Agnos Shatters Strikeout Record in 19-10 Win Over Memphis
ECU came out on the good end of a 19-10 slugfest in game one of their three-game AAC set with Memphis Thursday night in Greenville.
The Pirates improved to 41-12 and 19-3 in the AAC with the victory while Memphis fell to 26-25 and 9-12 in league play.
Jake Agnos broke the AAC and ECU season strikeout record with 125 in the victory as well as the getting to thirty straight scoreless innings in the process to improve to 9-2 on the season. Agnos fanned ten batters in five scoreless innings of work to get the win.
“It was good. It was a lot easier to do it when you’re up seventeen runs,” said Agnos, “I’m just proud of the way we’ve played this year - the whole pitching staff. It was awesome. I’m glad my family and my girlfriend was here. It was an awesome night.”
“I’m just happy for Jake. He’s worked his tail off in the Friday night role. He’s gone out there the majority of the Friday nights and managed the game and gave us a chance to win pretty much every time he’s been out there,” said Cliff Godwin, “So it was a pretty cool moment to hold that record. I told him that I hope he has a few more strikeouts in him, but I’m really proud for him and it couldn’t happen to a better kid.”
ECU’s win also ties The AAC record for single-season wins in league play with 19 which was originally set by Louisville in 2014.
A pair of two run RBI’s from Turner Brown and Jake Washer quickly got ECU out front 4-0 in the first inning.
In the third inning, Memphis presented their biggest threat early on when they loaded the bases, but Jake Agnos put out the fire for the Pirates.
Jake Washer’s home run into the right field jungle and a Bryant Packard double in the bottom of the third has expanded the ECU lead to 6-0.
“I didn’t know if it was high enough but I knew I hit it pretty well,” Washer said after the game.
Spencer Brickhouse then reached on a throwing error at third base to score another run before Turner Brown was hit by a pitch t make it 8-0. Then Alec Burleson’s two run RBI to right made it 10-0. Thomas Francisco added to the damage with a RBI base hit to right to put the Pirates up 12-0.
The bases were still loaded when Bryson Worrell’s sac fly to left scored Jake Washer from third base to make it 13-0.
Denny Denz only lasted two and a third on the mound for Memphis to fall to 2-3 after giving up six of those runs on five hits.
Things didn’t get much better for Brady Wemberly who was charged with five of the seven runs given up in the remainder of the third inning alone and was credited for giving up nine runs on six hits. Then Grayson Kemp came on for the final three innings of the game for the Tigers.
ECU added four more runs in the fifth inning highlighted by a Ryder Giles double and a three-run Connor Norby's first career homer that put the Pirates up 17-0.
But Memphis scored a pair of runs in the sixth and then erupted for six runs in the seventh before the two teams added two runs apiece in the eighth to close out the scoring with the Pirates up 19-10. That included a home run from Chandler Jenkins.
The two teams will continue their series with game two Friday night at 6:30 p.m in Clark-LeClair Stadium.
