Walk it off: Ninth-inning rally powers USC past Missouri in Top 25 battle
No. 11 South Carolina was seemingly headed to its first SEC loss of the season — down to its final out Friday night against visiting No. 22 Missouri.
But the scrappy Gamecock offense didn’t stop fighting. Down 8-5, USC managed to load the bases against Mizzou reliever Zach Franklin in the bottom of the ninth. After falling behind in the count 0-2, veteran Caleb Denny cut the deficit to one with a two-run single to center field. Then, pinch-hitter Jonathan French somehow found a hole in the right side of the infield for an RBI, game-tying single.
One batter later, the Gamecocks sealed a walk-off victory.
Michael Braswell hit a grounder to the left side, and Mizzou shortstop Justin Colon threw the ball away while trying to make an inning-ending out at third. The Gamecocks finished off a 9-8 walk-off win on the play, sending USC’s players spilling out of the first-base dugout to the delight of a sellout crowd at Founders Park.
“I think this team is very even-keeled,” Denny said moments after the win. “We don’t panic when there’s pressure. Kingston has a saying: ‘There’s no panic.’ And I think that’s true for this team. Whether we’re winning or we’re losing, we just attack every pitch with everything we have.”
Friday’s game was a sluggish, offensive affair — with both lineups trading blows. Fresh off a weekend sweep of then-No. 2 Tennessee, Missouri (17-4, 3-1 SEC) nearly completed an impressive comeback of its own, with third baseman Luke Mann homering three times and driving in six runs.
USC junior Will Sanders scuffled through his worst outing of the season, struggling to find the strike zone with just 37 of his 78 pitches landing for strikes. In 3.1 innings, Sanders walked six, hit a batter and gave up five runs on a pair of homers — both to Mann. The long ball has been an issue for Sanders dating back to last season, when he allowed 14 in 15 starts. So far this season, Sanders has given up seven homers in six starts.
Mizzou ace Chandler Murphy didn’t fare much better, giving up a grand slam to Will McGillis in the second inning and a solo shot to freshman Ethan Petry in the third. He left the game in the middle of an at-bat in the fourth inning due to an apparent injury. Murphy pointed to the dugout and called for an athletic trainer immediately after finishing a pitch.
For USC, reliever James Hicks allowed a two-out RBI single to second baseman Trevor Austin in the sixth. And Matthew Becker allowed two runs in the eighth, including Mann’s third home run of the night — a towering blast to right field.
Gamecocks freshman pitcher Austin Williamson (1 IP, 3 Ks) earned the win and was the only pitcher to retire Mann on the night, whiffing him in a key moment.
From there, the USC offense took care of the rest. The Gamecocks took advantage of some sloppiness from Mizzou in the ninth, most notably on the last play, but their feisty approach at the plate put them in position to win.
“A big part of our offense is just being able to win a ballgame when the wind’s not blowing out, and I think that’s the base foundation of what we do,” French said. “We were able to win the game off of singles and just putting the ball in play and making something happen.”
Next four USC baseball games
Saturday: vs. No. 22 Missouri, 4 p.m. (SEC Network Plus)
Sunday: vs. No. 22 Missouri, noon (SEC Network)
Thursday: at The Citadel, 7 p.m. (ESPN Plus)
March 30: at Mississippi State, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
This story was originally published March 24, 2023 at 10:21 PM with the headline "Walk it off: Ninth-inning rally powers USC past Missouri in Top 25 battle."
