March 28, 2008
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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - USC Upstate will get a chance to spend a week at Harley Park after hitting the road for five of the last six games, and it will start the homestand with an Atlantic Sun Conference series against fellow third-place team, Jacksonville. The Spartans, who have won two games in a row, will look to make a statement in the conference, facing two of the best pitchers in the league in Carson Andrew and Matt Dobbins. Upstate will counter with three of the most accomplished pitchers in school history with senior Kyle Bowley, sophomore Matt Branham, and senior Scott Eckard, as it looks to stay near the top in the conference standings.
Homestanding During The Midweek
For the first time this season, the USC Upstate baseball team will play two midweek games in the friendly confines of Harley Park, as North Carolina A&T and High Point will come to Upstate for 6 p.m. games on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. The Aggies, at 10-13, are tied for first in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, thanks to a sweep of Norfolk State in their first conference series. The Big South's Panthers enter the weekend at 5-18 overall.
National Attention
Even though USC Upstate is not technically in the national rankings while the school is reclassifying to the Division I level, senior Kyle Bowley would rank in the top 50 in multiple categories, thanks to his impressive work on the mound. He is tied for 14th in the nation in wins, having posted four, just one from the national lead. He is tied for 46th in strikeouts with 35 and tied for 48th with a 1.75 ERA.
Bowley Keeps Rolling
Senior Kyle Bowley kept rolling along as the Spartans' ace, throwing a 140-pitch complete-game against North Florida to earn his fourth win of the season. Bowley labored through the first three innings, allowing three runs and five hits in that span, but settled down to allow just two unearned runs in the final six innings, as he finished with a career-high 11 strikeouts. He allowed 11 hits, four walks and five runs in the game, as he surpassed his previous-best in strikeouts, when he fanned nine at North Georgia on April 22, 2006. In the process he moved into fifth in career strikeouts with 146, passing Garrett Holmes, who struck out 144 from 2002-05. He also won his 16th career game to take hold of fifth by himself on the Upstate career list, passing Don Brock (1987-88) and his 209.1 innings pitched moved him into fourth in school history.
Bowley is currently tied for the conference lead in wins (4) and complete games (2) with Florida Gulf Coast's Richard Bleir and is also tied for the league lead in strikeouts (35). He is alone at the top of the A-Sun in both innings pitched (36.0) and is third in ERA (1.75)
Heating Up
Upstate, after hitting .246 through the first 15 games, has shown some offensive firepower during the last 10 games, hitting .343 (128-for-373) over that span. Impressively, the Spartans have as many hits in the last 10 games as they had in the first 15. All nine Spartan starters are hitting at least .333 during the span, with junior Phillip Morgan leading the way by hitting .372 with a homer and 10 RBIs. Senior Andrew Runion is hitting .370, freshman Keith Bisgounis is at .367 and both junior Eric Guillen and freshman Blake Green are hitting .366.
Clark Comes Through
Freshman A.J. Clark threw 7 2/3 innings, allowing five hits and one run in his first collegiate start, leading Upstate to a 5-1 win over Presbyterian on Thursday. From the first two batters, which he struck out, Clark (2-0) was in complete control for the Spartans. He struck out four batters in the game and until the eighth inning when he gave up three singles with one out, no Blue Hose (7-15) runner got past second base. Clark is 2-0 this season with a 3.50 ERA in 18 innings. He has been primarily a middle reliever for Upstate.
