Stewart’s seven innings lift Troy baseball in Sun Belt Tournament
A dominant seven-inning performance from Grayson Stewart lifted third-seeded Troy to a 9-4 win over sixth-seeded Old Dominion to advance to the Sun Belt Tournament semifinals.
Stewart, a senior from Dothan, Ala., became the fifth player in Troy history to reach 250 career strikeouts with his sixth punchout of the game, cementing himself in the Trojan record books. The right-hander tied his career high in innings pitched and allowed nine hits, two earned runs, no walks and seven strikeouts.
Old Dominion’s only damage against Stewart came in the second inning as the Monarchs scored two runs on four hits. The veteran settled in after, working five consecutive scoreless innings. He stranded two runners on an inning-ending double play in the fifth and set the Monarchs down 1-2-3 in both the sixth and seventh.
Troy knocked ODU starter Frankie Wright out of the ballgame in just two-thirds of an inning, putting up a four-spot in the top of the first behind a two-run blast from centerfielder Steven Meier, a transfer from Old Dominion.
The Trojans tacked on a run in the sixth with an RBI single from Jimmy Janicki before exploding for four runs in the seventh, recording four hits and an HBP in the frame while capitalizing on an ODU error on a Blake Cavill sacrifice bunt.
Colby Frieda pitched the final two innings for the Trojans after entering with a 9-2 lead. The senior struck out two and walked two, allowing a pair of runs on a two-run homer by ODU third baseman Maverick Stallings in the eighth.
Sun Belt Tournament – What’s Next
The Trojans return to action at 9 a.m. tomorrow at Riverwalk Stadium against second-seeded Southern Miss. If the Trojans win, they’ll face the Golden Eagles again at 3 p.m. for a chance to punch their ticket to the Sun Belt Tournament Championship Game.
Quick Hitters
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Troy used its 48th different lineup this season.
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Troy had all nine starters record a hit for the third time this season.
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Troy’s six stolen bases were its most in a game this season.
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Troy is 31-6 when hitting at least one home run.
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Troy is 19-3 when scoring in the first inning and 27-8 when scoring first.
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Troy is 15-5 when playing errorless defense.
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Blake Cavill extended his on-base streak to 64 games dating back to last season, going 1-for-3 with a single, an HBP, a sac bunt and an RBI.
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Steven Meier extended his on-base streak to 11 games, going 1-for-3 with a home run, a walk, an HBP and two RBS. Meier has reached base safely in 55-of-56 games played this season.
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Meier’s two-run home run in the first inning was his eighth homer of the season.
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Meier’s HBP was 28th of the season, the most in a single-season in Troy history. He entered the day tied for sixth nationally in HBPs
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Meier recorded his 14th multi-RBI game of the season.
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Brooks Bryan extended his on-base streak to 11 games and hitting streak to ten games, going 1-for-2 with three walks.
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Bryan’s three walks are a new career high.
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Sean Darnell recorded his 14th multi-RBI game of the season, going 1-for-4 with two RBIs.
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Gavin Schrader recorded his tenth multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-4.
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Schrader stole three bases. It was the first multi-stolen base game of his career.
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Mike Bello recorded his sixth multi-hit and fourth multi-RBI game of the season, going 2-for-5 with three RBIs.
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Bello’s three RBIs tied his career high. He also recorded three RBIs earlier this season against Bellarmine on February 15.
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Bello stole two bases. It was the first multi-stolen base game of his career.
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Grayson Stewart pitched 7.0 innings with nine hits, two earned runs, no walks and seven strikeouts.
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Stewart’s sixth strikeout of the game was the 250th of his career. He’s the fifth pitcher in Troy history to reach 250 career strikeouts.
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Stewart earned his sixth win of the season and 25th of his career. He’s tied with Donnie Elsbury for the third-most wins in Troy history.
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Stewart’s 7.0 innings tied his career high. It was the fourth time in his career he reached the seven-inning mark.
Quotables
Head coach Skylar Meade on moving to the next round of the Sun Belt Tournament…
“Our mission since Wednesday night was to get to Saturday. If you get to Saturday, things can happen. We just wanted that opportunity, and we’ve certainly earned it by what we’ve been able to do these last couple of days.”
Grayson Stewart on recording 250 career strikeouts…
“It means the world to me. This place, Troy, means the world to me too. Just the relationships I’ve made and the person that it’s made me become. Troy baseball, I’m in debt to it forever. It’s just a testament to the way I’ve worked and the way the coaches have trusted me.”
