April 21, 2001
FURMAN TRIPS WESTERN CAROLINA 6-1 IN BASEBALL ACTION SATURDAY
GREENVILLE -- Adam Etherington's two-out, two-run triple in the seventh inning broke open a close game and helped lift Furman to a 6-1 win over Western Carolina in Southern Conference baseball action Saturday night at Furman Stadium.
With the win, Furman (24-18, 13-9 SoCon) earned its fourth straight victory and moved into fourth place in the league. Western Carolina (20-21, 12-10 SoCon), meanwhile, dropped its second consecutive game and fell into a fifth place tie in the conference with Appalachian State.
Etherington's key hit, off Catamount reliever Ryan Foster, sailed over the head of right fielder Rod Goldston and plated Cole Hubka and Danny Rueckel to give the Paladins a 4-1 lead. Furman's Clint Hill then delivered a single to center field to score Etherington to make it 5-1. The Paladins added another run in the eighth to stretch their advantage to 6-1.
Furman's three-run seventh helped make a winner of Paladin starter Corey Etheridge (4-3), who pitched 6 2/3 inning of strong ball, yielding seven hits, one run, and two walks while striking out seven. Seth Foster (3-3) was charged with the loss after exiting the game with one out in the sixth and the Catamounts trailing 2-1.
Etheridge's winning decision came after the Paladins worked their way out of jam in the Western Carolina seventh. After yielding a pair of singles and a walk to load the bases, Etheridge exited the game with two outs in favor of reliever Jeff Stovall, who got Todd Buchanan, the Catamounts' leading hitter, on a ground out to first base to end the threat.
Stovall then worked a perfect eighth before giving way to Rob Purvis, who retired the Catamounts in the ninth, ending the game on a double play groundout.
Danny Rueckel and Clint Hill joined Etherington in Furman's eight hit attack, with Rueckel going 3-for-4 with a run and Hill going 2-for-4 with an RBI, run, and two stolen bases.
Ryan Schade paced Western Carolina at the plate with a 2-for-3 performance that included the Catamounts' only run, a solo home run in the top of the first that gave Western Carolina a brief 1-0 lead, which Furman tied in the bottom of the frame on Chris Valdes' solo home run, his third of the year, to left field.
Furman and Western Carolina conclude the three-game series on Sunday beginning at 1:00 p.m.