Baseball Completes Sweep of Wright State with Pair of Wins in Saturday’s Doubleheader

Saturday, February 27

Tuscaloosa, Ala.

1 P.M.

Alabama

6-1

Wright State

0-4

Wright State

Alabama

Baseball Completes Sweep of Wright State with Pair of Wins in Saturday’s Doubleheader

2/27/2021 9:18:00 PM | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Box Score (PDF) - Game 1 Photo Gallery - Game 1 Box Score (PDF) - Game 2 Photo Gallery - Game 2

The Crimson Tide secured the win in game one, 8-7, after 11 innings before downing the Raiders, 1-0, in the nightcap

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama baseball completed the sweep of Wright State thanks to two wins in Saturday's doubleheader at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The Crimson Tide won game one, 8-7, in 11 innings before coming away with a 1-0 victory in the nightcap to complete the sweep of the Raiders. With the two wins, UA improves to 7-1 on the season.

From Head Coach Brad Bohannon

"Today was a really long day at the park for us, but I'm really proud of our competitive spirit. You couldn't have two games that were more polar opposites than those two. The first game we looked like we had a bunch of young guys on the field, but we found a way to win a game late. Then, you get to the second game, and it felt like an SEC game. Dylan Smith was awesome, their starter was awesome, and you had two guys out there bumping 94-95 and throwing three pitches for a strike. We had a couple of small chances we didn't take advantage of, but luckily Sam Praytor got the big knock late to win it for us. There are a lot of things that we need to get better at in a hurry, but I'm really proud to get a sweep over a really good club."

GAME ONE

William Hamiter sent a single over the head of the Wright State left fielder to help Alabama baseball walk off the Raiders, 8-7, in 11 innings in game one of Saturday's doubleheader at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The win clinched the series for the Tide.

Alabama got out front early with two runs in the first and another pair in the third. Wright State then posted three in the fourth and two in the fifth to take the lead. UA came right back with one in the fifth to even it at five apiece but a two-run sixth put the Raiders back in front again. The Tide then posted two runs in the eighth to tie things up and eventually send the game to extras. The offense was able to load the bases in the 11^th with Hamiter delivering the walkoff single for UA.

Hamiter led the Tide with three RBI as part of his 2-for-3 day that included two walks. Zane Denton paced UA in hits in game one with a 3-for-5 showing that included an RBI and one run scored.

Alabama's arms were solid despite what the scoreboard said as Antoine Jean, Jacob McNairy and Chase Lee combined to allow just two earned runs across 11.0 innings of work. Jean, who started, tossed 4.2 innings allowing five runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks with five punchouts. McNairy then contributed 4.1 frames of two-run baseball (none earned) with four strikeouts. Lee worked the final 2.0 innings, using the strikeout to record four of his six outs on the way to his second win of the season.

How It Happened

B1 | Alabama drew three straight walks to start the game before a fielder's choice from Sam Praytor brought in one run. Zane Denton followed with a single through the right side to score a second run and put the Tide in front early. (2-0, Alabama)
B3 | William Hamiter stayed hot, delivering a two-RBI single to right to double UA's lead. (4-0, Alabama)
T4 | The Raiders used one hit and a pair of errors to plate three unearned runs and narrow the gap to one. (4-3, Alabama)
T5 | Wright State took its first lead of the day in the fifth. A sac fly with two in scoring position tied things up. After a walk and an Alabama pitching change, the Raiders singled through the right side to bring in one more. (5-4, Wright State)
B5 | The Tide added one to even things up. Praytor drew a one-out walk and hustled to get himself to third on a single to center from Denton. The extra 90 feet paid off as a wild pitch brought in the tying run. (5-5)
T6 | An Alabama miscue allowed one runner to reach and a single put two on for the Raiders. A two-RBI double one out later gave WSU the lead again. (7-5, Wright State)
B8 | Alabama tied it up with a pair of runs in the eighth. Hamiter led things off with a walk and moved to third on a double from Jim Jarvis. Peyton Wilson brought both runners home with an RBI-single to left-center to tie it at seven apiece. (7-7)
B11 | Drew Williamson led the inning off with a single. One out later, a hit-by-pitch and walk loaded things up for Hamiter. The sophomore delivered a line drive over the head of the WSU left fielder to walk it off for the Crimson Tide.

Postgame Notes

The 4:06 time on the game tied for the 15^th-longest game by minutes in program history.
Owen Diodati's hitting streak ended at eight games. Across the streak, Diodati batted .357 (10-28) with a double, one triple, three home runs, 11 RBI, nine runs, six walks, three hit-by-pitch and a stolen base.

GAME TWO

Praytor's RBI-double in the bottom of the sixth was all the Crimson Tide needed as UA completed the sweep of the Raiders with a 1-0 win in game two of the day.

The nightcap featured strong pitching performances from both sides. Alabama's starter Dylan Smith was electric in game two, striking out a career-high seven across 5.2 scoreless frames. He was followed by Landon Green (2-0) who tossed 1.1 innings with three strikeouts for his second win of the season.

How It Happened

B6 | Drew Williamson led off the inning with a walk. The junior would score in the next at-bat as Sam Praytor found a gap in right-center to bring in the first, and only, run of the nightcap. (1-0, Alabama)

Postgame Notes

Dylan Smith picked up his first win of the season and the second of his career. His other win came on Feb. 19 of last season in a relief appearance against Alabama State.
Smith struck out a career-best seven batters in this evening's start. His previous high for strikeouts was five, which he had last weekend against McNeese on Feb. 21.
The junior also tossed a career-high 96 pitches. The most Smith had pitched in a game prior to tonight was 72 last weekend in the start against the Cowboys.
With his 1-for-3 performance this evening Sam Praytor extended his hitting streak to five games. Over the current stretch, the Tide catcher is batting .250 (5-20) with three doubles, a home run, four RBI, three runs scored and a pair of walks.
ATTENDANCE: 1,764 (SELLOUT)

Alabama returns to the field on Tuesday, March 2 as the Crimson Tide travels to Birmingham to take on the UAB Blazers. The two teams will meet at Regions Field, home of the Birmingham Barons, for a 6 p.m. CT matchup.

Get all the latest information on the team by following @AlabmaBSB on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook at Alabama Baseball. General athletic news can be found at UA_Athletics on Twitter and Instagram and AlabamaAthletics on Facebook.