 11 games and improving to 32-13-1. The Knights end their season with a 9-39 overall ledger. FMU wraps up its regular season with a home game against 26th-ranked Erskine College on Monday at 4:30 p.m. (please note the time change from an original 6 p.m. start). FMU will recognize its four seniors on Monday.

Barkdoll and outfielder Alex Lee both finished the day with five runs batted in, while Keon Graves homered twice and drove in four runs and Preston Shuey homered once and drove in four. Wallace had three RBIs.

Junior Charles Weber (Concord, N.C.) was the only SAPC player with a hit in both games.

GAME ONE: Francis Marion 23, St. Andrews 8

Francis Marion scored 13 runs in the fourth inning to highlight a 23-8 victory in the first game. St. Andrews had a solid game at the plate scoring eight runs on 11 hits, but the Patriots were able to pull away as 15 different batters accounted for 24 total base hits.

Senior J.T. Maguire supplied the Knights with a team-high three hits including a two-run double in the fifth. Senior Jeremy Fisher collected a pair of hits, while senior Ivan Rodriguez drove in two runs. Fisher, junior Samson Williams, freshman Ethan Powell, freshman Michael Ficarro knocked in St. Andrews’ other runs.

Wallace was a perfect 4-for-4 with three doubles and four runs scored, while Lee had a team-high four RBI including a bases-clearing, three-run triple. Shuey drove in three runs on a pair of hits while crossing home three times.

Barkdoll and junior John Lewis Floyd both crushed two-run homers for the visitors. Barkdoll had three hits and scored three runs. Junior Martin Gordon and freshman Tyler Boyd also added two RBI for Francis Marion.

Junior Shane Gebhards (2-0) was credited with the win in relief of junior starter Josh Edgin, who did not pitch the required five innings to qualify for a win. Edgin had a game-high three strikeouts.

GAME TWO: Francis Marion 16, St. Andrews 2

Graves tagged a pair of home runs in the nightcap and Francis Marion scored in six-of-seven innings to complete the sweep with a 16-2 victory in game two. Graves hit a two-run shot to center in the third and a solo blast to left-center to lead off the fifth.

Nine different Patriots hit safely in the nightcap as Francis Marion finished with 18 total hits. Barkdoll and Wallace both drove in three runs with Wallace supplying three doubles for the second time on Sunday. Barkdoll hit a two-run home run in the third. Lee rounded the diamond a game-high four times while Graves scored three times. Lee had a triple in both games.

Williams had two of the Knights hits as Patriots junior starter Erik Sommerville (4-3) kept St. Andrews at bay, only allowing two runs on five hits over five innings. Sommerville fanned five batters. The Knights scored their only runs in the third frame on an RBI-single by freshman Michael Hale and an RBI groundout by sophomore R.J. Blasi.