Box score

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Right-hander Randy Bell tied a career-high with seven strikeouts to lead the 23rd-ranked University of South Alabama baseball team to an 8-2 win over Alabama Wednesday at Sewell-Thomas Stadium.

Bell (3-1) allowed two runs and scattered eight hits in eight innings, while issuing two walks to go with his seven strikeouts to earn his third win of the season and his third in as many starts.

"Randy kept his fastball out of the middle for the most part, and he threw enough breaking balls for strikes," head coach Mark Calvi said. "He's been better the last two outings, and I was a little concerned early on. But I learned something about Randy. I haven't seen him have to pitch against a really good lineup when he was about 80 percent. He didn't have the 90 to 91 (mph) velocity; he topped out around 88 and may have hit 89 once. He wasn't quite as sharp with his stuff, but the mark of a real pitcher is a guy who goes out there and wins anyway and give his team a chance.

"Our guys have a lot of faith in him when he takes the mound, and I think they learned more about Randy tonight. He wasn't as sharp as he has been the last two weeks, but you would never know it with the way he carried himself on the mound. We're proud of the way Randy has competed, and certainly proud of his effort tonight."

Crimson Tide right-hander Kyle Cameron (2-2) allowed six runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts in four innings in the loss.

Alabama (23-15) took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning on a two-out RBI single back up the middle by Chandler Avant.

South Alabama (28-10) answered with five runs in the top of the fourth to take a four-run lead. Drew LaBounty led off the inning with a single to right field, and Danny Martinez followed with a single through the right side of the infield. A sacrifice bunt by Carter Perkins moved both runners into scoring position with one out. Brendan Donovan followed with a walk to load the bases with one out for Jared Barnes, who delivered a two-run single into left field to score LaBounty and Martinez for a 2-1 Jaguar lead. A wild pitch one batter later from UA right-hander Kyle Cameron allowed Donovan to score for a 3-1 advantage, before Gann singled to center field with one out to plate Barnes for a 4-1 USA lead. Travis Swaggerty followed with a two-out RBI single to center field to extend his hitting streak to 10 games and score Gann to extend the Jaguar lead to 5-1.

USA pushed across a pair of runs in the top of the fifth for a six-run advantage. Cole Billingsley led off the top of the fifth with a triple off of the right field wall. LaBounty followed with a walk to put runners at the corners with no outs. A double steal allowed Billingsley to score for a 6-1 USA lead, and LaBounty to move to second. Martinez followed with a single to right field to put runners at the corners with no outs for the second time in the inning. Perkins then drew a walk to load the bases for Donovan, who reached on an RBI fielder's choice that scored Billingsley to push the USA lead to 7-1.

South Alabama added its final run in the top of the seventh when Martinez drew a walk with one out, and later scored on a two-out RBI double to left-center field by Donovan for an 8-1 Jag lead.

The Crimson Tide scored the game's final run on a two-out RBI single to center field by Chance Vincent in the bottom of the eighth.

Barnes went 2-for-4 with a double, two RBI and one run scored to lead the Jaguars at the plate. Martinez finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored, and Donovan added a double, two RBI and one run scored. Gann finished with one hit, one RBI and one run scored, and Billingsley had a triple and three stolen bases. Avant went 3-for-4 with two doubles, one RBI and one run scored to lead Alabama offensively.

"Any time you can beat a good team like Alabama, it's a feather in your cap later on down the line if your body of work is enough at the end of the season," Calvi said. "I'm proud of our guys for the way they played tonight. They didn't play outside of themselves; they just tried to go out there and play a good game of baseball and that's what we did."

USA will return to action when it hosts Southern this weekend at Stanky Field, with the series opener scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday evening.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/USAJaguarSports. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).