Tag: South Carolina Baseball

‘This place would be a boombox’: Texas A&M OF Hayden Schott explains Blue Bell Park’s new anthem

“(Jace and I) were like ‘Dude, if we got a whole crowd in on that and played it every run or something, this place would be a boombox!'”

On its way to becoming the No. 1 team in the nation this weekend with a sweep of SEC rival Vanderbilt, the Texas A&M baseball team recently found a new tune to groove to every time an Aggie scores a run.

After the series finale against the Commodores, graduate student outfielder Hayden Schott was asked about the origin of the team’s fondness for the song “Rattlin’ Bog” by the Irish Descendants.

“Me and Jace LaViolette, they were playing it at South Carolina on the speakers and we were like ‘Dude, if we got a whole crowd in on that, and played it every run or something, this place would be a boombox!’ So then Friday night, obviously we had a great baseball game, it just added so much to the crowd I felt like,” Schott recalled. “Everyone was so loud.

“I think now that we won, they can’t take it away, so I’m going to have a word with coach about that. I’ll just make sure that he doesn’t end this streak. I’ll probably have a word with him tomorrow during our media meeting with me and him.”

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Texas A&M baseball stays put in newest USA TODAY Coaches Poll

The Aggies stay at No. 3 in the newest Coaches Poll

Texas A&M baseball’s (28-4, 8-4 SEC) eight-game winning streak may have ended on Sunday afternoon, but winning their first SEC road series against the South Carolina Gamecocks inside the always-tough Founders Field is worth the one loss.

On the weekend, grad transfer Hayden Schott led the way offensively, with six hits and nine RBI vs. the Gamecocks, including a 3-4 showing on Sunday. Ace pitcher Ryan Prager (7-1) delivered one of his best performances of the young season, recording 12 Ks in 6.1 innings in Game 1.

Before the Aggies’ critical home series against No. 6-ranked Vanderbilt (25-7), a midweek matchup against UTSA (19-13) awaits on Tuesday night. On Monday, the newest USA TODAY Sports Coaches poll saw little change among the top programs, while the surging Kentucky Wildcats moved up eight spots to No. 8, followed by Wake Forest climbing seven spots to No. 15.

Within the SEC, five programs represent the top ten, while three more conference members round out the remainder of the Top 25.

Here are the complete Week 8 rankings.

Rank Team Overall Points (1st) Previous Rank Change
1 Arkansas 27-3 775 (31) 1 –
2 Clemson 28-3 735 2 –
3 Texas A&M 28-4 716 3 –
4 Tennessee 26-6 656 4 –
5 Oregon State 26-4 655 5 –
6 Vanderbilt 25-7 609 6 –
7 Duke 24-8 580 10 +3
8 Kentucky 27-4 503 16 +8
9 Florida State 26-5 498 12 +3
10 Virginia 25-7 490 11 +1
11 East Carolina 23-7 440 13 +2
12 North Carolina 26-6 432 7 -5
13 Dallas Baptist 25-6 405 8 -5
14 UC Irvine 24-4 397 17 +3
15 Wake Forest 21-10 284 22 +7
16 Virginia Tech 21-8 216 15 -1
17 Alabama 22-10 192 14 -3
18 Florida 17-14 187 9 -9
19 UCF 21-8 186 NR +8
20 Coastal Carolina 22-9 166 21 +1
21 Nebraska 22-7 142 23 +2
22 Oregon 12-8 128 NR +7
23 Mississippi State 21-12 114 NR +3
24 Louisiana 24-8 109 NR +12
25 Oklahoma State 21-11 94 NR +7

Schools Dropped Out

No. 18 LSU; No. 19 South Carolina; No. 20 North Carolina State; No. 24 Georgia; No. 25 TCU;

Others Receiving Votes

South Carolina 67; Indiana State 59; LSU 54; Georgia 45; Texas Tech 26; Creighton 23; Northeastern 14; TCU 12; North Carolina State 11; Lamar 11; Campbell 11; West Virginia 8; St. John’s 7; Ole Miss 4; Kansas State 4; Oklahoma 3; UC Santa Barbara 2; Southern Miss 2; Louisiana Tech 2; Utah 1

Texas A&M will face UTSA on Tuesday, April 9, at 6:00 p.m. CT, where the game will air on SEC Network+.

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No. 3 Texas A&M baseball wins the series vs. South Carolina after the defeating the Gamecocks in Game 2

The Aggies continues their impressive win streak, reaching eight games!

The Texas A&M baseball team (28-3) earned the series win vs. No. 22 South Carolina (21-10) on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Gamecocks 6-3 behind an early scoring effort, while Aggies’ star closer Evan Aschenbeck finishing things out in the 9th.

