By Will Vandervort.
By Will Vandervort
Brody Koerner did not start the day off too well, but he sure did finish it strong. The freshman from Concord, NC allowed just one hit in six innings of work, while striking out seven batters in 15th-ranked Clemson’s 14-2 win over Furman at Greenville’s Fluor Field Wednesday afternoon.
It did not look as if Koerner was going to get through the top of the first inning, when he walked three straight batters, committed an error and had two wild pitches. He would have had three wild pitches but Furman’s Will Muzika was thrown out at home by Garrett Boulware after Koerner went wild on a ball four to Greg Harrison. But Koerner was able to apply the tag to Muzika just in time.
Though he threw another walk and a wild pitch in the second inning, the righty settled down and ended his day with a 1-2-3 inning in the sixth.
Koerner also got some help from Shane Kennedy at third base when he snagged a ball near the line at third, while holding the runner on third. He then got Taylor Johnson swinging to end the threat. It was the last time Furman threatened to score on the freshman.
It also helped Koerner that he got plenty of run support from his teammates. The Tigers recorded 14 hits, and the 14 runs were a season-high.
Clemson (33-15) picked up a run in the bottom of the second and third innings and then two in each the fourth and sixth inning to take a 6-0 lead. Kennedy did most of the damage with three hits and an RBI, while Duggar and Wilkerson each had two hits and three RBIs.
After Furman cut into the lead with two runs in the top of the seventh—off reliever Patrick Andrews—the Tigers answered with six runs off five hits in the bottom of the seventh to take an 11-2 lead. The six-run inning tied for the most runs scored in an inning this year, which was also done three other times.
Clemson got RBI hits from McGibbon, Brittle, Gibson and Wilkerson in the bottom of the sixth, with Wilkerson’s hit—a triple to right centerfield—scoring two runs.
The Tigers added two runs in the bottom of the eighth to stretch the lead to 14-2, but the highlight of the inning came when 330-pound defensive tackle D.J. Reader pinch-hit for McGibbon. He got on base after being hit by a pitch and then trucked it to third on Brittle’s double to left centerfield. He then scored on a Gibson grounder to first.
The double was Brittle’s third hit of the game.
The Tigers and Paladins will play again at 7 p.m.