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Klinker Hurls Furman Past Wofford, 11-2
May 4, 2007
SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Matt Klinker hurled 7 2/3 innings of strong ball and Jay Jackson and Will Stembridge delivered a pair of home runs to propel Furman to an 11-2 win over Wofford in the opening game of a three-game Southern Conference baseball series Friday evening at Russell C. King Stadium.
Klinker (4-5), a senior right hander from West Chester, Ohio, fashioned his longest outing of the 2007 campaign, limiting Wofford to just five hits, two runs, and two walks while recording a season high nine strikeouts. Nick Hollstegge, who entered the game with two down in the eighth inning and the potential tying run on deck, held the Terriers hitless over the final 1 1/3 innings while striking out the side in the ninth to notch his third save of the campaign. Klinker and Hollstegge combined to notch 12 strikeouts, an opponent season high.
Jackson broke open a close 4-2 game with two-run home run in the seventh, and Stembridge completed the Paladin offensive onslaught with a grand slam in a five-run ninth inning.
The win was the eighth straight triumph for Furman (14-32, 9-13 SoCon) against Wofford (21-26, 4-15 SoCon) and fourth consecutive victory in Spartanburg. The Paladins are now 29-6 against the Terriers under head coach Ron Smith.
Wofford opened the scoring in the first inning after Michael Gilmartin led off with a double, advanced to third on a groundout, and came home on Shane Kirkley's RBI grounder.
Furman tied the game at 1-1 in the third when Connor Lind tripled with one out and came in to score after Marcus Rose reached on a fielding error.
Both teams tallied single runs in the fourth to make it a 2-2 game.
Furman took the lead for good in the fifth after Joey Rodgers doubled, moved to third on a sacrifice, and came home on a wild pitch.
In the seventh Wofford starting and losing pitcher Austin Redwine (4-4) hit Joey Rodgers and Marcus Rose. After Bobby Hubbard drove home Rodgers with a sacrifice fly to give the Paladins a 4-2 advantage, Jackson completed the three-run frame with a two-run blast to right center field off Terrier reliever Charles Vartanian to stretch the lead to 6-2.
Wofford's best chance to climb back into the game came in the eighth after Klinker retired the two batters he faced before yielding back-to-back walks to Sterling Dye and Shane Kirkley. Hollstegge replaced the tiring Klinker and got out of the inning by retiring Brandon Waring, who had earlier homered, on a fielder's choice force play at second base.
Lind led off the Furman ninth with a single, and Rose reached on an error. With one out, Jackson was walked intentionally to load the bases, and Tony Maccani worked an RBI walk from Vartanian, who then served up a grand slam home run to right field by Stembridge to complete the five-run outburst.
Stembridge went 2-for-4 with four RBI and two runs scored, and Lind also had two hits in four at bats. Furman finished with nine hits.
Michael Gilmartin had two of Wofford's five hits -- the second lowest total by the Terriers in their last 21 games.
Game two of the series is set for 1:00 p.m. Saturday.
