Charleston Southern University’s baseball team secured a 12-4 win against North Florida in Jacksonville on Tuesday evening. This victory marks the Buccaneers’ first 4-0 start to a season in over ten years and only the fifth time in the program’s history they have achieved this record.
The Buccaneers quickly established their lead, scoring 11 runs in the first three innings. Chandler Tuupo opened the game with a solo home run down the right field line in the first inning. In the second inning, Blake Edgmon singled up the middle, bringing two runners home.
The third inning saw Charleston Southern’s offense add eight more runs, with Alex Marot, Nathan Martinez, Caden Wolfley, and Tuupo each contributing at least one RBI during their plate appearances. By the end of that frame, Charleston Southern led 11-0.
North Florida managed to score two runs in the fourth inning but remained behind by a wide margin. An error by North Florida in the sixth allowed Lucas Pringle to score for Charleston Southern. The Osprey added one run each in both the sixth and eighth innings, but it was not enough to close the gap.
Tuupo finished as Charleston Southern’s top performer at bat, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs, two runs scored, and being hit by a pitch. His home run was also his team’s first of the spring season. Wolfley and Edgmon each recorded two RBIs while Marot and Martinez had one apiece.
Three pitchers made their debuts for Charleston Southern during this game. Kale Hopke started on the mound and earned his first win after pitching four innings with seven strikeouts while allowing two hits, two walks, and two earned runs. Aydan Smith came out of the bullpen for his collegiate debut and struck out six batters over four innings while giving up three hits and two earned runs. Zach Stichweh pitched in the ninth inning, retiring all three batters he faced and collecting one strikeout.
Charleston Southern will return home for seven consecutive games starting with a weekend series against Elon University. They will then host UNCW midweek before concluding this stretch with another series against Brown University.
