March 9, 2022

Official USC Upstate Athletics News Release

Touma, Parson pitch Spartans to stingy win over The Citadel

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Looking to get back into the win column, USC Upstate baseball took a trip to the South Carolina Lowcountry for a midweek meeting with The Citadel where the pitching staff stole the show in a 3-2 late-inning victory Wednesday afternoon.

Keeping the Bulldog bats off-balance all afternoon, four Upstate pitchers combined to throw a three-hitter while holding The Citadel without a base runner for 6 1/3 innings and a hit for 7.2 innings.

Redshirt freshman right-hander Lukas Touma (Whitby, Ont.) and red shirt junior righty Nate Payne tossed five perfect frames for the Spartans before freshman righty Julian Parson (Mississauga, Ont.) and red shirt junior righty Chase Matheny took over, racking up the win and the save in the victory.

Touma, a former Ontario Blue Jay, pitched three scoreless getting five ground ball outs and fanning two in his 39-pitch outing. Parson, another Ontario Blue Jays and Mississauga Southwest Twin under coach Aaron Thompson allowed one hit and one unearned run in a 30-pitch effort.

At the plate, senior outfielder Jeff Taylor stepped to the plate with two on in the top of the seventh as the left-handed hitter shot a ball to the opposite field over the head of the left fielder to plate the first two runs of the game. Upstate picked up an insurance run in the ninth as an infield single from sophomore third baseman Easton Cullison brought home the run.

Game Information

Score: USC Upstate 3; The Citadel 2

Records: USC Upstate (8-4; 0-0 Big South); The Citadel (8-4; 0-0 SoCon)

Scoring Summary

T7: Stepping to the plate as a pinch hitter, Jeff Taylor drove the first pitch he saw over the head of The Citadel leftfielder and to the base of the wall. Cameron MacIntosh and Easton Cullison came around to score to give Upstate the lead.

B7: The Bulldogs got one of their runs back in the bottom half of the inning as a run came in off a dropped fly ball, allowing The Citadel’s first baserunner to cross the plate.

T9: Batting with runners on the corners, Easton Cullison hit a slow roller to the second baseman whose lone play was at first. Cullison beat out the grounder for his lone hit of the game as Noah Rabon came down the line to score from third.

B9: Stringing a couple of baserunners together in their final at-bat, the Bulldogs plated a run with a single into left-center with two men on base.

Notable

Holding The Citadel without a base runner for 6 1/3 innings and without a hit for 7 2/3 innings, Wednesday’s game marks the longest a perfect game, and no-hitter have been carried into a game by the Upstate pitching staff.

Wednesday’s game also marked the fourth this season to see the Spartans take the lead and hold on for the win in the seventh inning or later.

Working 2 2/3 innings in relief, Julian Parson collected his first career victory in his second career outing. Earning the save after working 1 1/3 innings, Chase Matheny picked up his first save in a Spartan uniform.