Homers Lead Western Carolina Past Clemson 6-2 Tuesday

April 15, 2008

Clemson, SC –

Western Carolina hit two homers on its way to a 6-2 win over Clemson on Tuesday night in front of 3,674 fans at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The Catamounts improved to 17-18, while the Tigers dropped to 18-18.

Catamount reliever Drew Saberhagen (3-3) pitched 2.1 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out one to earn the win. Tyler Sexton picked up his second save of the season by pitching the final 1.1 innings without giving up a run.

Barrett Shaft finished the contest 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and four RBIs, while Reid Rollison went 3-for-3 with a solo homer. Five different Tigers tallied one hit apiece.

Matt Vaughn (0-2) suffered the loss, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out three in 4.0 innings pitched.

The Catamounts took an early lead in the second inning when Rollison hit a two-out, solo home run to left field. It was the sophomore’s first career home run.

The Tigers tied the score in the third inning when Matt Sanders lined his first career home run, a one-out solo shot to left.

In the sixth inning, Chris Epps drew a leadoff walk before Stan Widmann singled up the middle and was caught in a run-down that allowed Epps to score.

Western Carolina took a 3-2 lead in the seventh when Shaft hit a two-out, two-run homer to center. It was his third long ball of the season.

In the eighth inning, Mike Freeman reached first on a fielding error, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, and went to third on an infield single before he was caught stealing at home 2-6-2.

The Catamounts added three insurance runs in the ninth inning thanks in part to a costly Tiger error. Leadoff batter Jason Haynes reached on an error. Later in the frame with the bases loaded, Shaft singled through the right side, driving home two runners. Brent Greer then reached on a fielder’s choice to the pitcher that brought in another run.

Clemson and Western Carolina will play again on April 22 at 7:00 PM in Cullowhee, NC.

Clemson will return to action on Wednesday night when it hosts #10 South Carolina at 7:15 PM. The game will be televised live by CSS.