VALDOSTA — Valdosta State played two of its best baseball games of the season on Saturday, and swept a doubleheader with Christian Brothers at Billy Grant Field, winning 7-0 and 12-2.

Kevin Rogers and Benjamin Weil combined on a two-hit shutout in Game 1, then Jarod Carlton tossed five-plus scoreless innings in Game 2. And the Blazers’ bats exploded for 19 runs in two games.

“I was pleased with the way that we played all around,” Valdosta State head coach Greg Guilliams said. “I thought we got good starting pitching, swung the bats, played good defense. Today was a good day for us.”

Valdosta State improved to 12-7, and 4-1 in Gulf South Conference play.

VSU and Christian Brothers will wrap up their three-game series today at 1 p.m. Pete Whittingslow (1-1, 1.17 ERA) will go to the mound for the Blazers.



Valdosta State 7, Christian Brothers 0

Rogers was dominant on the mound, and the Blazers pounded out 10 hits in their Game 1 win.

The senior southpaw from Stockton, Calif. pitched eight shutout innings, held the Buccaneers to just two hits and struck out eight. Rogers (1-2) now has a 2.41 earned run average.

“He’s been pitching very well,” Guilliams said. “Last weekend, he threw seven shutout innings and we couldn’t hang on to a 4-0 lead. Today he threw eight shutout innings. ... Quite honestly, he’s pitched like that all year.”

With one out in the bottom of the first, Chaz Bagwell was hit by a pitch. Christian Glisson doubled off of the Langdale Honda sign in right, putting runners on second and third. Then Cameron Graves hit a long fly ball to right that was caught on the warning track, but Bagwell tagged up and scored the first run of the game.

Valdosta State added a run in the fourth. With two outs and Graves on second, Austin Lawrence beat out an infield single. When the throw got by the first baseman, Graves ran home to give VSU a 2-0 lead.

Then the Blazers exploded for four runs in the bottom of the fifth. Bagwell singled to center to start the inning. Glisson’s double into the gap in left center put runners on second and third with nobody out. Graves hit a chopper in front of the mound. Christian Brothers pitcher Alex Sikes flipped the ball with his glove to catcher Alan Wright, but Bagwell slid under the tag to give VSU a 3-0 lead.

Ryan Noelte then lined the ball down the right field line. Glisson scored easily, Graves raced around the bases to score and Noelte went all the way to third with a triple. CBU shortstop Jose Verdejo fielded Marc Overstreet’s ground ball and threw home, but Noelte beat the throw to the plate, giving the Blazers a 6-0 lead.

VSU tacked on one more run in the bottom of the eighth. Alex Smith led off with a double to left, stole third and tagged up and scored on Bagwell’s fly ball to the warning track in left, giving the Blazers a 7-0 lead.

Weil pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to close out the win, striking out the final two batters.

Glisson, who leads the team with a .462 average, went 3 for 5 and scored a run. Graves was 2 for 3 with two runs scored and two more driven in. Noelte had two RBIs.

Sikes (2-2) took the loss, allowing six runs, five earned, in 4 1/3 innings.



Valdosta State 12, Christian Brothers 2

The Blazers scored eight runs in the first four innings, and completed the doubleheader sweep with a 12-2 win in Game 2.

Carlton (4-0) allowed no runs and just three hits in the first five innings, before Christian Brothers got a pair of runs and a pair of hits in the sixth. He struck out seven batters.

“Jarod has thrown very well for us,” Guilliams said. “It seems like every time he pitches, we score him a lot of runs. He’s pitched very well also.”

Valdosta State gave Carlton an early lead, scoring three runs in the first inning. Noelte walked to start the bottom of the first, then Bagwell walked and Glisson was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Graves followed with a single through the right side of the infield, scoring Noelte. Glisson was tagged out on the play. Then Graves stole second, and when the catcher threw to second, Bagwell took off for home and scored. One out later, Overstreet’s single to left plated Graves, giving VSU a 3-0 lead.

With one out in the second, Smith bunted for a hit and stole second. Noelte followed with a single to left, driving in Smith. Then Noelte stole second, and came home when Glisson lined a two-out single to center. Graves followed with a double to left center, which scored Glisson and won everyone in the crowd two hot dogs (because it was the Diggidees Double Dog Inning). The RBI double also gave the Blazers a 6-0 lead.

Overstreet led off the bottom of the third with a long fly ball that disappeared over the Tillman Insurance sign in left center for a solo home run, extending the Blazers’ lead to 7-0.

With Glisson on first and one out in the bottom of the fourth, Graves connected with a pitch and blasted it over the First State Bank sign in right field for a two-run homer, giving VSU a 9-0 lead.

Christian Brothers scored its first two runs of the day in the top of the sixth. With runners on the corners and no outs, Brent Ariemma drove in Hunter Parham with a single to left. At that point, Guilliams pulled Carlton and brought in Weil. With one out, Jon-Michael Davis hit a fly ball to center, and Mac Cooley tagged up and scored, making it 9-2.

But VSU answered with three more runs in the bottom of the sixth. Bagwell singled, Glisson walked and both of them moved up on a wild pitch. Chad Grant grounded to short, but Bagwell scored. One out later, Overstreet hit his second home run of the game, this one a two-run blast, giving Valdosta State a commanding 12-2 lead.

Overstreet went 3 for 4 with two home runs and four RBIs in Game 2. Graves was 3 for 3 with a homer, two runs scored and four runs batted in. Glisson was 2 for 2, scored three runs and also had an RBI. In the doubleheader, Graves went 5 for 6 with five RBIs and Glisson was 5 for 7 with four runs scored.