Winning their eighth consecutive SEC game, the Aggies are one of the hottest clubs in the country. They trail only the No.1-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks in the SEC standings but currently lead the conference in wins with 28.

On the day, Braden Montgomery and Jace LaViolette combined four hits. Still, it was the play of the notably clutch Hayden Schott, who orchestrated a three-run scoring effort, aided by freshman phenom Gavin Grahovic’s huge solo home run in the top of the first.

Also, in the bottom of the first, freshman outfielder Caden Sorrell made one of the best catches you will see all year, stealing a Gamecocks home run after elevating at the top of the fence line for the grab. What a catch!

Holding a 4-0 lead in the third, the Gamecocks got on the board with two runs to make things interesting, but thanks to Schott’s RBI in the 5th, the Aggies’ 5-2 cushion who later added another insurance run in the 9th to close things out.

Pitching-wise, starter Tanner Jones gave up five hits and two runs while striking out five. Shane Sdao (2-0) earned the win, allowing only two hits and recording three strikeouts.

Elite closer Evan Aschenbeck pitched two innings and recorded six strikeouts, allowed two hits, and one run on a meaningless solo home run to close things out.

Texas A&M’s critical home series vs. Vanderbilt will start on Friday, April 12, but the Aggies will first take on UTSA in a midweek matchup on Tuesday, April 9, at 6:00 p.m.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.

Watch: Freshman outfielder Caden Sorrell make his case for the SportsCenter Top 10 plays

Freshman outfielder Caden Sorrell continues to make plays has we works himself into the starting lineup

While a lot of the attention at the beginning of the season was focused on Texas A&M’s No. 4 ranked transfer class, lead by Braden Montgomery, the crown jewel of the signing class kind of flew under the radar.  Outside of Gavin Grahovac, the freshman class has been quiet, but Caden Sorrell has slowly worked himself into the starting lineup and made the most of his opportunities.

On Saturday, Game 2 of the South Carolina series was no different. With the Aggies up 3-0 the Gamecock batter sent one deep and it looked like the lead was about to be cut by one. However, Sorrell showed off his vertical, snagging the homerun away keeping that goose egg on the board. You can see the amazing play below and it appears left field will be in good shape for the next few years.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Clemson vs. South Carolina baseball postponed due to weather

Clemson’s Friday matchup against South Carolina has been postponed.

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Due to inclement weather, the Clemson vs. South Carolina game scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m. at Founders Park has been postponed. No makeup date has been determined as of yet.

The Tigers’ next scheduled game is Saturday at 4 p.m. against South Carolina at Segra Park in Columbia on ACC Network Extra.

SERIES HISTORY
• Overall Record – Clemson leads 186-145-2 (1899-2023)
• Record at South Carolina – South Carolina leads 86-70-2 (1900-2023)
• Record at Neutral – Tied 13-13 (1899-2023)
• Record at Clemson – Clemson leads 103-46 (1907-2023)

CLEMSON OVERVIEW
• Clemson, which has played all of its games at home, defeated USC Upstate 12-6 on Tuesday behind five homers, its most since 2022.
• The Tigers are averaging 8.6 runs per game and hitting .330 with a .570 slugging percentage, .441 on-base percentage and six steals.
• The pitching staff has a 4.62 ERA, .236 opponents’ batting average and 2.20 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and Clemson is fielding .950.

SOUTH CAROLINA OVERVIEW
• South Carolina, which has played all its games at home and is averaging 9.3 runs per game, is led by seventh-year Head Coach Mark Kingston.
• The Gamecocks defeated Gardner-Webb 7-1 on Tuesday. They are hitting .285 and have a 2.40 ERA and .968 fielding percentage.
• Former Tiger Dylan Brewer is hitting .519, Ethan Petry is batting .357 with three homers and Garrett Gainey has the team’s lone save.

STORIED RIVALRY
• South Carolina is Clemson’s most-common opponent in history, as the two have played 333 times dating to 1899.
• The two have met at least once every year since 1945, with the exception of 1984. Therefore, the two have met each of the last 39 years.
• The season matchups went to a three-game, weekend-series format in 2010 after the two teams played four midweek games for decades.
• South Carolina leads the series 8-6 in regular-season, neutral-site contests since 2010.
• South Carolina leads the series 12-6 at Founders Park (opened in 2009).
• The series is tied 1-1 at Segra Park (the first meeting there was in 2020).
• Clemson leads the series 56-29 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium (opened in 1970).

–Via Clemson Athletic Communications

No. 10 Clemson set to face No. 12 South Carolina in rivalry series

Clemson and South Carolina continue their historic rivalry.

