HIGH POINT, N.C. — The Fighting Camels completed the three-game sweep of the High Point Panthers with an 8-2 win on Monday afternoon at Coy O. Williard Stadium, opening Big South play 3-0 for the second-straight season.
Infielder Collin Wolf (3-for-5, HR, 2B, 5 RBI) put the Camels ahead 4-0 early with a grand slam in the first inning, while rookie lefty Ryan Chasse (3-1) tossed a career-high 7.0 innings with just two hits and no earned runs to lead the Camels in the win.
Wolf (3-for-5, HR, 2B, 5 RBI) finished a triple shy of the cycle to notch his second career outing with three or more hits. The junior hit a grand slam in the first inning before a single in the second and a stand-up double in the seventh. His grand slam was his third dinger of the year and was the first grand slam for Campbell this season.
Matthew Barefoot (2-for-5, 2 R) and Luis Gimenez (2-for-4, 2 2B, RBI, R) logged multi-hit outings for the Camels. Additionally, outfielder Grant Harris (1-for-3, 2B, 2 BB) reached base safely in all but one of his plate appearances; the Bellevue College transfer doubled and walked twice in the win.
Koby Collins (1-for-4, RBI) rounded out CU’s 11 hits with an RBI single in the seventh. The Camels finished the series with 32 hits, including 11 extra-base hits: seven doubles, four home runs and one triple.
The Camels loaded the bases for Wolf in the first inning after Barefoot and Anshaw led off the game with back-to-back base hits, and Spencer Packard (0-for-4, R, BB) walked. Wolf fell behind in the count, 0-2, but fouled off two pitches before working the count full. The Tacoma Community College transfer launched the 3-2 pitch over the left field wall for his first-career grand slam, putting the Camels ahead 4-0 early.
High Point scored an unearned run on Chasse in the second to cut CU’s lead to 4-1, but the Fighting Camels responded right back in the top of the third. Gimenez led off the inning with a double before coming around to score on Wolf’s RBI single into left field.
CU scored two more in the top of the fourth on an error and Gimenez’ RBI-double. The Venezuelan native’s two-bagger was his team-high eighth of the season, while his RBI moved his season total to 15, which is tied with Packard for most on the team.
Campbell plated another run in the top of the seventh to go ahead 8-1. Wolf doubled before scoring on Collin’s two-out RBI single into center field for CU’s eighth run of the day.
After allowing a run in the second, Chasse allowed just four base runners over his final 5.0 innings, tossing all scoreless frames. He was relieved in the eighth inning by redshirt-junior lefty Julian Blackburn who pitched a scoreless frame, ending the inning by getting the batter looking.
Senior righty Tyson Messer came in to pitch the ninth and got the first out by way of flyout to center, but he gave up a home run and a walk, as HPU cut CU’s lead to six, 8-2. Redshirt-sophomore Logan Heintzman was called in to get the final two outs. He sat down the two Panthers he faced with a flyout and strikeout to end the game.
The Campbell pitching staff – Chasse, Blackburn, Messer and Heintzman – held High Point to three hits, including just one extra-base hit: the Camels struck out six High Point Panthers.
For the first time in the Campbell-High Point series history, a team took all three games of a three-game series. The sweep was also Campbell’s first regular season sweep of HPU since 2003.
The three-game sweep was the third for Campbell in 2019 and was the second-straight conference-opening three-game sweep for the Camels. The Panthers, who were picked to finish second in the Big South preseason poll behind the Camels open their conference season 0-3 for the first time since 2013 when they were swept by Presbyterian in Clinton, S.C.
Up next, the Camels travel to Durham to face the Duke Blue Devils at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park on Wednesday, March 20. First pitch is slated for 4 p.m. at DBAP.
