Clemson vs Furman Baseball Recap

Clemson 9 - Furman 1

The Clemson Tigers pounded the Furman Paladins for a 12-1 victory to extend their winning streak to seven games Tuesday.  

A 7-run fifth inning gave the Tigers a dominating 10-1 lead over the Paladins. Clemson centerfielder Wilson Boyd hit an opposite-field grand slam off the foul pole at Fluor Field in Greenville, South Carolina, to break the game wide open and produce a 9-1 Clemson lead (the hit was the eighth grand slam by the eighth different Tigers batter on the season, according to Clemson Sports Information Director Tim Bourret via Twitter). The Tigers received five straight hits to start off the inning with an infield single from second baseman Mike Freeman; a 2-run home run by leftfielder Jeff Schaus; singles by rightfielder Kyle Parker and third baseman John Hinson; and finally, a bunt hit by shortstop Brad Miller to load the bases for Boyd’s shot. 

Clemson hit three home runs total on the night with a 2-run drive by Schaus, a 3-run homer by Boyd, and a solo shot by Hinson later in the game. Freeman added a 4-for-5 night with an RBI and a run scored. Hinson went 3 for 6 with 3 RBIs and scored twice. The grand slam artist Boyd only had the one hit, but he delivered 5 RBIs in the game. 

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The Tigers' righty starter, Scott Firth, scattered 6 hits and allowed one run in six innings with a win in his second start of the season, improving to 1-1. Firth struck out four Furman batters. Clemson relievers Jonathan Meyer, Kevin Kyle, and Will Lamb each pitched an inning to close the game out, allowing no hits and one walk. 

Clemson enters a crucial time now with only seven games to go in the regular season. The Tigers are only two games out of first place in the Atlantic Division behind the Florida State Seminoles. They face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on the road this weekend (fifth place in the Atlantic Division currently), the Presbyterian Blue Hose for a mid-week game in-between, and those Seminoles to finish off the season back in Clemson.

Winning the Atlantic Division is the difference between being a middle seed in the ACC Tournament and possible date with the number one Virginia Cavaliers team, or - on the other hand - clinching an automatic two seed by winning the division and securing a slightly easier path in the tournament. Clemson also faces a less likely (but still existent) possibility of getting a one seed if the Tigers can pass their Coastal Division-winning counterpart; they're 4 games back from that goal at the moment with six games to go.

By: Brandon Rink
DFN Sports Guest Writer