Following South Carolina’s 9-4 win over Missouri on Sunday, head coach Mark Kingston met with GamecockCentral to break down the game. Here’s what he had to say.
On the way the team fought back to get the win
“This team has a lot of heart, this team has a lot of fight. There’s no doubt about it. I think today was just another example of that. It looked a little bleak there late. It was 4-1 going into the seventh inning. We couldn’t generate anything. Once we got it going, we couldn’t be stopped. It was a lot of fun to watch. Our bullpen came in and was just dominant. And we finally got our offense going again. It was just a very, very big win for us.”
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On the biggest takeaway from this weekend
“We did a lot of things great and we struggled with some things too. It’s another SEC weekend, nothing in this league is easy, including coming on the road. This is not an easy place to play. They can pitch. They gave us everything we could handle. So to come out of here with a series win is something we can definitely build on.”
On the job the bullpen did today
“Bullpen was absolutely dominant, absolutely dominant. All three guys looked great, looked exactly how we need them to pitch if we’re going to go far. And so, it was a big pick me up. I told the team Eskew picked us up last week, and they picked him up today.”
On where the weekend rotation is at after this weekend
“I think we’re like every team in the league right now as we’re still searching for answers. It’s just the way 2024 seems to be, especially in the SEC. You’ve got a lot of TBAs, you’ve got a lot of guys moving around. It just seems to be the way things are right now and you just continue to look for the best options.”
On the Talmadge LeCroy HBP call and the offensive struggles through six innings
“The rule of that play is that if you swing at a pitch, it’s a dead ball and a strike and every runner goes back. So they got the call right. It was unfortunate and we generally don’t swing at the balls that hit you. I’m sure LeCroy will hear about that from his teammates.”
“They had a good pitcher on the mound, make no mistake. They went to Tennessee and lost two games 3-2. You pitch like that against Tennessee, you can pitch.”
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On what changed at the plate in the late comeback rally
“We got into their bullpen a little bit. Generally in this league, the bullpen is not quite as strong as the starters. That’s why guys start. We just need to continue to take the kind of at-bats we took. For the last two weeks, we’ve been taking a lot of good at-bats. We got into a little bit of a funk yesterday into today’s game. But once we kind of got back to who we are, it was explosive again. That was fun to watch.”
On the game-saving catch Austin Brinling made in the second inning
“That was a big one, right? And it saved three runs. I think that allowed us to stay in the game and still feel like we have a chance to win. If that ball was out of the ballpark or it hits off the top of the wall, you’re probably looking at a 7-1 game at that point, minimum. That kept us in the game and allowed us to scratch back.”
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