MEMPHIS — East Carolina took both ends of a doubleheader at Memphis on Saturday to sweep the three-game American Athletic Conference series.
The No. 11 Pirates took both games by 4-2 margins.
A four-run fifth inning provided the win in the first game after the Tigers had taken a 2-0 lead in the first on RBI singles by Alec Trela and Cale Henneman.
Bryant Packard single to score Turner Brown in the fifth. A single through the left side by Spencer Brickhouse brought in Chandler Jenkins to tie the score. A bases-loaded walk to Jake Washer forced in Packard with the go-ahead run.
ECU took a 4-2 lead when Brady Lloyd came home on a wild pitch.
Davis Kirkpatrick (2-0) got the win in relief of Alec Burleson, who started and went four and one-third innings. Burleson surrendered five hits, two unearned runs and struck out four without a walk.
Kirkpatrick went two innings before Ryan Ross recorded his fifth save.
Packard had two hits and an RBI in the first game Saturday. Lloyd went 2-for-4. Brickhouse had a hit and an RBI.
The Pirates led 4-0 after three innings in the second game as Tyler Smith improved to 6-1. ECU led 1-0 in the first as Packard came home when Connor Litton grounded into a double play.
Dwanya Williams-Sutton scored in the second on a ground out by Andrew Henrickson. Packard homered to left in the third and Williams-Sutton had an RBI double to bring in Brickhouse and complete the scoring for the Pirates.
Henneman had a two-run single for Memphis in the sixth.
Packard went 3-for-5. Williams-Sutton and Henrickson each went 2-for-4 with an RBI.
Smith pitched five innings. He allowed two hits and two earned runs while walking two and striking out three. Gavin Williams, Jake Agnos and Zach Barnes held the Tigers (13-28, 1-11 AAC) scoreless the rest of the way.
“I thought we had awesome pitching, played great defense and got clutch hitting today to get a pair of wins,” said ECU coach Cliff Godwin. “I thought we played more like ourselves in game two today where guys really came out and were ready to play. We put up four runs early and then they brought in their best reliever and we couldn’t scratch any runs across.
“But, all our pitchers in game two were all really good out on the mound today. Anytime you go on the road and get a series win is awesome and obviously sweeping a series on the road is very hard to do.”
ECU (30-9, 8-4) visits No. 2 N.C. State on Tuesday at 6 p.m.
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