Adam MacDonald
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA —
VALDOSTA — Kelvin Clark hit three home runs and Eddie Sipple pitched seven shutout innings as the No. 1 Florida Southern Moccasins dismantled No. 12 Valdosta State 12-0 on Sunday at Billy Grant Field to complete a three-game series sweep.
A day after committing nine errors in a doubleheader loss, the Blazers (18-8) played error-free ball.
It didn’t matter.
The Mocs (21-2) helped themselves with four home runs off of VSU starter Jeremy Forbus and two more against reliever Chris Wrobel. Sipple spent the afternoon in cruise control, striking out 11 batters and giving up six singles in seven innings.
Forbus pitched out of trouble in the first and second innings, but the Mocs rocked him in the third. Trae Gore hit a lead off home run to right-center. Colin Kaline followed with a single to left and Clark hit his first of three homers on the day, an opposite field shot to right, that made it 3-0. Wade Kirkland followed with a homer to left, his seventh of the season.
The Mocs added two more runs on three hits in the inning. For the third game in a row, they batted around in an inning against VSU.
Meanwhile, Sipple (5-0) navigated his way through the Blazers’ lineup with relative ease. After giving up a lead off single to Ryan Danbury in the first, he retired 10 batters in a row, including four consecutive strikeouts. With one out in the fourth he gave up back-to-back singles to Brandon Decker and Clayton Cain, but he got Austin Smith to ground into an inning-ending 5-4-3 double play.
Trailing 7-0 in the sixth, the Blazers loaded the bases on Sipple with no outs, but Sipple struck out VSU’s 3-4-5 hitters Decker, Cain and Smith to end the inning. Sipple’s day ended when he got Chris Jones to ground into another inning-ending double play in the seventh.
The Mocs made it 11-0 in the top of the eighth with two more home runs. Gore hit another homer from the lead off spot and Clark connected on his third homer of the day two batters later.
Clark also had a solo homer in the fourth. He finished 3 for 5 with five RBIs and three runs. Gore was 2 for 5 with two RBIs.
Forbus (4-1) took his first loss of the season, giving up seven runs in five innings.
Cain and Jordan Yost both went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts. Smith also struck out twice. Danbury was 1 for 2. He finished the series 5 for 10.
Mocs closer Daniel Tillman pitched the final two innings and struck out the side in the ninth.
The Mocs outscored the Blazers 33-7 in the series.
VSU now makes the long trip to Arkansas. The Blazers play at doubleheader against Henderson State on Tuesday and a doubleheader against Ouachita Baptist on Wednesday.
