LEXINGTON, Va.? A complete game three-hitter from sophomore Trey Barham was the story, as VMI topped Coastal Carolina 8-2 in the opening contest of a weekend Big South series on Saturday afternoon at Patchin Field. With the win, the Keydets improve to 26-19 overall and 7-12 in the Big South, while Coastal falls to 20-24 overall and 7-9 in the League.
Barham, who surrendered only a pair of unearned runs, struck out nine Chanticleers while walking two in hurling his second complete game of the season, both coming in conference play. The southpaw from Portsmouth, Va. allowed back-to-back singles in the second inning and a base knock in the fourth inning before sitting down the next 15 batters he faced, until a ninth-inning walk ended the streak.
“What a great performance by Trey Barham today,” said VMI head coach Marlin Ikenberry. “He got better and better as the game went on, and really set the tone for us today. I was proud of how he and the rest of the guys competed today. Our offense did a great job of manufacturing some runs early, and we put pressure on their defense all game.”
The Keydets pounded out 11 hits while earning five walks and four hit batsmen, as the team left 15 men on base. Four Chanticleer errors allowed four more baserunners, while three VMI errors helped lead to both unearned Coastal tallies.
Leading the charge for the VMI offense was newly-installed leadoff man B.T. Good, who went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBI in his second start atop the Keydet lineup. Klint Reed went 2-for-5 out of the second slot in the lineup, while the bottom six players in the order each collected a hit also. The only player to not record a knock in the game was senior Kelly Sweppenhiser, who reached base four times thanks to a pair of hit by pitches and two walks (one intentional).
The visitors struck first in the second inning, as David Sappelt reached base on a fielding error by Sweppenhiser, advanced to second on a wild pitch before scoring on a single to centerfield by Mike Fuentes.
The Keydets answered in their half of the second, as Jacoby Fields led off with a single to rightfield before a bunt single by Chad Rice. A fielding error on Coastal starter Austin Fleet (4-2) on A.J. Yoder's sacrifice bunt loaded the bases, while a fielding error on shortstop Tyler Bortnick allowed a pair of runs to score, making the advantage 2-1 in favor of VMI.
Coastal tied the game back up in the third, when Adam Vrable reached after being hit by a pitch, moved to third base on a throwing error by Barham on a failed pickoff attempt, then scored on a sacrifice fly by D.J. Burns, who was inserted into the Coastal lineup at the conclusion of the top of the first inning.
But that would be all the offense Coastal would mount for a while. A fourth-inning single by Sappelt was the only baserunner allowed by Barham in the next five innings. Meanwhile, the Keydets took the lead in the fourth inning, as Geisslinger again reached on a fielding error, this time by third-sacker Derek Martin, then eventually scored from third base on a fielder's choice by cleanup man Robert Crumpler.
A three-run fifth-inning broke the game open for VMI, as Good's two-run double down the leftfield-line was followed by a wild pitch that scored Geisslinger two batters later. The Keydets tacked on single runs in the seventh and eight, with Reed and Geisslinger picking up the RBI.
Fleet worked four innings in taking the loss, allowing three runs, one earned on six hits while notching only one strikeout. He was relieved by Kevin Salmon, who saw three of the four batters he faced score in the fifth inning, before David Anderson came on out of his designated hitter slot to work the final 3.2 innings, allowing two runs, one earned on five hits.
The Keydets and Chanticleers will play game two on Sunday afternoon, with game time now set for 1 p.m. Current plans call for game three of the series to be played Monday afternoon at 3 p.m., however, weather forecasts may shift game three to Sunday afternoon, making for a doubleheader at Patchin Field.
