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MOBILE, Ala. – Brad Hook delivered a bases-loaded walk-off single to center field in the bottom of the ninth inning to lead University of South Alabama baseball to a 4-3 win over UT-Martin Saturday afternoon at Stanky Field.
Hook worked the count to 2-1 off of Skyhawk reliever Wes Patterson before jumping on a fastball from the right-hander.
“Early in the count, I was looking for an inside fastball,” Hook said. “Then I got a fastball on the inner-half later in the count and put a good swing on it. I think this win will do a lot for us moving forward. It shows our team will fight for all nine innings, and hopefully we will continue to do that.”
The Jags went into their final at-bat down 3-1 to UTM after Skyhawk left fielder Matt Milligan doubled to score two in the top of the seventh inning.
Logan Kirkland led off the bottom of the ninth with a walk, then Taylor White reached on an error by UTM first baseman Drew Mason. With one out in the inning, Jake Overstreet doubled to left field on a 1-0 pitch from Patterson that scored Kirkland and White to tie the game 3-3.
The Skyhawks then intentionally walked Brent Tanner and Nolan Earley to load the bases before Hook delivered the game-winning hit.
“Our pitching held us in the game early,” Jaguar head coach Steve Kittrell said. “Jeff Miller threw well and didn’t give them a chance to jump out to a big lead – he shut them down. He pitched well and gave us an opportunity to have a chance at the end. They jumped ahead of us 3-1, and we just couldn’t get a big hit until the ninth inning; then the guys clutched up. It was a big win for us. It’s early in the year, and we still have to get better offensively, but it was a huge win.”
Hook went 2-for-5 with an RBI, and Kirkland went 2-for-3 with two doubles and a run scored to lead South Alabama at the plate. Overstreet finished 1-for-4 with a double, two RBI and scored the game-winning run. Taylor White added a hit, scored one run and stole a base.
Jaguar right-hander Kyle Dees (1-0) earned the win in three shutout innings of relief, and allowed just three hits while striking out two. USA right-hander Jeff Miller pitched six solid innings, allowing just one run on three hits while striking out five, but did not factor in the decision.
Patterson (0-1) suffered the loss for UT-Martin, allowing two runs on one hit in 1/3 of an inning.
Milligan went 3-for-4 with a double, two RBI and a run scored to lead the Skyhawks at the plate. Matt Haynes went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
UT-Martin took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning on a two-out double by Haynes that scored Milligan, who singled earlier in the inning.
South Alabama (2-0) tied the game in the bottom of the fifth when UT-Martin center fielder Trey Karlan dropped a two-out fly ball off the bat of Jeff DeBlieux allowing Kirkland, who doubled for the second time in the game earlier in the inning, to score from second base.
The Skyhawks opened up a 3-1 lead in the top of the seventh inning on a two-run double down the left field line by Milligan that scored Patterson and Chase Okey, who both reached on walks earlier in the inning.
UTM (0-2) loaded the bases in the top of the ninth on a hit by pitch, single by Milligan and walk by Haynes, but Dees struck out Skyhawk second baseman Cory Stooksbury to end the inning.
The final game of the three-game series will conclude Sunday at 1 p.m. at Stanky Field.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
-USA-
NOTES: Overstreet extended his hitting streak to eight games with his double in the ninth, and made his 155th consecutive start at third base … White upped his hitting streak to six games … Dees earned his first career win.
