Senior southpaw Sam Folks carved up the Nicholls lineup through seven innings this afternoon as the UTM baseball squad claimed the series finale by a 2-0 margin.
Folks was at his best today as the Franklin, Tennessee native went a season-high seven innings without conceding a run. He allowed just two hits while tying a season-best seven strikeouts against zero walks. As a result, he improved to 2-2 on the season and won the 11th game of his career.
Tucker Reed and David Hussey also had a hand in the Skyhawks’ first shutout of the 2021 campaign, recording the final six outs of the contest. Reed made his second impressive relief appearance of the week, tossing 1.2 shutout innings before Hussey came on to lock down the final out for his first save of the season.
UTM (10-13) was led offensively by Wil LaFollette, who accounted for both of the team’s RBI’s after his third double of his freshman campaign. Casey Harford and Christian Hall each scored while Sean Dixson (single, hit by pitch) and Blake Daniels (double, walk) reached base safely twice out of the top two spots in the lineup.
A two-out rally in the top of the first led to the only offense of the game on either side. Harford lined an 0-1 pitch for a single out to left and Hall followed with a single to second base. LaFollette then shot an opposite-field double into the gap in left-center, plating a pair to put the Skyhawks on top early.
Folks worked around a two-out triple in the bottom of the first to keep the game scoreless. At one point, he sat down nine consecutive Nicholls batters, not allowing a ball out of the infield in the second or third innings. Back-to-back called strikeouts wrapped up the second while he induced three groundouts in the third.
The Colonels put a pair of runners aboard the basepaths with two away in the fourth but Folks got out of the jam on an inning-ending groundout.
Folks was back on cruise control in the fifth, retiring the side in order on 13 pitches. After a hit batsman with two outs in the sixth, he received some help from his battery mate Blake Davis with an inning-ending caught stealing attempt.
In his final frame of the afternoon, Folks displayed impeccable command. He fired seven of his nine pitches for strikes, sitting the middle of the Nicholls lineup down in order.
Reed entered in the eighth and was very sharp, needing just eight pitches to face the minimum amount of hitters. He began the ninth with a strikeout and groundout but the Colonels tried to mount a rally after a single and walk brought the go-ahead run to the plate. Hussey then trotted in from the bullpen and made short work of Nicholls designated hitter Grant Askins, ringing him up on five pitches for his second career save.
UTM returns to the diamond on Tuesday, April 6 when it travels to Nashville for a matchup against No. 1 Vanderbilt. First pitch from Charles Hawkins Field is set for 6:30 p.m.
