Troy Dominates Jacksonville State 9-1

Tuesday, March 27

Jacksonville, Ala.

6:30 p.m.

Troy University

Jacksonville State

Danny Collins

Photo by: Lisa Ray

3/27/2012 10:09:00 PM | Baseball

By: Adam Prendergast

BOX SCORE

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. – Troy belted out six extra-base hits, including a pair of home runs, to cruise past Jacksonville State 9-1 Tuesday night in non-conference action at Rudy Abbott Field. The Trojans are now 4-1 in mid-week games this season.

Six Trojans finished the game with multiple hits and four pitchers combined to strikeout 13 Gamecock batters in the victory.

Danny Collins became the third Troy player to drive in five or more runs in a game this season after pushing five runs across the plate on a pair of hits. Collins put the Trojans (12-11) on the board with a two-run double in the first and iced the game with a three-run home run – his fourth of the season – in the fifth inning.

Jakob Nixon became the fifth Trojan to be inserted into the leadoff spot in the lineup this season and responded with three hits and two runs scored in five at-bats. Chase Mathis improved to 11-for-27 (.407) over the past seven games after belting a pair of doubles in five at-bats. Logan Pierce finished the game 2-for-5 to extend his hit streak out to 13 games, while Tyler Hannah and Boone Shear added a pair of hits.

Joe Hernandez (2-0) was nearly untouchable in three innings to start the game for the Trojans. The junior right-hander, who was making his first start, struck out five and allowed just one hit – a ball that the Troy defense lost in the lights – to pick up the win.

Shear tattooed an 0-2 offering off Jacksonville State reliever Casey Antley to lead off the fourth inning for his fifth home run of the season.

Nixon and Hannah kept the pressure on as they led off the Troy half of the fifth inning with back-to-back singles. Pierce extended the Troy lead out to 4-0 with a single back up the middle to score Nixon and Jacksonville State (8-16) responded by going to the bullpen for Tanner Freshour to face Collins. Collins need just two pitches to prove the decision a bad one as he blistered a home run over the wall in left-center field.

Mathis tacked Troy's final runs on the board in the seventh inning with a double just inside the line in left field after Collins walked and Shear singled. Stephen Bartlett provided the only run for Jacksonville State with a single in the seventh.

The Troy bullpen combined to hold Jacksonville State to just one run over six innings. Nate Hill tossed the first three frames out of the pen, Thomas Austin followed with 1.2 innings and Tyson Workman struck out the side in the ninth.

The Trojans have a quick turnaround as they travel to Montgomery, Ala., Wednesday evening for a game at Alabama State. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m.