ROME, GA – Senior right-fielder
Austin Bunn collected four hits, including two home runs, scored four times, and drove in five runs to lead Francis Marion University to a 7-0 and 8-6 sweep of Shorter University, Saturday (Mar. 29) afternoon in Conference Carolinas baseball action.
The Patriots (26-9, 15-6) will travel to Greenwood, S.C., to play against Lander University on Tuesday at 5 p.m. With the sweep over the Hawks and a seven-game winning streak, Francis Marion now ranks first In Conference Carolinas league play.
Senior southpaw
Rijnaldo Euson (8-1) threw a complete game, allowing seven hits while striking out nine in game one. Senior right-hander
Robbie Jordan (6-1) earned his sixth win with seven innings of work while fanning six batters in game two.
Senior right-hander
Daemon Woodruff earned his first save in game two as he came in in relief of senior right-handed pitcher
Danny Leo. Woodruff allowed two hits and struck out one during 1.2 innings of work.
Alongside Bunn, sophomore first baseman
Charlie Bussey III tallied a homer, three hits, and four RBIs. Senior designated hitter
Noah Stout also homered, had two hits, and two RBIs. Senior second baseman
Owen Taylor chipped in three hits and three RBIs during the twinbill.
Will Fincher paced the Hawks (19-14, 8-10) with three hits and two runners driven in. Simon Aluko (2-4) was dealt the loss for game one, while Jacob Ramirez (2-1) was game-two loser.
In Saturday's opener, Francis Marion jumped ahead in the top of the first. Bussey III, senior shortstop
Rayth Petersen, and junior center fielder
Will Dorrell reached base safely with three walks to load the bases. A sacrifice fly hit by Oakley scored Bussey III for a 1-0 lead and added to the team's nation-leading sac fly total of 29.
The Patriots scored their second run in the fourth as Taylor batted in freshman left-fielder
Adrian Nina for a 2-0 advantage. A three-run homer by Bunn in the fifth upped the margin to 5-0. Another home run, a two-run shot by Bussey III in the sixth, put FMU in front 7-0.
Euson, who finished Friday's game with a scoreless frame, needed 117 pitches to complete Saturday's opener. The southpaw ranks second in NCAA Division II with his eight victories.
In game two, Francis Marion assumed another early lead as Stout homered over the wall in left field to score Dorrell in the second. The Hawks answered with a four-run inning in the bottom half of the frame to put the Patriots in a 4-2 deficit.
In the top of the fourth inning, FMU cut the lead to 4-3. Two-out singles for Bunn and junior catcher
Dariel Villaran Goundis put a runner in scoring position. An error committed by Shorter's shortstop Thomas Schroeder IV allowed Bunn to reach home.
Stout led off the top of the sixth with a base hit and was followed up by Bunn who also singled. With runners on first and second, Ramirez walked Villaran Goundis to load the bases with no outs.
After Stout was out at home on a force play, Taylor singled to the shortstop and scored Bunn to knot the score at 4-4. Bussey III drove in two more runs as he laced a one-out double down the left field line and Francis Marion went up 6-4.
After blanking the Hawks in the bottom of the sixth, the Patriots added insurance runs in the seventh as Bunn homered for the second time for an 8-4 advantage.
The Hawks cut the gap back to 8-6 as they brought in two runs during the seventh inning, but Woodruff came on to finish the game, stranding the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth.
Francis Marion 7, Shorter 0 (3/29/2025 at Rome, Ga.) (Game 1)
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Francis Marion...... 100 132 00 - 7 6 0 (25-9, 14-6)
Shorter.................. 000 000 00 - 0 7 3 (19-13, 8-9)
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Pitchers: Francis Marion -
Rijnaldo Euson and
Caleb Oakley. Shorter - S. Aluko; C. Martin(1); C. Shall(6) and J. Sauger and C. McGuire(6).
Win-
Rijnaldo Euson (8-1) Loss-Simon Aluko (2-4) T-2:16 A-162
HR FMU -
Charlie Bussey III;
Austin Bunn.
Weather: 72, Cloudy
Francis Marion 8, Shorter 6 (3/29/2025 at Rome, Ga.) (Game 2)
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Francis Marion...... 020 103 200 - 8 12 1 (26-9, 15-6)
Shorter.................. 040 000 200 - 6 16 1 (19-14, 8-10)
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Pitchers: Francis Marion -
Robbie Jordan;
Danny Leo(8);
Daemon Woodruff(8) and
Dariel Villaran Goundis. Shorter - J. Ramirez; D. Atkinson(6); C. McDaniel(8) and C. McGuire and J. Sauger(3).
Win-
Robbie Jordan (6-1) Save-
Daemon Woodruff (1) Loss-Jacob Ramirez(2-1) T-3:00 A-174
HR FMU -
Noah Stout;
Austin Bunn. HR SHORTER - W. Fincher.
Weather: 71, Cloudy
