Dukes Rally Past Davidson in 7-6 Victory

Wednesday, March 9

Davidson, N.C.

6 p.m.

James Madison University

7-6

Davidson

6-6

James Madison

Davidson

3/9/2016 11:21:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score

DAVIDSON, N.C. - James Madison came back from a pair of deficits on Wednesday night before using a ninth-inning, go-ahead run to earn a 7-6 victory over Davidson in non-conference baseball action at Wilson Field.

The Dukes racked up 10 hits on the evening, marking their sixth straight double-digit performance, to move to 7-6 on the year and win their third consecutive contest. Davidson fell to 6-6 with the loss.

Senior shortstop Chad Carroll, junior left fielder Ky Parrott and sophomore second baseman Kyle McPherson all notched a pair of hits on the evening, with Carroll and McPherson driving in a run each and Parrott scoring a pair. Senior center fielder Tyler Carroll also hit his first career home run, a pinch-hit solo shot in the top of the fifth that opened the scoring for the Dukes.

JMU would post three runs in that frame to erase an early 3-0 Davidson lead, though the Wildcats would score two more in the bottom of the inning to go back on top, 5-3. After the Dukes again levelled things with two runs in the seventh and took the lead in the eighth, Davidson tied the game for a third time with a solo homer of its own that made it 6-6 through eight innings.

With one out in the ninth, JMU took advantage of a defensive miscue to plate the decisive run. After McPherson singled up the middle, sophomore right fielder Adam Sisk reached first base on an error by the shortstop. When the Wildcats tried to throw an advancing Sisk out at second base, McPherson read the throw and raced home to give the Dukes the 7-6 margin.

Seven JMU pitchers combined to keep JMU within striking distance on the evening, striking out four while yielding just six hits across the nine innings. Redshirt freshman Daniel Pinson started the contest in his 2016 debut, seeing action for the first time since an injury ended his 2015 campaign after just two appearances, while junior Michael Evans picked up the win after closing the game out with a perfect 1 1/3 innings.

Six different hitters tallied a hit each for Davidson, highlighted by Aaron Tovsky's solo homer in the eighth and a double from Sam Foy in the seventh. Westin Whitmire took the loss as the last of eight Wildcat pitchers to see time on the mound.

QUOTING COACH IKENBERRY
"I was proud of the way we came back to win this game on the road. It was great to get Daniel Pinson back out there for the first time since last year and the back end of our bullpen did an outstanding job tonight. Tyler Carroll got us going offensively with a big pinch-hit home run, but the way we ran the bases tonight won us the game. It took a complete team effort tonight."

ALWAYS ON BASE
With his 2-for-3 evening, junior left fielder Ky Parrott extended his hitting streak to a career-long 13 games, as he has hit safely in every contest this season. Sophomore right fielder Adam Sisk has reached base safely in every game and, combined with last year's season finale, has done so in a career-high 14 consecutive contests.

UP NEXT
The Dukes put the finishing touches on their five-game road trip this weekend with a three-game series at Gardner-Webb on Friday-Sunday, March 11-13. First pitch in Boiling Springs, N.C. is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Friday and 2 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.

The Runnin' Bulldogs are 14-1 this season after downing North Carolina A&T in a 10-6 decision on Wednesday evening.