Campbell advances to Big South title game

today at Truist Point stadium.

The Camels (43-13) will play the winner of last night’s late game involving Upstate (37-21) and Winthrop in the championship round that begins at 10 a.m. today. That game was moved up from noon, the conference said, because of the threat of rain Saturday afternoon. If the nationally-ranked Camels lose that game, the teams would play again for the title in the double-elimination game.

Campbell scored seven runs in the first and never looked back. A hit batter and a walk with the bases loaded pushed across the first two runs. Lawson Harrill smacked a two-run double, Dalen Thompson followed with a two-run single and Jarod Belbein drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.

The Camels finished with 13 hits.Harrill, who also singled in a run in the fourth, went 4 for 5 with three RBIs and three runs scored. Logan Jordan went 1 for 3, hit a two-run homer and finished with three RBIs.

Hunter Loyd started on the mound for the Camels and got the win. In six innings, he allowed a run and four hits, struck out four and walked two. Spartans starter Al lHolguin lasted just a third of an inning as he allowed all of Campbell’s runs in the first.

Third-seeded WInthrop stayed alive when Nichola Badillo laced a walk-off single in the bottom of the 15th for a 10-9 victory over Gardner-Webb in the longest game in Big South tournament history.

The game went into extra innings after Gardner-Webb (31-24)scored twice in the ninth. The Runnin’ Bulldogs scored twice in the first and Winthrop (28-27) countered with four in the bottom of the inning.

Gardner-Webb regained the lead with five in the second. Winthrop added five in the fourth and kept a 9-7 lead until the ninth.