No. 8 Walters State shuts out USC Salkehatchie in season opener

JOHNSON CITY, TN – No. 8 Walters State used a solid outing on the mound and timely hitting against USC Salkehatchie Saturday afternoon to take down the Indians 5-0 in their season opener. 

The Senators were up 15-0 heading to the bottom of the fourth of game two before rain suspended play. The two teams will complete game two on Sunday before starting the final game of the series.  

Making his Walters State debut on the mound, Hayden Summers (1-0) picked up the win. Summers got the start and went three innings, striking out four while allowing just two hits.  

Summers was clutch for Walters State all throughout his start but never more so than in the first inning. After striking out the first batter of the game, Summers allowed a single and double that put two runners in scoring position with one out. However, Summers struck out the next two batters to get out of the jam.  

Following Summers' lead, Jake Knapp took over on the mound in the fourth inning and pitched three scoreless innings of his own. Knapp struck out two while allowing just two hits. Drew Honeycut finished the game out on the mound with a scoreless inning.  

Offensively, it was three returners who led the team. Matthew Ellis and Alberto Osuna each recorded two hits while Skyler Cannady had two RBIs.  

After going scoreless through the first two innings, Osuna got the scoring going in the bottom of the third with a double that scored Ellis, who singled the at bat before.   

In the fifth, the Senators put the game to bed with four runs. Jerry Hammons led things off with a walk and moved to second on an Ellis single. After Osuna reached on an error to load the bases, Paul Moore was hit by a pitch that scored Hammons. Lukas Cook was the next batter and drove home Ellis on a sacrifice fly before Cannady broke the game open with a two-RBI double.  

Walters State totaled five hits in the game while also playing error-free baseball out in the field.  

Rob Harvey

Walters State Community College

Sports Information Director

Cell: (423) 779-8880

Email: sportsinfo@ws.edu

Website: www.ws.edu/athletics