• High Point fell to Winthrop by a score of 7-3 in the series opener on Friday in Rock Hill, S.C.
• Junior Carson Jackson finished 2-3 and hit his team-best fifth home run of the season for the Panthers in the loss.
• The two sides will conclude the series with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 25, beginning at 1 p.m.
ROCK HILL, S.C. – The High Point University baseball team dropped the first game of the weekend at Winthrop on Friday night by a score of 7-3 in Rock Hill, S.C. Junior Carson Jackson finished 2-3 at the plate and hit his team-high fifth home run of the season in the loss.
“To win on Friday nights in the league you need quality starts and timely hitting and we didn’t get either of those things tonight,” head coach Craig Cozart said. “We are going to need to be much better tomorrow if we want to have a chance to win this series.”
Sophomore Andrew Gottfried suffered his second-straight loss after lasting just 2-1/3 innings against Winthrop, dropping to 1-2 for the year. The right-hander allowed three earned runs on five hits and a walk.
Reece Green earned the win for the Eagles after allowing three earned runs in eight innings of work and improved to 3-1 on the season. Green scattered eight hits and two walks while striking out four in his eight innings of work.
The Panthers fall to .500 overall at 10-10 and 1-3 in the Big South with the loss. Winthrop improves to 11-11 overall and 3-1 in conference play.
High Point fell behind by three early in the contest as the hosts scored twice in the first and one in the second for an early 3-0 lead.
The Panthers got on the board with two runs in the fourth, pulling within one of Winthrop. Junior Jordan Sergent and Jackson led off the frame with back-to-back singles and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by junior Blake Schunk and a single from junior Spencer Brown.
After Winthrop pushed the lead to four at 7-2, Jackson scored his second run of the night with a solo home run to lead off the eighth inning. It was Jackson’s fifth home run of the season which is tops on the team and tied for first in the Big South.
Jackson was one of two HPU players to record multiple hits on the night along with Brown who finished 2-4 with an RBI.
High Point and Winthrop wrap up their three-game series with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 25, beginning at 1 p.m. It will be the third doubleheader of the season for the Panthers. HPU has split each of its first two doubleheaders this season.