FLORENCE, SC – Graduate student first baseman Darius Nobles came within a double of hitting for the cycle and helped power Francis Marion University to a 13-4 victory over Erskine College and a split of Saturday's (March 19) Conference Carolinas baseball doubleheader.  Erskine took game one by a 9-7 score despite three hits apiece from FMU senior third baseman Todd Mattox and senior right fielder Will Hardee.
 
Coupled with Friday's 6-5 win, Francis Marion captured it first-ever Conference Carolinas series win.  FMU, now 15-10 overall and 5-7 in league play, will host Augusta University on Wednesday at 6 p.m.
 
Nobles finished game two 3-for-4 with three runs scored and two driven in.  Four Patriots registered two hits apiece: junior shortstop Naphis Llanos, Mattox, senior second baseman Tanner Wakefield, and senior center fielder Bill Hanna.  Senior designated hitter Leniel Gonzalez and graduate student left fielder Lex Tuten both a hit and two RBIs.
 
Junior Matt Dooley (3-0) started on the mound and went five innings, giving up four runs (three earned) on six hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. Seniors Reece Kleinhelter and Cory Poulsen and junior Ben Thornton combined to toss four scoreless frames in relief, with Thornton going the final two.
 
The Patriots got on the board immediately as Llanos scored on a wild pitch from Erskine starter Joe Alegre (0-2) in the first.  An RBI grounder by Tuten and a run-scoring single by Hardee extended the margin to 3-0 in the second. 
 
After Erskine scored twice in the top of the third, FMU responded with four runs in the bottom of the frame to go up 7-2.  A sacrifice fly from Gonzalez in the fourth upped the advantage to 8-2.
 
The Flying Fleet trimmed the difference to 8-4 in the top of the fifth, but a five-run outburst in the seventh sealed the outcome for Francis Marion.  A two-run blast by Nobles, his ninth homer of the year, over the right-center field wall highlighted the inning.
 
In Saturday's opener, Erskine took a 7-0 advantage after two-and-a-half innings and then held off the Patriots.  FMU got to within 8-7 in the last of the fourth, but left two runners on base in that frame and then stranded three in the fifth.
 
In addition to the six hits from Mattox and Hardee, Wakefield and freshman shortstop Tyler Reynolds each had two hits. Gonzalez, Tuten, and Wakefield all drove in two runs apiece.
 
Freshman righty Robbie Jordan (3-2) was tagged with the loss. Senior right-hander Daniel Twitty tossed 2.1 shutout and hitless innings coming out of the bullpen.
 
Erskine reliever Johnny Hummel (2-0), the sixth and final Flying Fleet hurler, earned the win.
 
With the five combined hits, Mattox extended his streak of safely reaching base to 68 games dating back to the 2020 season.

 
 
Erskine College 9, Francis Marion Univ. 7 (Mar 19, 2022 at Florence, SC) (Game 1)
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Erskine College..... 106 110 0 -  9 11  1      (14-12, 6-8 CC)
Francis Marion Univ. 003 400 0 -  7 12  1      (14-10, 4-7 CC)
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Pitchers: Erskine College - Harrison, Connor; Collett, Josh(3); Hanko, Deric(4);
McCurry, Graham(4); Cassell, Parker(4); Hummel, Johnny(5) and Rivera, Christian.
Francis Marion Univ. - Robbie Jordan; Chas DeBruhl(3); Austin Moore(4); Daniel Twitty(5) and
Lex Tuten.
Win-Hummel, Johnny(2-0)  Loss-Robbie Jordan(3-2)  T-3:15  A-125
HR ERSKINE - Bacon, Tariq (2).
Weather: Cloudy,76,Winds NW@15 mph
Jordan faced 5 batters in the 3rd.
Collett, Jos faced 1 batter in the 4th.
 
GAME 1 NOTES
» The Patriots got three-hit games from both Hardee and Mattox.
» Francis Marion's highest scoring inning was the fourth, when it pushed four runs across.
» Four Francis Marion hitters had multiple base knocks in the ballgame.
» Francis Marion left 12 runners stranded on base in the loss.
» The Patriots out-hit the Flying Fleet at a 12-11 clip.
» Francis Marion went 6-for-17 (.353) with runners in scoring position.
» Francis Marion pitchers faced 38 Erskine hitters in the game, allowing six ground balls and six fly balls while striking out eight.
» The Patriots drew seven walks from Erskine pitching.
» Mattox led the Patriots at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI.
» Erskine was led offensively by junior Tariq Bacon, who went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs.
» Sophomore Johnny Hummel led the Flying Fleet pitching staff, throwing three shutout innings.
 
Francis Marion Univ. 13, Erskine College 4 (Mar 19, 2022 at Florence, SC) (Game 2)
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Erskine College..... 002 020 000  -  4  8  7      (14-13, 6-9 CC)
Francis Marion Univ. 124 100 50X  - 13 13  1      (15-10, 5-7 CC)
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Pitchers: Erskine College - Alegre, Joe; Johnson, Blake(3); Kerley, Weston(3); Crim, Colbe(5);
Collett, Josh(6); Tipmore, Blake(8) and Boyd, Dalton. Francis Marion Univ. - Matt Dooley;
Reece Kleinhelter(6); Cory Poulsen(6); Ben Thornton(8) and Isaac Schuck.
Win-Matt Dooley(3-0)  Loss-Alegre, Joe(0-2)  T-3:32  A-0
HR FMU - Darius Nobles (9).
Weather: cloudy, 78, 15 mph winds ne
Johnson, Bla faced 5 batters in the 3rd.
 
GAME 2 NOTES
» Nobles compiled three base knocks in the game for Francis Marion.
» Dooley struck out seven Flying Fleet hitters.
» The Patriots power output was led by Nobles, who picked up two extra base hits in the ballgame.
» Every Francis Marion starter reached base safely in the win.
» The Francis Marion pitching staff combined to strike out 12 Erskine hitters.
» Francis Marion's highest scoring inning was the seventh, when it pushed five runs across.
» Francis Marion grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom half of the first and didn't surrender that lead for the remainder of the game.
» Five Patriots had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» The Patriots out-hit the Flying Fleet at a 14-8 clip.
» Senior Todd Mattox stole two bases in Saturday's game.
» Francis Marion went 5-for-15 (.333) with runners in scoring position.
» Francis Marion pitchers limited Erskine to just 2-for-12 (.167) with runners in scoring position.
» Francis Marion pitchers faced 40 Erskine hitters in the game, allowing seven ground balls and eight fly balls while striking out 12.
» The Patriots drew six walks from Erskine pitching.
» Nobles led the Patriots at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a triple, a home run and two RBIs.
» Erskine was led offensively by senior Kane Fisher, who went 1-for-4 with a triple and an RBI.
» Freshman Blake Tipmore led the Flying Fleet pitching staff, throwing one scoreless inning.