Boling Springs, NC – Kyle Leady homered, doubled and scored three times to lead 6th-seeded Campbell to an 8-1 win over No. 7 Charleston Southern Wednesday in Big South Championship play at John Henry Moss Stadium.
Campbell (32-24) collected eight hits from the middle of its order, including three apiece from Leady and Seth LaRue to eliminate the Buccaneers (23-30).
Leady finished a triple shy of the cycle, homering in the first, his fourth of the season, before squaring up a base hit to lead off the bottom of the fourth. The senior also doubled in the fifth, putting Camels on second and third with one out and sparking a four-run outburst.
Cole Hallum and LaRue followed Leady’s double with RBI singles, and Matt Parrish’s two-run double made it 7-1 Campbell.
LaRue was 3-for-4 with a RBI and a run scored in the win, while Hallum went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run, also knocking in one in the sixth to give the Camels an 8-1 advantage.
Brian Taylor’s solo home run over the fence in left, his fourth round tripper of the season, gave Campbell a 2-1 lead in the third after Andrew Widell’s RBI single for CSU in the top of the second.
Nick Thayer (7-5) picked up the win on the mound for Campbell, working six innings with a run on three hits and a strikeout. The junior retired his final 13 batters after a pair of two out singles in the top of the second.
Nathan Arp earned the three inning save, his first of the year, allowing three hits with a strikeout and a walk.
Andrew Tomasovich (7-7) took the loss for the Buccaneers, allowing five runs, four earned, on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks in 4 1/3.
Widell and Cole Murphy both posted two hits for the Bucs in the loss.
The Camels advance to face the loser of No. 2 Coastal Carolina vs. No. 3 Winthrop on Thursday at 3 p.m. in an elimination game.