The No. 10 Tigers play their annual rivalry series with No. 12 South Carolina at three different sites this weekend.

SERIES SETUP
• Who – Clemson (7-1) vs. South Carolina (8-1)
• Best Ranking – CU – No. 10 Baseball America, D1Baseball; USC – No. 12 Baseball America
• When – Friday (7 p.m.), Saturday (4 p.m.), Sunday (2 p.m.)
• Where – Columbia, S.C. (Founders Park) Friday; Columbia, S.C. (Segra Park) Saturday; Clemson, S.C. (Doug Kingsmore Stadium) Sunday
• Watch – SEC Network+ (Friday), ACC Network Extra (Saturday, Sunday)
• Video Announcers (Friday) – Kip Bouknight, Dave Weinstein
• Video Announcers (Saturday) – Bob Mahony, William Qualkinbush
• Video Announcers (Sunday) – Jeff Morris, William Qualkinbush
• Listen (Radio) – Clemson Athletic Network (locally on WCCP (105.5 FM))
• Listen (Internet) – ClemsonTigers.com
• Live Stats – ClemsonTigers.com
• Social Media – ClemsonBaseball
• Tickets (Sunday) – ClemsonTigers.com, 1-800-CLEMSON

SERIES HISTORY
• Overall Record – Clemson leads 186-145-2 (1899-2023)
• Record at South Carolina – South Carolina leads 86-70-2 (1900-2023)
• Record at Neutral – Tied 13-13 (1899-2023)
• Record at Clemson – Clemson leads 103-46 (1907-2023)

STARTING PITCHERS
• Friday – RHP Billy Barlow (CU) vs. RHP Eli Jones (USC)
• Saturday – RHP Dylan Eskew (USC) vs. LHP Tristan Smith (CU)
• Sunday – RHP Roman Kimball (USC) vs. RHP Aidan Knaak (CU)

CLEMSON OVERVIEW
• Clemson, which has played all of its games at home, defeated USC Upstate 12-6 on Tuesday behind five homers, its most since 2022.
• The Tigers are averaging 8.6 runs per game and hitting .330 with a .570 slugging percentage, .441 on-base percentage and six steals.
• The pitching staff has a 4.62 ERA, .236 opponents’ batting average and 2.20 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and Clemson is fielding .950.

SOUTH CAROLINA OVERVIEW
• South Carolina, which has played all its games at home and is averaging 9.3 runs per game, is led by seventh-year Head Coach Mark Kingston.
• The Gamecocks defeated Gardner-Webb 7-1 on Tuesday. They are hitting .285 and have a 2.40 ERA and .968 fielding percentage.
• Former Tiger Dylan Brewer is hitting .519, Ethan Petry is batting .357 with three homers and Garrett Gainey has the team’s lone save.

STORIED RIVALRY
• South Carolina is Clemson’s most-common opponent in history, as the two have played 333 times dating to 1899.
• The two have met at least once every year since 1945, with the exception of 1984. Therefore, the two have met each of the last 39 years.
• The season matchups went to a three-game, weekend-series format in 2010 after the two teams played four midweek games for decades.
• South Carolina leads the series 8-6 in regular-season, neutral-site contests since 2010.
• South Carolina leads the series 12-6 at Founders Park (opened in 2009).
• The series is tied 1-1 at Segra Park (the first meeting there was in 2020).
• Clemson leads the series 56-29 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium (opened in 1970).

QUICK HITS
• Clemson is the designated home team and occupies the third-base dugout at Segra Park on Saturday.
• Clemson has won six of the last nine season series against South Carolina from 2015-23.
• Former Tiger Head Coach Monte Lee (2016-22) is the associate head coach at South Carolina.

TIGERS AT SEGRA PARK
• Clemson has a 3-2 all-time record in five games at Segra Park in Columbia, S.C.
• The Tigers have outscored the opposition 34-21 at Segra Park, an average score of 6.8-4.2.
• Clemson is 1-1 against South Carolina at Segra Park.
• Clemson is 1-0 under Head Coach Erik Bakich at Segra Park.

BOB BRADLEY AWARD PRESENTED SUNDAY
• Clemson’s MVP of the South Carolina series is presented the Bob Bradley Award. The Gamecocks’ MVP receives the Tom Price Award.
• The 2024 series marks the 24th year the awards are presented.
• The two late athletic communications directors served as baseball contacts for their respective schools for decades.

