Bucs Split With High Point After Offensive Display

HIGH POINT, N.C. – Charleston Southern put up their best offensive performance of the season with 21 runs in game one against High Point (13-17, 7-8), leading to a 21-4 victory in game one of a double header. It is the fourth time out of six Big South series that CSU has won the opening game. After dropping game two 14-7, the Bucs split their second series of the season, with rain having also cancelled one game at Liberty.

It was the sixth time this season that CSU (13-22, 8-8) has scored 10 or more runs in a game, and the first time that they have hit the 20-run mark since May 11, 2002, when they scored 28 against High Point.  With eight RBI in the game, Tyler Thornburg set a new single-game record for runs-batted-in.

Anthony Markham earned the victory on the mound for CSU, moving his personal record to 2-3 on the season, while R.J. Chlebnikow took the loss, falling to 2-2. Despite the lopsided score, Keith Husted earned the save, giving up just two hits and no runs in three innings of work.

Four different Buccaneer batters had three hits on the day, while Thornburg led the way in RBI and runs scored, crossing the plate five times which tied the CSU record. Nick Chinners and Scotty Radabaugh each crossed home three times.

High Point wasted no time as a leadoff walk to Jeff Cowan led to the first run of the game in the bottom of the first inning. Alfie Wheeler doubled to right center to bring Cowan around to make it 1-0. The second run of the inning came as CSU tried to turn a double-play to get out of the inning. The relay was not in time and Bill Manion scored from third. Markham used his first strikeout of the game to end the inning without giving up any further damage.

A leadoff walk by Thornburg to start the second looked to start a CSU rally. Thornburg stole second and got to third on an infield ground ball. An error by the HPU second baseman Cowan allowed Thornburg to score, and put runners on first and third. Another ground ball would end the inning with HPU holding on to their 2-1 lead.

Thornburg gave CSU a 5-2 lead with a grand slam in the second after a pair of singles by Scotty Radabaugh and Patrick Dolan, along with a walk by Nick Chinners loaded the bases to start the inning. It was Thornburg’s fourth homerun of the season and the second CSU grand slam of the year. The rally didn’t stop there as Jake Cox, Kory Morian and Brantley Meier strung together a trio of singles to plate another run. Getting his second at-bat of the inning, Radabaugh got an RBI with a single back to the pitcher, scoring Cox giving CSU six runs on seven hits in the inning to take a 7-2 lead.

CSU added to their lead in the fifth when Morian hit a solo shot out of the yard for his fifth homerun of the season. In the sixth, the Bucs used base hits to score three more after Dolan started the rally. Thornburg and Morian each earned RBIs for sings, Cox and Meier walked in back-to-back at-bats to load the bases and score the final run of the inning, putting CSU up 11-2.

An error, a wild pitch, and a fielders choice gave two of the runs back to HPU, but the CSU offense took over again in the top of the seventh when CSU added three more runs, including a third homerun for the game, the second of the day from Thornburg. Chinners also earned an RBI in the inning, scoring Radabaugh on a double down the right field line before touching home thanks to Thornburg’s two-run shot that made it 14-4.

Control problems on the mound for the Panthers gave CSU another run in the eighth as Meier walked, then scored on three wild pitches by Mikel Rodenberg. The three wild throws also led to a walk for Mark Perry. Two more walks in the inning, one each to Radabaugh and Chinners, loaded the bases for CSU with just one out. A fielder’s choice gave CSU another run, and an infield base hit by Tom Burkett led to another, making it 17-4.  Michael Obuchowski got two RBI in a pinch-hit at-bat, doubling in Burkett and Thornburg, later scoring on an error by the third baseman.

In the top of the ninth, Bentley Christmas made the most of his only at-bat of the day, smacking a triple to center to lead off the inning. He came around to score on a single by Dolan to up the score to 21-4.

Game One Box

The runs they couldn’t find in the first inning, the Panthers found in the second as they erupted for eight runs in the bottom of the first, after pounding out seven hits and using one CSU error.

The lead would balloon out to as much as 11-0 after three innings before the Bucs would get on the board. Thornburg’s day continued as he had another two-run homerun, scoring Dolan, who started the inning out with a double.

A triple by Rosario in the fifth and a wild pitch led to a run each in the fifth and sixth innings, before CSU finally had their big inning.

Trailing 13-2, the Bucs struck for four runs in the top of the seventh as Jake Cox hit a two-run homerun. Obuchowski earned an RBI with a sacrifice to left, while Dolan singled up the middle to score a fourth run in the inning.

The two teams traded runs in the bottom of the eighth and the top of the ninth, as both teams used three hits to plate a run, giving the final score of 14-7.

Jesse Cadenhead (3-3) lasted just 0.1 innings, but took the loss for CSU after giving up all eight runs in the first inning. CSU used a total of five pitchers in the loss, including Obuchowski, who tossed his first innings of the year.

Dolan led the team with three hits in game two, while 10 of the other 13 hits came from five different players who each had two base knocks.

Game Two Box

CSU will enjoy Easter off before returning to The Joe on Monday for another game with The Citadel at 6 p.m.