Box score

TROY, Ala. – Trevor Davis' two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning lifted Troy to a 4-2 win over No. 23 University of South Alabama baseball Friday at Riddle-Pace Field.

Justin Friend singled to center field with one out in the bottom of the eighth, and was lifted for pinch-runner Shaw Pinnell. Davis then lifted a 2-0 pitch from Jaguar right-hander Avery Geyer over the left field wall for a two-run home run.

"Avery Geyer was good," USA head coach Mark Calvi said. "He was aggressive and fell behind to a fastball hitter, and he put a good swing on it and hit it out. But Avery had good stuff; he had a good fastball and his strikeout numbers show it. I don't feel good with the loss, but I am okay with how we competed and how we got there. We had our chances, and we had our chances there at the end. (Troy starter) Lucas Brown is as good a pitcher as there is in this league, there is no question about it; his numbers show it. 

"We have seen two of the top four or five pitchers in this league the last two nights, and we are 1-1. It is all about tomorrow; it's a day where you have to strap it on and play good defense. We need to match their (Troy) intensity in the batter's box. Not taking anything away from Brown, I thought he was really good. He had good sink, threw his changeup and kept guys off-balance. It was hard to dig in and take a good swing off of him. It was a good college baseball game; both teams competed really hard. We have a quick turnaround so we have to let this one go and come out and play tomorrow."

Troy (31-24, 16-13 SBC) took a one-run lead in the bottom of the second. Davis singled to left field with one out, stole second and moved to third on a groundout to second by Cameron Sanders. Brandon Lockridge followed with a two-out RBI single up the middle to score Davis with the game's first run.

The Trojans doubled their lead to two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Joey Denison drew a leadoff walk in the inning, stole second and moved to third on a two-out infield single to shortstop from Lockridge to put runners at the corners. Chase Smartt then reached on a fielding error by Ryan Raspino at second to allow Denison to score and double the Trojan lead to 2-0.

South Alabama (38-17, 21-8 SBC) answered with its final runs of the contest to tie the game in the top of the fifth. Jared Barnes singled through the left side of the infield to lead off the inning, and advanced to second on a walk by Danny Martinez. The Jaguars plated their first run of the game later in the inning when Trojan left fielder Trevor Davis dropped a fly ball off the bat of Drew LaBounty with two outs to allow Martinez to score and cut the Troy lead to 2-1. Cole Billingsley followed with an RBI single through the right side of the infield to score Ben Gann and tie the game 2-2. 

Troy right-hander Lucas Brown (8-4) allowed two runs on four hits with eight strikeouts and two walks in eight innings in the win. Trojan right-hander Marc Skinner struck out two and issued two walks in one inning to earn his first save of the season. Geyer (1-2) allowed two runs on three hits with five strikeouts in three innings in the loss.

Billingsley went 1-for-4 with an RBI to lead the Jaguars at the plate, while Davis finished 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored to lead the Trojans offensively.

The rubber match is scheduled for a 1 p.m. first pitch on Saturday.

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).