BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The Wofford College baseball team was defeated 4-2 by Samford on Friday night at Joe Lee Griffin Field in the opening game of a three-game conference series. The Bulldogs scored twice in the second inning and the Terriers responded with two runs in the fourth inning to tie the game. Samford plated two runs in the bottom of the seventh to secure the win.
Wofford is now 30-17 on the season and 10-6 in the Southern Conference. Samford is 26-21 overall and 11-5 in the league. The Terriers were led by
Andrew Orzel with two hits, while
Brett Rodriguez and
Cody Miller both had RBIs. Troy Dixon and Taylor Garris each had two hits and an RBI for the Bulldogs.
With two outs in the top of the first inning,
Mack Nathanson walked and
Andrew Orzel singled to put runners on the corners. Orzel stole second base before a strikeout ended the scoring chance. The Bulldogs led off with a single, but a fly ball and double play ended the inning. Wofford went in order in the top of the second and Samford led off with a runner reaching on an error. A single gave the Bulldogs runners on the corners and with one out a double made it a 1-0 game. A ground out plated a run before a strikeout ended the second inning.
Alex Malsch singled to lead off the third inning. He stole second base, but was caught stealing third to end the top half. The Bulldogs went in order in the bottom of the third.
Mack Nathanson reach on an error and
Andrew Orzel doubled to begin the fourth inning. A sacrifice fly by
Brett Rodriguez cut the lead to 2-1 and a sacrifice fly by
Cody Miller tied the game at 2-2.
Lawson Hill added a single and
Max McDougald walked, but both were left on base. The Bulldogs went in order to end the fourth inning and Wofford was retired in order in the top of the fifth inning.
The Bulldogs had a single with one out in the bottom of the fifth, but a double play ended the inning. Wofford went in order in the top of the sixth inning. With one out in the bottom of the sixth, the Bulldogs had a double and a walk. A fly ball and ground out ended the inning. Samford had a single with two outs in the bottom of the seventh. A double by Ryan Crockett drove in the runner to give the Bulldogs a 3-2 lead. After a walk, an RBI single made it a 4-2 game.
Wofford had two outs in the top of the eighth when
Mack Nathanson walked, but a ground out ended the top half. The Bulldogs had one runner reach base in the bottom of the eighth on an error. In the top of the ninth inning,
Brett Rodriguez led off with an infield single. After a fielder's choice by
Cody Miller, a double play ended the game.
Adam Scott (7-4) started for the Terriers and threw 6.2 innings with four runs allowed on eight hits. He had four strikeouts in the game, increasing his career total to 362, and walked two batters.
Anthony Garcia did not allow a hit in 1.1 innings.
Samford starter Cody Shelton (3-2) went six innings with two runs allowed on four hits, along with seven strikeouts. Josh Rich had two strikeouts in an inning. Wyatt Burns earned his eighth save by going the final two innings with one hit allowed.
Wofford and Samford will continue the series on Saturday at 2:00 pm ET and Sunday at 2:00 pm ET.
