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Radford University Athletics

Home Of The RadFord Highlanders RadFord Highlanders
Eli Hudgins
Matthew Maldonado
4
Winner Radford RAD 24-23, 11-11 BSC
3
Charleston Southern CSU 28-20, 12-10 BSC
Winner
Radford RAD
24-23, 11-11 BSC
4
Final
3
Charleston Southern CSU
28-20, 12-10 BSC
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 R H E
Radford RAD 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 4 11 0
Charleston Southern CSU 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 3 8 1

W: Ludy, Trey (3-2) L: DAWSON,Drew (1-1) S: Hatcher, Mason (4)

Game Recap: Baseball |

Highlanders Secure Extra-Innings Victory in Series Opener at Charleston Southern

CHARLESTON, S.C. – In a contest that was nip and tuck throughout, the Radford Highlanders baseball team (24-23, 11-11 BSC) refused to wither after falling behind by forcing extras and scoring in the 10th to take a 4-3 win over Charleston Southern (28-20, 12-10 BSC) on Thursday night at CSU Ballpark.

With the win and UNC Asheville and Gardner-Webb losses tonight, the Highlanders have clinched a spot in the Big South Tournament.

Devin Parks came through when it mattered in regulation, but it was Noah Toole who played the hero role in the top of the 10th. Charleston Southern decided to walk Parks and load the bases with one out in the top of the 10th. That set the stage for Toole, who hit a sharp ground ball to the right side that hit off the glove of the diving Buccaneer first baseman into no man's land for a base hit. The play scored Eli Hudgins as the go-ahead and eventual winning run in the bonus frame.

Head Coach Alex Guerra elected to keep Trey Ludy in for his third inning of work in the bottom half, and the Highlanders' go-to reliever elicited a groundout and fly out to get two of the final three outs. Mason Hatcher then entered with the tying run 90 feet away and struck out Alex Marot with a bevy of breaking pitches to slam the door and give the Highlanders 11 wins in series openers this season.

As mentioned previously, Parks came through with three RBI to bring home all of Radford's three runs in the first nine. Two of the three put the Highlanders ahead at the time. He singled home Hunter Keen with two outs in the first. The designated hitter then smashed his sixth homer of the season to make it 2-1 in the sixth. Parks evened the game in the top of the eighth, hitting a ball up the middle to score Junho Son with two gone to eventually force extras.

The pitching staff was once again on the top of their game tonight, stifling the best offense in the Big South throughout the night. Raymond Ladd again turned in a great start, allowing just three hits and one run with five strikeouts in five innings. Corey Costello wavered but did not break, keeping the deficit at one through seven. He had the benefit of a strike them out, throw them out double play to end the threat. Ludy slammed the door, not allowing a run with two strikeouts in 2.2 innings to earn his third win. Hatcher's one out gave him his second save over his last three appearances and fourth of the season. The staff averaged a strikeout an inning while also forcing the Buccaneers to go 1-for-9 with two outs.

The middle of the Highlanders' lineup flexed their muscles today, with the four through six hitters combining to go 8-for-14 with two runs and three RBI. Parks ended the day 3-for-4 with three RBI, a run, a walk, a stolen base, and six total bases. Hudgins also matched Parks with three hits and a run scored.

UP NEXT
Radford will look to close the regular season with a series win, getting the opportunity to do so tomorrow. First pitch from CSU Ballpark on Friday is set for 3:00 p.m. with live streaming on ESPN+.

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