Catamounts take series at Winthrop behind power surge, bullpen depth, and late-game resilience
The Catamounts took two of three from Winthrop, a Big South team with a RPI of 74 and one that entered the weekend unbeaten in conference play with a win over P4 Michigan State. For Western Carolina, this was a valuable out-of-conference test against a quality opponent, and the series delivered a little of everything: power, late-inning pitching resistance, a bullpen statement, and a one-run escape in the finale.
Game 1: Western Carolina 15, Winthrop 7
Western Carolina opened the series with an offensive explosion, building an early cushion before nearly letting it slip away. Trent Turner scored in the second inning to give the Catamounts a 1-0 lead, and the third inning quickly became a showcase for the lineup’s power potential.
First baseman Trey Spees launched a home run over the fence in right field, Turner followed with a run-scoring double, and Walker Fox added an RBI single up the middle to make it 4-0. Catcher Noah Quarless then delivered a three-run home run that gave starter James Fordham a 7-0 lead heading into the bottom of the third.
At that point, every coach in the country would have been asking for a shutdown inning, but instead Fordham almost immediately surrendered a three-run homer, part of a stretch in which five straight batters reached for the Eagles. Two more runs in the inning cut the margin to 7-5, and suddenly the game had shifted from a rout in progress to a tense track meet.
Western Carolina kept extending the lead in timely fashion. Wyatt Stanley opened the fourth with a one-out home run to push the advantage back out, though Winthrop again responded with a single and an RBI double that brought in another run and forced a pitching change. Pitching coach Dusty White turned to Davis Budd, and the move changed the tone of the game.
Budd was outstanding. Entering with no outs and runners threatening, he induced a groundout and then a double play to end the inning and prevent further damage. That sequence proved pivotal, because it allowed the Catamounts to regain control instead of letting Winthrop complete a comeback.
Cole Jones added a solo home run in the fifth to restore a three-run cushion. Budd then worked through a small threat in the bottom half of the inning, allowing a leadoff double before getting two ground balls that advanced the runner home. Even with that run scoring, Budd was pounding the zone and clearly settling into command of the game.
Western Carolina pulled away for good in the sixth when Fox drew a bases-loaded walk to bring home another run and push the lead back to three. Budd answered by mowing Winthrop down in order in the bottom of the inning, and the Catamounts never looked back. Mason Snyder took over in the seventh and looked like the Mason Snyder from earlier in the year, throwing three scoreless innings to close the door.
Mason Holton added a three-run homer in the eighth to blow the game open, and Western Carolina tacked on two more insurance runs in the ninth. In all, the Catamounts hit five home runs, with Quarless, Spees, Stanley, Jones, and Holton all going deep. Budd’s relief work was the defining pitching performance of the game, as he threw 3.0 innings on only 32 pitches and allowed just one hit. With Bryant Kimbrell out, that kind of outing mattered not just for the box score but for the larger shape of the bullpen.
Game 2: Winthrop 6, Western Carolina 4
Game 2 on Friday played out differently, shaped more by missed opportunities and one decisive swing late. Winthrop scored in the second inning on a two-run single, then added to that margin when Josh Skowronski homered to deep right in the third to make it 3-0.
Western Carolina had traffic early, but it could not turn those chances into runs through the first six innings against Luke Earnhardt. The Winthrop starter worked 6.1 innings of hitless ball, though his command was not spotless. He walked four batters and hit two more, but when he was around the zone, he was excellent, finishing with nine strikeouts and repeatedly escaping trouble as the Catamounts struggled to find the key hit.
The breakthrough finally came after Earnhardt issued another walk in the seventh and was removed. Mason Holton immediately doubled home a run to cut the deficit to 3-1, giving Western Carolina a little life. In the eighth, the Catamounts continued to chip away. Jaylen Jones scored, and later Trent Turner came home on an RBI single by Walker Fox to tie the game at 3-3.
That comeback effort set up a strong outing from Carter Burnette, who again showed why he has emerged as the ace of the staff. Burnette pitched into the eighth, which has been especially valuable for a team that has not fully trusted its bullpen. A bulldog on the mound who pitches with an edge, Burnette gave Western Carolina the kind of start that keeps a game manageable. But after a leadoff walk, he was tagged for a go-ahead two-run home run by Alan Benhardt, giving Winthrop a 5-3 lead. The Eagles added another insurance run in the inning to stretch the margin to three.
Cole Jones answered with a leadoff home run in the ninth to cut the deficit to 6-4, but Winthrop retired the next three hitters and closed the door before the Catamounts could complete the comeback.
Game 3: Western Carolina 7, Winthrop 6
The finale was the tightest game of the series and the one that best captured Western Carolina’s ability to respond under pressure. Winthrop took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on a run-scoring groundout, but the Catamounts quickly answered.
In the top of the second, Noah Quarless doubled and scored on a single by Jaylen Jones, who continues to put together a remarkable redshirt freshman season. Jones is batting .292 and has paired that offensive production with gold glove-level defense in center field, giving Western Carolina a valuable two-way presence.
The Catamounts moved in front in the fifth. Wyatt Stanley singled home Trey Spees, who had reached on a walk, to make it 2-1. Then, with two runners aboard, Trent Turner delivered the biggest swing of the game, launching a three-run home run to right field and suddenly putting Western Carolina ahead 5-1.
Catamount starter Davis Wright could not deliver the shutdown inning, as Winthrop answered with two runs in the bottom of the frame and chased him, narrowing the game back to 5-3. Western Carolina regained some breathing room in the sixth when Jackson Lyda scored Cole Jones on a sacrifice fly for a 6-3 advantage.
The Eagles kept pushing. In the seventh, they scored on a bases-loaded double play, trimming the margin again. Western Carolina added what became a crucial insurance run in the eighth when Jaylen Jones singled, advanced to second on a failed pickoff attempt, and scored on a two-out single up the middle by Lyda. That unearned run pushed the lead to 7-4 and gave the Catamounts a little more margin for the final inning.
Owen Austin delivered a clean 1-2-3 eighth inning, and Western Carolina took a 7-4 lead into the ninth. Winthrop nearly erased that margin, though, as three of the first four batters reached against Austin to cut the deficit to one and force another pitching change.
Mason Snyder then emerged from the bullpen and, on just his second pitch, induced a Winthrop pinch-hitter to pop up on the infield with the tying run standing at third. That was enough to end the threat, seal the victory, and clinch the series win. Snyder earned his second save of the series and, after a clutch weekend, was named SoCon Pitcher of the Week for the second time.
