FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - There were fireworks both on and off the field as Dean Curley (Tennesee) hit a two-out single to give the Stars a 4-3 walk-off victory over the Stripes at Segra Stadium on July 4.
AS IT HAPPENED
- AJ Gracia (Duke) got the game off to a loud start in the top of the second inning, when he crushed a solo shot to right-center to give the Stripes a 1-0 lead.
- Drew Burress (Georgia Tech) evened the score for the Stars in the bottom of the third when he crushed a solo blast of his own to left-center, to tie the game at 1-1.
- Curley kept the trend going with another solo homer on a line drive to left field, and that put the Stars ahead, 2-1, through four frames.
- The Stars scored their third unanswered run in the bottom of the fifth inning by way of an RBI single by Burress, to drive in Marek Houston (Wake Forest). That put the Stars ahead, 3-1. The Stripes defense turned a bases-loaded, inning-ending double play to stop the Stars’ momentum, as Justin Lebron (Alabama), Jamal George (Alabama State), and Henry Ford (Virginia) worked the ball around the diamond.
- The Stripes put the pressure right back on the Stars in the top of the sixth as they loaded the bases, but Nelson Keljo (Oregon State) threw back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning.
- The Stars made two great defensive plays in the top of the seventh inning with a leaping grab at the wall by Devin Taylor (Indiana) to prevent extra bases, and a diving snag at first base by Anthony Martinez (UC Irvine) to snare a sinking liner to end the inning, but the Stripes found a way to put a run on the board to trim the deficit. Ford drove in Alex Sosa (North Carolina State) on a single to left field, and that made the score 3-2, with the Stars still leading.
- The Stripes fought back to bring the game to level in the top of the ninth, after Lebron led off with a triple down the right field line. Tre Phelps (Georgia) brought him in on a sacrifice fly deep to center field to tie the game at 3-3. Alton Davis II (Georgia) came in from the bullpen, and retired the next two batters on two pitches, and sent the Stars to the plate with a chance to walk it off.
- The Stars filled the bases in the bottom of the ninth after a pair of intentional walks, and Curley hit a two-out flare single to right field to send the fans home with a memorable 4-3 walk-off.
NOTABLE STATS
- Curley had a two-hit night with a homer, plus the walk-off single, and generated two RBI for the Stars.
- Burress was red-hot at the top of the lineup for the Stars as he reached in four consecutive plate appearances. He hit a solo home run in the third inning, an RBI single in the fifth, singled again in the seventh, and was given an intentional pass in the ninth.
- RJ Austin Jr. (Vanderbilt) was the third batter with a multi-hit night, as he picked up a double, a single, and stole one base for the Stars.
- The Stripes pitching staff combined for 10 strikeouts, led by Kyle Johnson (Duke) who twirled four strikeouts in three innings as the starter. Miller Green (Vanderbilt) racked up three more in 1.2 innings of relief.
