JACKSONVILLE, Fla.- In a game that took just under five hours to
complete, Ryan Hamme knotted the contest with a grand slam in the
sixth, but North Florida was able to push a run across in the
bottom of the ninth to hand Campbell an 8-7 Atlantic Sun loss,
Friday night at Harmon Stadium. Campbell (10-19, 5-11 A-Sun) drops to
2-6 in A-Sun games decided by one run, while North Florida (17-12,
8-8 A-Sun) has won eight of its last ten games.
TJ
Thompson, a sophomore from Jacksonville, Fla., picked up the
game-winning RBI in the bottom of the ninth as he took Campbell
reliever Hunter Ford's first pitch and drove it up the middle
scoring Michael Smith, who led the inning off with a walk. Thompson was one of five Ospreys
to have multi-hit nights.
Ford (1-1) suffered the loss for Campbell, despite throwing 3 1/3
innings of solid baseball.
The sophomore from Wilmington, N.C. scattered five hits, struck out
a batter but allowed a run.
North Florida's Tyler Stohr (2-2) picked up his second victory of
the season striking out two batters in a shutout inning of
work.
Hamme was phenomenal at the plate as he collected career highs in
RBI (5), hits (4) and runs scored (3). The junior infielder from Wilmington,
N.C. stroked his seventh career long ball, and first career grand
slam. Carlton Floyd also
collected a season high three hits and John Watlington had two of
his own.
Ironically, the last time a
member of Campbell's baseball team hit a grand slam was May 12,
2007, when Brandon Scott lifted off against North Florida at Taylor
Field.
Ellis Lowe had a 1-for-5 day, but extended his team-leading hitting
streak to 11 games with a double to left-center in the sixth
inning.
Campbell finally stopped North Florida's potent offense with its
first shutout inning, which came in the fourth, after scoring
single runs in the first and second. Scott scored Hamme with an RBI single
to left in the first, and Hamme switched roles in the second,
driving in Watlington who doubled to right-center earlier in the
inning.
The Ospreys' collected seven hits and seven runs in their first
three innings, including three runs in both the first and
second. After Campbell's
starter Justin Lilly grabbed two quick outs in the first he ran
into trouble as he hit Preston Hale, gave up a single to Travis
Martin and walked Andrew Hannon. RBI singles by TJ Gaudy and Mike Smith
followed making the score 3-1 at the end of the first.
Three consecutive singles by Michael Gropper, Thompson and Chad
Knight set the stage for yet another North Florida three run
inning. After Hale picked
up an RBI on an error by Campbell shortstop Zach Johnson and Martin
drove in a run on a double to left, Camel reliever Trevor Smith
escaped a bases loaded jam in the second inducing two pop ups and a
strikeout.
The see-saw action continued as North Florida tacked on another run
in the third making the score 7-2, but Campbell proved to be
relentless scoring a single run in the fifth and four in sixth to
tie the score at seven.
Floyd knocked in Hamme with a single up the middle in the fifth,
and Hamme did the damage in the sixth as he lifted Phil Rorabaugh's
2-2 offering deep to right field, elevating the Camels' hopes with
one swing of the bat.
After Smith and Ford held North Florida scoreless in its next five
innings, Thompson's ninth inning heroics snuffed out Campbell's
hopes of a late inning comeback, finalizing the score at 8-7.
Campbell concludes its
series at North Florida with a double header tomorrow (April 5) at
Harmon Stadium. The games
are set to begin at 1 p.m.
