Ninth Inning Homers Push No. 19 Troy Past USC Upstate in Series Opener

Friday, March 7

Spartanburg, S.C.

2 p.m.

Troy University

12-2

USC Upstate

6-6

Troy

USC Upstate

Ninth Inning Homers Push No. 19 Troy Past USC Upstate in Series Opener

3/7/2025 7:20:00 PM | Baseball

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By: Troy Athletics Communications

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - Back-to-back home runs from Mike Bello and Shane Lewis in the top of the ninth inning pushed No. 19 Troy to an 11-9 win over USC Upstate at Harley Park.

Bello came to the plate with two outs in a 9-9 ballgame, and he launched a 1-2 slider from USC Upstate's Max Bianchini over the right field wall. The very next pitch, Lewis sent a ball 418 feet to right-center to give Troy reliever Luke Lyon a two-run lead. Lyon sent the Spartans down 1-2-3 with a pair of strikeouts, recording the first save of his career.

The barnburner of a ballgame saw a combined ten home runs, five from each team. Blake Cavill and Brooks Bryan hit back-to-back jacks in the top of the first, while Cavill crushed another solo homer over the batter's eye in the fifth.

Troy starter Garrett Gainous pitched 4.1 innings, allowing five hits and five earned runs while allowing three home runs and recording two strikeouts. Noah Thigpen entered the ballgame with a 7-5 lead and allowed a home run to the first batter he faced before settling in and shutting the Spartans down in the sixth and seventh innings while punching out three.

Steven Meier gave the Trojans some insurance in the top of the eighth with a two-run single, but the Spartans fought back to tie it in the bottom of the frame. A hit by pitch and a home run off Jay Dill got USC Upstate back within one, so the Trojans turned to Grady Gorgen.

Gorgen nearly got the Trojans out of the inning with the lead, but Bello came up just short on a diving attempt at a popup in shallow right field to give the Spartans an RBI double. Gorgen retired the next hitter to keep it a tie ballgame.

Game 2 between Troy and USC Upstate is set for 1 p.m. CT at Harley Park.

Quick Hitters

Troy hit five home runs. It's the Trojans' first five-homer game since April 14, 2024, at App State.
Troy had 11 hits. It's the Trojans' sixth game with double-digit hits this season.
Steven Meier went 1-for-4 with a walk and two RBIs, extending his on-base streak to 21 games dating back to last season.
Sean Darnell drew a walk, extending his on-base streak to six games.
Blake Cavill went 3-for-3 with a single, two home runs, two walks and four RBIs, extending his on-base streak to 21 games dating back to last season.
Cavill and Brooks Bryan hit back-to-back home runs in the first inning. It's the first time the Trojans have hit back-to-back home runs this season.
Cavill hit his second home run of the game in the fifth inning, picking up the first multi-homer game of his career.
Cavill's fifth-inning homer traveled 439 feet over the batter's eye in centerfield. It's Troy's longest home run of the season, topping a 434-foot homer by Shane Lewis at Mississippi State.
Brooks Bryan went 1-for-5 with a home run and two RBIs. Bryan now has 24 RBIs on the season after entering the weekend as the Sun Belt leader with 22.
Mike Bello went 1-for-5 with a home run and an RBI, extending his on-base streak to ten games.
Bello hit the go-ahead home run in the top of the ninth inning, his second home run of the season. It's a new single-season career high in home runs for the senior.
Shane Lewis went 2-for-4 with a home run, an HBP, an RBI and a stolen base, extending his on-base streak to nine games.
Lewis followed Bello's ninth inning homer with a solo home run of his own. It was his sixth this season, which surpasses his home run total from last season (5).
Lewis now sits fifth in Troy history for home runs in a career (38).
Jimmy Janicki went 1-for-3 with two walks, extending his on-base streak to eight games.
Jakob Wax went 2-for-4 with a double and a stolen base, picking up the first multi-hit game of his career.
Wax's third-inning double was the first double of his career.
Wax recorded his first career stolen base in the fourth inning.
USC Upstate hit five home runs. It's the most home runs Troy has allowed in a game they won since UAB hit six in a 20-15 Troy win on May 8, 2007. Troy has allowed five home runs in a game just three times under Skylar Meade.
Garrett Gainous recorded two strikeouts. He now sits fifth in Troy history for strikeouts in a career (226).
Freshman Noah Thigpen pitched a season-high 2.2 innings in relief, matching his season-high with three strikeouts,
Grady Gorgen recorded the win, his second this season and third of his career.
Luke Lyon recorded the save with a 1-2-3 ninth inning and a pair of strikeouts. It's the first save of his career.

Quotables

Head Coach Skylar Meade on the high-scoring game...

"There's something to be said for never giving up the lead. Obviously, pitchers don't want to give up a run. I hope they give up zero runs the rest of the year, but that's probably not in the cards. We knew this park was going to play very offensive. They're a top-five offense in the country, and the ball was really flying out. You've just got to withstand those punches that are thrown. It's 0-0. Whether the score is 7-7, 6-6 or 2-2, you play it like it's 0-0, and I thought our guys did a tremendous job of that."

Blake Cavill on his first two home runs of the season...

"I'm finally off zero. The guys around me kept smacking them, and I just kept getting walked every time. I finally decided to swing today, and it really worked."

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Tuesday, August 12

Colby Frieda Signs Free Agent Deal with New York Mets

Thursday, July 24

Next Event

USC Upstate

L, 4-5

Mar 8 (Sat)

1 p.m.

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Team Stats

Pitching:

W: Gorgen, Grady (2-0)

L: BIANCHINI, Max (2-3)

S: Lyon, Luke (1)

Troy

Batting:

2B: Wax, Jakob 1

HR: Cavill, Blake 2 ; Bryan, Brooks 1 ; Bello, Mike 1 ; Lewis, Shane 1

RBI: Meier, Steven 2 ; Cavill, Blake 4 ; Bryan, Brooks 2 ; Bello, Mike 1 ; Lewis, Shane 1

Base Running:

RUNS: Meier, Steven 1 ; Darnell, Sean 1 ; Cavill, Blake 2 ; Bryan, Brooks 1 ; Bello, Mike 1 ; Lewis, Shane 2 ; Janicki, Jimmy 1 ; Watts, Peyton 1 ; Wax, Jakob 1