Jason Haniger singled to lead off the bottom of the 10th inning and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Jeff Rowland. After reliever Kyle Kamppi struck out Patrick Long for the second out of the inning, Blackmon looped a single over the head of shortstop Brian Pierce and just out of reach of diving left fielder Jonathan King.
Kamppi (0-1) took the loss in relief for the Eagles, giving up one run on two hits. Reliever Brad Rulon (2-0) picked up his second win of the season by pitching a scoreless 10th. He yielded just one hit and struck out one in the process.
Yellow Jacket pitchers Brandon Cumpton, Kevin Jacob, Andrew Robinson and Rulon combined to toss Georgia Tech’s third shutout of the season, one more than the Jackets recorded in all of 2007.
Cumpton, Tech’s starting pitcher, worked out of jams in the second and third innings while limiting the Eagles to two hits through four innings of work. With runners on the corners and no outs in the second, Cumpton struck out Brian Pierce and forced a popup and groundout to get out of the frame.
Georgia Southern loaded the bases with one out in the third inning, but Cumpton again worked out of a jam by striking out Jeremiah Parker and forcing a flyout by catcher Griffin Benedict.
Tech loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the third inning, but Justin Davis forced a groundout by Luke Murton to end the threat. The Georgia Southern starter held the Yellow Jackets to just three hits while striking out eight and walking two.
Neither starting pitcher figured into the decision.
Matt Miller went 2-for-3 for the Eagles and was the only player from either team to notch multiple hits on the day. Tech managed just seven hits while Georgia Southern was held to six.
The Yellow Jackets continue their season-opening 13-game homestand this weekend when they host the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers University. Game times for Friday and Saturday are 4 p.m., and the Jackets and Knights will conclude the three-game series with a 1 p.m. first pitch Sunday. Fans attending Saturday’s men’s basketball game against Wake Forest at 2 p.m. can gain admission to that afternoon’s baseball game for just $1.
2008 GEORGIA TECH BASEBALL Georgia Southern at #22 Georgia Tech Feb. 27, 2008 at Atlanta, Ga. (Russ Chandler Stadium) Georgia Southern 0 (1-4) Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Matt Miller cf........... 3 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 2 Jonathan King lf......... 4 0 1 0 1 1 3 0 0 Chris Shehan rf.......... 3 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 4 Kyle Blackburn dh........ 5 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 Kevin Bowles pr......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 A.J. Wirnsberger 3b...... 4 0 0 0 1 2 0 1 2 Jeremiah Parker 1b....... 3 0 1 0 0 2 8 0 0 Griffin Benedict c....... 5 0 0 0 0 1 13 1 4 Brian Pierce ss.......... 5 0 1 0 0 3 1 2 2 Jeremy Beckham 2b........ 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 Phillip Porter ph....... 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Jake Ware 2b............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Justin Davis p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Blake Nation p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Kyle Kamppi p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Totals................... 35 0 6 0 6 12 29 8 14 Georgia Tech 1 (5-0) Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Jeff Rowland cf.......... 4 0 1 0 0 2 3 0 2 Patrick Long 3b.......... 5 0 1 0 0 4 1 1 0 Charlie Blackmon dh...... 4 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 Luke Murton rf........... 3 0 0 0 1 2 1 1 4 Tony Plagman 1b.......... 4 0 1 0 0 1 8 0 0 Derek Dietrich ss........ 4 0 1 0 0 1 2 0 0 Thomas Nichols 2b........ 4 0 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 Jay Dantzler pr......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jeff Ussery 2b.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Chris House lf........... 2 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 2 Cole Leonida c........... 2 0 0 0 0 2 8 0 0 Chase Burnette ph....... 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 Jason Haniger c......... 1 1 1 0 0 0 3 1 0 Brandon Cumpton p........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Kevin Jacob p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Andrew Robinson p....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Brad Rulon p............ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 34 1 7 1 3 14 30 6 9 Score by Innings R H E --------------------------------------------- Georgia Southern.... 000 000 000 0 - 0 6 0 Georgia Tech........ 000 000 000 1 - 1 7 2 --------------------------------------------- Two outs when winning run scored E - Long, P.(1); Leonida, C.(1). DP - Ga. Southern 1. LOB - Ga. Southern 14; Georgia Tech 9. 2B - Miller(4); Blackburn(2). HBP - Parker 2; Blackmon, C.. SH - Beckham(1); Rowland, J.(1). SB - Miller(1); King(1); Parker(1); Dantzler, J.(2). Georgia Southern IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Justin Davis........ 6.0 3 0 0 2 8 20 23 93 Blake Nation........ 2.2 2 0 0 1 5 10 11 41 Kyle Kamppi......... 1.0 2 1 1 0 1 4 5 19 Georgia Tech IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Brandon Cumpton..... 4.0 2 0 0 5 4 14 21 82 Kevin Jacob......... 3.0 2 0 0 0 4 10 10 45 Andrew Robinson..... 2.0 1 0 0 1 3 7 8 35 Brad Rulon.......... 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 4 5 24 Win - Rulon, B. (2-0). Loss - Kamppi (0-1). Save - None. WP - Cumpton, B.(1). HBP - by Cumpton, B. (Parker); by Davis (Blackmon, C.); by Rulon, B. (Parker). PB - Benedict(1). Inherited runners/scored: Kamppi 1/0. Pitches/strikes: Davis 93/51; Nation 41/27; Kamppi 19/14; Cumpton, B. 82/43; Jacob, K. 45/31; Robinson, A. 35/21; Rulon, B. 24/12. Umpires - HP: David Savage 1B: Kevin Lz 3B: Ken Couch Game Time Conditions: 35 degrees, sunny Start: 4:00 pm Time: 3:05 Attendance: 843