Elon wins Southern Conference Baseball Tournament

Cory Harrilchak went 5-for-5 and was named the 2008 Southern Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player.

The Phoenix claimed the early lead when Chase Austin doubled to center, extending his hitting streak to 12 games, to score Bennett Davis from second.

Stuart Haywood tied things up at 1-1 in the top of the third by sending a 1-1 pitch over the wall in center for his seventh homer of the year. Austin Morgan followed with a single to left and then went to second when Clay McCord put down a sac bunt that Harrilchak mishandled. Harrilchak then retired the next three hitters to keep the game even.

In the fourth, Elon got a lead-off single from Dallas Tarleton. Chase Austin then reached on an error to put runners on first and second. After Mike Lobacz popped up a bunt, Chase Austin was erased as Harry Austin reached on a fielder’s choice. Matt Hinson then struck out on a 3-2 pitch, stranding runners on the corners.

With one away in the top of the fourth, Morgan singled and Clay McCord followed with a walk. Harrilchak got out of the jam again with a pop out and a called strike three.

Chris Dove started the Elon fifth with a single and raced to third on a Donny Jobe chopper into right. Harrilchak’s double into the rightfield corner plated Dove to put the Phoenix up 2-0. It also equaled the tournament record for runs by a team with 51. Davis grounded a ball to third and Jobe scored as the throw home was caught in time by the Cougar catcher, but he thought it was a force out and did not make a tag. Jobe’s run established a new tournament record as Elon scored run number 52 in the tourney. Chase Austin’s single down the leftfield line drove home Harrilchak, but Davis was thrown out at third on a close play.

With two down and Michael Harrington on second, Mike Hentz tripled into the rightfield corner to score a run. The throw in from Jobe sailed wide of third and Hentz also scored, pulling the Cougars within a run at 4-3.

Pinch-hitter Pat Irvine drew a walk to start the bottom of the sixth and took second on a wild pitch. Dove followed with a walk before Jobe sacrificed them both over. Harrilchak walked to load the bases for Davis. Davis laced a single to left, scoring both Irvine and Dove. Tarleton was then hit by a pitch to load the bags again. The red-hot Chase Austin delivered two more runs with a single through the right side of the infield. The Phoenix scored run number nine on a Mike Lobacz double to left-center which scored Tarleton.

After McCord walked to begin the top of the seventh, Elon’s Steven Hensley fanned Brandon Sizemore for his 300th career strikeout.

Elon tacked on three more with two down in the seventh when Tarleton blasted his seventh home run of the season, a rocket over the wall in right.

The Cougars got their first two on in the eighth thanks to a double from Gabe Marchant and a walk to Hentz. After a pitching change, Haywood singled to load the bases. Pinch-hitter Matt Leeds drove a single to right to score two, closing the gap to 12-5. A walk to McCord reloaded the bases with no outs, bringing Brandon Sizemore to the dish. A run scored when Sizemore reached on a fielder’s choice that erased the runner heading to second. Two more came in on what should have been an inning ending double play, but Chase Austin’s throw was wide of the bag.

Harry Austin drew a walk for the Phoenix in the eighth, stole second and ended up on third as the throw sailed into centerfield. Dove’s ground-rule double scored Harry Austin, giving Elon a five-run cushion at 13-8. Following a walk to Jobe, the runners broke. The catcher’s throw to third was in time, but the third baseman could not handle the throw and both runners were safe. Harrilchak’s fifth hit of the game drove home two more and he evened a tournament record with his fifth hit of the game. Harrilchak stole second and went to third on a wild pitch. Davis’ double down the rightfield line plated Harrilchak and Elon grabbed a 16-8 edge. Tarleton’s single scored Davis with the fifth run of the inning.
 
Harrilchak (7-3) won after allowing three runs on four hits in 6.0 innings.
 
Jesse Simpson (9-3) took the loss by giving up four runs on nine hits in 4.2 innings of work.
 
Harrilchak was just the second player in tournament history to go 5-for-5 in a game. The other was John Connolly of Western Carolina in 1994.  He also drove in three and scored four times.  Tarleton, Davis and Chase Austin all finished with four RBI.
 
Tarleton, Davis, Chase Austin and Harrilchak all claimed all-tournament honors.
 
Charleston’s Stuart Haywood was 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

Elon will find out on Monday afternoon where it will be seeded into the 2008 NCAA Division I National Tournament. Fans are invited to come out and watch the selection show with the team at The Cutting Board in Burlington on Monday. The show will air at 12:30 p.m. on ESPN.