Nathan Light at SoCon Tourney
5
Winner The Citadel CIT 23-29
2
VMI VMI 26-29
Winner
The Citadel CIT
23-29
5
Final
2
VMI VMI
26-29
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
The Citadel CIT 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 5 12 0
VMI VMI 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2 6 1

W: Gant Starling (2-2) L: Riley, Will (3-5)

Game Recap: Baseball |

VMI Baseball falls late to The Citadel in SoCon Tournament

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Citadel broke a 2-2 tie with three runs in the eighth inning Wednesday and went on to defeat the VMI baseball team 5-2 in an elimination game at the 2023 Southern Conference Tournament, presented by Holston Gasses. The eight-team tournament is being played at Fluor Field.

How it happened:
VMI's Justin Starke led off the game with a walk and moved to third on a Cole Garrett single. Trey Morgan followed with a safety squeeze bunt to bring home Starke and put VMI ahead 1-0. Matthew Lively gave the Bulldogs a 2-1 lead with a two-run single in the sixth, but the Keydets countered with a run in the bottom of the frame. Morgan led off with a walk and moved to second on a Zac Morris single. Cole Jenkins advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt and Morgan scored on a Ty Swaim RBI groundout.

The Citadel's first two runners reached safely in the eighth and one run came home on a single. Thomas Rollauer brought home two more with a two-run single to push the lead to three. The Bulldog bullpen retired the Keydets in order in the eighth and ninth innings.

Highlights:
*Starke had a hit, two walks and a stolen base
*Morgan had a hit and a walk
*Redshirt senior Nathan Light got the start for VMI and scattered six hits over 4 2/3 innings while allowing no runs and no walks with three strikeouts
*Starke had a hit, two walks and a stolen base
*Morgan had a hit and a walk
*Swaim recorded a hit and two stolen bases to finish with 35 for the season to fall just one shy of the program's single-season record, held by Nathan Eaton in the 2018 season
*Rollauer had three hits for The Citadel (23-29), who advances to face ETSU Thursday at 3 p.m.
*The teams combined for 18 hits, all singles

The Keydets:
VMI finishes the 2023 season with a 26-29 record. VMI's SoCon (9-11, 45%) winning percentage is the best for the team since 2018 and 26 total wins ties the 2018 squad. The Keydets earned the SoCon tournament's no. 5 seed, the highest for the program in five years.

It was a historic year offensively for VMI, ending the year with 192 stolen bases - the most in NCAA Division I. The Keydets entered the tournament ranking sixth in the nation in batting average, 14th in hits and 20th in runs.
 
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