FLORENCE, S.C. - Senior right-hander David Walters pitched eight strong innings and the first five batters in the Francis Marion University line-up combined for nine hits as the Patriots beat Georgia Southwestern State University 7-2, Friday evening (April 10) in Peach Belt Conference baseball action.

Francis Marion (24-13-1) moves into third place in the PBC standings with an 11-9 conference mark, while the Hurricanes fall to 14-27 and 6-13.  The two squads will conclude their three-game series with a doubleheader on Saturday at 1 p.m. on Cormell Field.

Walters improved his pitching record to 6-3 as he allowed only five hits and one run in eight innings.  He struck out three and walked three.  GSW senior righty Andrew Whiggum (3-6) was the losing pitcher although only one of the six runs he allowed in 4.2 innings was earned.

FMU junior Martin Gordon continued his strong play as he went 2-for-5 with two runs scored, two stolen bases, and a diving catch of a shallow liner in center field.  He is 14 for his last 22 and owns a six-game hitting streak.

Junior right fielder Alex Lee was 2-for-3 with two runs scored, two doubles, and two RBIs, while senior catcher Jared Barkdoll was 2-for-4 with an RBI and junior designated hitter Jacob Wallace was 2-for-3 with two runs batted in.

Third baseman Zach Stanton was the lone Hurricane with multiple hits as he went 2-for-4 with a run scored.

FMU scored twice in the opening frame with Barkdoll and Wallace producing run-scoring hits.  GSW trimmed the margin to 2-1 with a single tally in the top of the second inning.  Daniel Stokes led off with a double and came around to score on a ground out by Noble Coley.

A two-out error with no one on base led to four unearned runs in the fifth frame as Francis Marion expanded its lead to 6-1.  Lee doubled home Gordon and Barrett Kleinknecht, Wallace, and Keon Graves followed with RBI hits.  Lee doubled home Josh Biggers in the sixth inning to further push the Patriot advantage to 7-1.

Georgia Southwestern scored once in the ninth inning off Patriot reliever Shane Gebhards when Kevin Carroll plated Stanton with a double down the right field line.

    Martin Gordon