DARDEN PITCHING EFFECTIVELY AGAIN
• Sophomore lefthander Ethan Darden emerged as a freshman in 2023 as a dependable weekend starter.
• He has picked up where he left off with consistent outings in 2024.
• He is 2-0 with an 0.00 ERA, .111 opponents’ batting average and six strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched over three relief appearances.
• He has only allowed one walk.
• He pitched 3.0 scoreless innings in relief of one-hit ball with four strikeouts to earn the win against USC Upstate on Feb. 27.
• In his career, he is 5-2 with a 5.04 ERA, .257 opponents’ batting average and 51 strikeouts in 60.2 innings pitched over 22 appearances.

– Via Clemson Athletic Communications 

Former Clemson head coach joins Gamecocks

Lee returns to the Gamecock program where he coached for six seasons prior to his time at College of Charleston and Clemson.

A former Clemson head coach has made the move to Columbia.

Seven-year Clemson baseball head coach Monte Lee, who was fired back in May, announced his next coaching destination via Twitter on Wednesday.

Lee shared that he will be joining the South Carolina Gamecocks program under head coach Mark Kingston as the team’s associate head coach and recruiting coordinator, replacing first-year assistant coach Chad Caillet.

Lee, who was apart of the Gamecock’s coaching staff back in 2003-08 prior to his time at Clemson, joins three of his former Tigers in catcher Jonathan French, outfielder/first baseman Dylan Brewer and right-handed pitcher Ricky Williams, who all announced their intentions to transfer to their former program’s in-state rival earlier this summer.

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Bakich, Tigers will ‘dominate the state of South Carolina’

Erik Bakich was formally introduced as Clemson’s next head baseball coach during an introductory press conference Thursday. As he made his opening remarks and spoke with reporters afterward, Bakich emphasized just how important the Clemson-South …

Erik Bakich was formally introduced as Clemson’s next head baseball coach during an introductory press conference Thursday.

As he made his opening remarks and spoke with reporters afterward, Bakich emphasized just how important the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry is to the program and the program’s history.”

Under Bakich’s watch, Clemson will respect that rivalry by preparing for it all year long. It’ll also be something that he and his coaching staff will address as a priority for the program starting Day 1.

“Another reason to come to Clemson is for the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry,” Bakich said during his introductory press conference. “We will take this rivalry very seriously and will respect it every single day by how we prepare and train. Regardless of championships, rivalries will narrow our sights down to the No. 1 — one game, one inning, one pitch, one rep at a time.”

Another important aspect of that rivalry is winning recruiting battles in the Palmetto State. Bakich touched on that when he asked about his recruiting plan.

“Like dropping a rock into Lake Hartwell and watching the ripples,” he said. “We will dominate the state of South Carolina and then we will attack the region. We’ll look at the entire Eastern seaboard from Maine down to Miami. And we’ll target players around the country, whether it’s the Midwest or anywhere else.”

That rivalry has become just that much bigger with Dylan Brewer and Jonathan French announcing their respective intentions to transfer to the University of South Carolina, following the dismissal of Monte Lee.

In Lee’s final season at the helm, he helped lead the Tigers to an unblemished spring against their in-state rival for the first time in more than two decades. Clemson outscored the Gamecocks by a combined score of 17-6 in a series sweep.

“It’s one of the reasons you come to a school like Clemson, is you want the opportunity to play on the biggest stages and the brightest lights and against the best rivalries,” Bakich told reporters. “We were able to experience that at Michigan with Ohio State and you just have to love that. You have to love competing in those types of environments. I am no stranger to how hostile and how much fun at the same time that the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry is.”

Bakich, of course, served as volunteer assistant coach on Jack Leggett’s staff back in 2002. 20 years later, he’s ready to be a part of that rivalry once again.

Another former Tiger to join Gamecocks

A second Tiger has chosen the Gamecocks as his new home.

A second Tiger has chosen his next destination following the dismissal of head coach Monte Lee from the baseball program after the 2022 season.

Catcher Jonathan French, who entered the transfer portal earlier this month, announced Wednesday morning via Twitter that he would be joining the South Carolina Gamecocks baseball program next season. French joins outfielder Dylan Brewer as the second Tiger to commit to the Gamecocks this month.

In his three seasons with the Clemson program, French hit a career .230 with 13 homers, 43 RBIs, and a .423 slugging percentage in 64 starts.

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Another Clemson baseball transfer will play for Gamecocks

A second former Clemson baseball player announced on Wednesday that he will be transferring to South Carolina. On June 6 Dylan Brewer announced that he was transferring to play for the Gamecocks. Jonathan French took to Twitter Wednesday morning to …

A second former Clemson baseball player announced on Wednesday that he will be transferring to South Carolina.  On June 6 Dylan Brewer announced that he was transferring to play for the Gamecocks.

Jonathan French took to Twitter Wednesday morning to announce his new home.

French started 37 games for Clemson in 2022 and hit .218 with 8 home runs.