Cole Jenkins ’24 drilled four home runs as the VMI baseball team swept Western Carolina University 14-11 (10th inning) and 17-12 in a Southern Conference doubleheader from Hennon Stadium April 6, 2023.
Jenkins drilled two longballs in each game, finished the day with six hits and six RBIs, and now has eight homers this year.
Season Notes
*VMI has swept three of its four doubleheaders this season and is 7-1 in those games
*The Keydets (18-14/5-3 SoCon) are just one game shy of matching their conference win total from last year, with 13 games still to play
How It Happened
Both games followed a similar pattern: VMI took a large lead; the Catamounts came back late to tie or go ahead; and the Keydets finished strong to pull out the victory. Jenkins had plenty of help as VMI plated 31 runs on 36 hits.
GAME 1
- The Keydets opened a 9-3 lead, but an eight-run eighth inning from WCU put the hosts ahead 11-9. VMI tied the game with two in the ninth inning and pulled away with three in the 10th inning.
- VMI had 20 hits in a game for the first time since the 2016 season
- Andrew Jones ’26 was solid in his first start on the hill this season, working 6 1/3 innings with three strikeouts and allowing just five hits, two walks, and three earned runs
- Trey Morgan ’24 was 2-5 with a home run and earned the win in relief, allowing just one walk with two strikeouts in 1 2/3 frames
- Cole Garrett ’24 went 4-6 with a home run and four RBIs
- Justin Starke ’23 was 3-4 with a double and a walk
- Zac Morris ’23 had three hits and Brett Cook ’24 had a home run
- Jordan Starkes was 3-3 for Western Carolina with a home run and two walks
GAME 2
- VMI had an 8-2 edge before a Catamount six-run sixth inning tied the score. The Keydets plated two in the seventh inning and three in the eighth inning, but WCU nearly countered with one in the seventh and three in the eighth innings to cut the lead to 13-12. The Keydets brought four more runs across in the ninth inning to extend the lead.
- Morgan was 3-6 with three RBIs and two stolen bases and again finished the game on the mound to earn the save
- Cook was 3-4 with another homer and two walks and Grayson Fitzwater ’26 blasted a grand slam
- Ty Swaim ’24 had three hits and scored three times
- Starke was 2-3 with two walks, an HBP, four runs, and two stolen bases
- Garrett drove in four runs, and VMI stole eight bases
- Jack Spyke was 4-5 with a double for WCU (12-18/3-5 SoCon)
Editor’s Note: This article first appeared at vmikeydets.com.
