Looking to return to Omaha for the first time in over a decade, South Carolina will travel north to kick off the NCAA Tournament on Friday.
The Gamecocks are playing in the Raleigh Regional, hosted by NC State. South Carolina must beat out the Wolfpack, James Madison and Bryant to continue its run.
Leading up to Friday, GamecockCentral will be breaking down each of the other three teams.
South Carolina takes on three-seeded James Madison first (2 p.m., ESPN+).
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The Dukes are making their 10th postseason appearance and first since 2011. They finished the 2024 regular season with a 34-23 record (17-13 Sun Belt).
Most recently, James Madison fell 7-1 in the semifinals of the Sun Belt Tournament to Georgia Southern.
Despite falling short in its conference tournament, James Madison took down three ranked opponents in games this year — then-No. 3 Arkansas, then-No. 16 Coastal Carolina and then-No. 21 Louisiana. With the No. 5 non-conference strength of schedule, it made sense why, on top of good play, why the Dukes made the tournament.
Leading the way at the plate for the Dukes is junior Fenwick Trimble. Difficult to keep off the base paths, Trimble leads the team with a .371 batting average and a .455 OBP. He also has a team-high 61 RBI and 85 hits.
Following Trimble, Brendan O’Donnell batted .314 on 65 hits through the season and sent home 44 runs. Catcher Jason Schiavone is batting .277 and leads the Dukes with 18 home runs.
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On the defensive end, graduate student Donovan Burke leads James Madison on the mound, earning a team-high six wins. Burke has a 5.14 ERA through 84 innings pitched.
Also taking on the Gamecocks’ bats is sophomore Max Kuhle, who recorded a 4.13 ERA during the regular season. He leads the Dukes with 67 strikeouts in 61 innings pitched. Kuhle allowed 31 walks and 54 hits.
Relief pitcher Hunter Entsminger has a 2.97 ERA in 33.1 innings. Joe Vogatsky leads the Dukes with 24 appearances on the mound, coming out of the bullpen for all of them. He’s pitched 43.0 innings and earned a 3.14 ERA.
The No. 2-seeded South Carolina will play No. 3 James Madison on Friday in Raleigh. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. and available on ESPN+.
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