BUIES CREEK – Redshirt senior outfielder Bryce Myers crushed two home runs to lead an explosive Campbell offense in a 17-3 baseball win over Bowling Green on Sunday afternoon at Jim Perry Stadium.
Campbell (4-7) totaled six extra-base hits with four doubles, two triples and two homers. Ty Babin (3-for-4, 6 RBIs) had Campbell’s first triple of the season that cleared the bases and scored three. Myers (3-for-5, 4 RBIs) had a pair of two-run homers.
Joe Zirolli (2-for-5, 2 RBIs), Luis Gimenez (2-for-5, RBI), Zach Minnick (2-for-4, 2 RBIs) and Kevin Barron (2-for-4, RBI) also logged multi-hit performances for the Camels. Matthew Barefoot and Tyler Anshaw each finished 1-for-4.
Campbell’s 17 runs were its most in a single game since defeating Gardner-Webb 17-4 on April 9, 2016, while the 16 hits were a season-high and the most since notching 17 hits at Virginia Tech on March 28, 2017. Myers became the first Camel with two home runs in a game since Cole Hallum had two at Liberty on May 6, 2017.
Senior right=hander Harry Thomas (1-0) was credited with the win, allowing just one hit over one and one-third innings of relief. Freshman right-hander Brandon Jenkins was solid in his first collegiate start, fanning a career-high seven batters over three and two-thirds innings.
Jack Yusko’s earned run average remained perfect on the year as the Raleigh native gave up no runs in one inning. Jamil Vanheyningen also threw a scoreless inning of relief as the freshman righty held the Falcons hitless in the seventh. Barefoot made his first collegiate appearance on the mound in the top of the ninth, closing the door with two strikeouts in the final frame.
The Camels opened the game with a four-run bottom of the first. Zirolli got the scoring started with a two-run double to left field, scoring Anshaw and Minnick. Babin collected his first two RBIs of the game on a single to left that drove in Zirolli and Christian Jones.
Campbell broke the game open with a 10-run at-bat in the bottom of the fourth that saw 13 Camels step up to the plate. Gimenez notched an RBI after being hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, followed by Barefoot who drew a four-pitch walk to score Barron. Anshaw hit a blooper to center to score Myers and Gimenez, and two batters later, Babin cleared the bases with a three-run triple to right center. Barron doubled to left center to bring Babin home, then Myers crushed a ball over the left field wall to cap off a huge fourth inning.
Babin logged his sixth RBI on a groundout in the sixth, scoring Zirolli from third. After Barron reached on a throwing error, Myers cranked his second bomb of the game to left field for Campbell’s 16th and 17th runs.
Campbell hosts No. 10 N.C. State on Wednesday at 4 p.m.
(Campbell media services provided the basis for this report)
