The South Carolina Gamecocks have leaned on their offensive firepower for much of the 2025 season, but on Tuesday night at Founders Park, it was the arms on the mound that stole the spotlight. In a dominant showing from start to finish, South Carolina shut down The Citadel Bulldogs in a convincing 6-1 win, driven by a masterclass from the pitching staff that held their in-state opponent to just four hits on the night.
It was a night of precision, poise, and power for the Gamecocks’ bullpen, a group that has quietly become one of the more underrated components of this year’s squad. While South Carolina’s hitters did enough to ensure a comfortable margin, the story of the game was the relentless efficiency of the pitchers, who gave little ground and left The Citadel chasing shadows.
The start of the evening saw sophomore right-hander Cade Austin take the hill, and he wasted no time setting the tone. Austin, who has been carving out a key midweek role, was sharp from the get-go. He needed just nine pitches to get through a clean first inning, pounding the strike zone and commanding both sides of the plate with confidence. His fastball sat in the low 90s, but it was his ability to change speeds and location that flustered the Bulldogs early on.
Austin worked three scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four. His fastball-slider combination kept The Citadel off balance, and he avoided hard contact with surgical efficiency. It was the kind of performance that gives the coaching staff confidence heading into the heart of SEC play, where pitching depth is often the difference between a good team and a great one.
After Austin exited, freshman lefty Hunter Mizzell took the baton and picked up right where his teammate left off. Mizzell worked a quick fourth and fifth inning, navigating some traffic on the bases but showing maturity beyond his years. A two-out walk in the fifth was followed by a sharp strikeout to end the threat, a moment that drew a roar of approval from the Founders Park faithful.
South Carolina head coach Mark Kingston has talked all season about the importance of depth and versatility on the mound, and Tuesday was a perfect example of what that looks like when everything clicks. Kingston mixed and matched his arms with the precision of a chess grandmaster, giving several pitchers the opportunity to contribute while keeping their workloads light. It was a textbook example of how to manage a midweek game ahead of a big SEC weekend.
Senior reliever Will Sanders entered in the sixth and delivered perhaps the most electric outing of the night. After starting much of the past two seasons, Sanders has found new life in the bullpen this year, and he made his presence felt immediately. The 6-foot-6 right-hander struck out the side with a devastating mix of high heat and a biting slider that had Citadel hitters flailing. He walked off the mound to a standing ovation after freezing the final batter with a perfectly placed fastball on the outside corner.
Offensively, South Carolina didn’t need to be spectacular — just steady. The Gamecocks scored one run in the first, two in the third, and then added insurance in the fifth and seventh innings to build a lead that never felt threatened. Gavin Casas delivered the first blow with an RBI double to the right-center gap, plating leadoff man Ethan Petry, who had reached on a sharp single to left.
Casas, one of the more consistent bats in the Gamecocks’ lineup, finished the night 2-for-4 with two RBIs and looked locked in at the plate. His approach was patient but aggressive, and he consistently worked himself into hitter’s counts. It was the kind of steady production that has made him a cornerstone of the lineup this spring.
Freshman standout Blake Jackson also continued his strong campaign, going 3-for-4 with a stolen base and a pair of runs scored. Jackson has been a revelation this season, bringing speed and energy to the top of the order, and he showcased both on Tuesday with a pair of hustle plays that extended innings and frustrated the Bulldogs’ defense.
Braylen Wimmer chipped in with a sac fly and a pair of walks, showing his veteran plate discipline, while Michael Braswell added an RBI single in the seventh that pushed the lead to five and effectively sealed the result.
The lone blemish on the Gamecocks’ pitching line came in the eighth inning, when The Citadel finally pushed a run across thanks to a bloop single, a wild pitch, and a ground ball that found a hole on the right side. But even that minor lapse was short-lived, as freshman closer Austin Williamson came in and slammed the door with a quick four-out save that featured two punchouts and a lazy fly ball to center to end the game.
In total, South Carolina’s staff struck out 13 batters, walked just two, and never allowed The Citadel to mount a serious rally. The dominance was as much mental as physical — the pitchers were aggressive but never careless, and each appeared to trust the defense behind them, which responded with a clean game in the field.
Defensively, the Gamecocks were as crisp as they’ve been all season. Wimmer made a diving stop at shortstop in the third inning that robbed The Citadel of a potential double and kept the game scoreless at the time. Braswell was solid at third, handling multiple tough hops, and catcher Cole Messina managed the pitching staff with poise, calling a great game and keeping the Bulldogs honest on the basepaths.
The win improves South Carolina’s overall record to 24-9, while The Citadel drops to 18-15. For the Gamecocks, it’s another step forward in a season that has been defined by growth, depth, and the ability to win games in different ways. While the bats have gotten plenty of attention, Tuesday night was a reminder that the arms are more than capable of carrying the load when needed.
Coach Kingston praised the team’s all-around effort after the game, emphasizing how proud he was of the pitching staff’s focus and execution.
“We challenged the guys before the game to come out and set the tone early,” Kingston said. “I thought Cade did that right away, and then everyone else followed his lead. It was a true team effort on the mound tonight, and that’s what we’re going to need going forward. These midweek games matter, and it’s great to see our guys take that seriously.”
Indeed, these midweek contests can sometimes be overlooked, especially sandwiched between high-stakes SEC series. But the Gamecocks treated it with the urgency and professionalism of a postseason matchup, and that bodes well for their mental makeup as the calendar creeps toward May.
There were also encouraging signs from younger players who continue to blossom into reliable contributors. In addition to Jackson’s big night at the plate, reliever Will Nolan threw a clean seventh inning and flashed a lively fastball that touched 94 mph on the radar gun. His emergence gives Kingston yet another weapon to deploy down the stretch.
For The Citadel, it was a frustrating night at the plate, but head coach Tony Skole credited South Carolina’s execution and expressed confidence in his group’s ability to bounce back.
“That’s a really good ballclub over there,” Skole said. “They threw five or six different guys at us and didn’t give us much to work with. We’ve just got to learn from it and move forward. We’ve got a lot of baseball left to play.”
As for South Carolina, the focus now shifts to a pivotal weekend series against Kentucky, a matchup with major SEC implications. But before looking ahead, the Gamecocks can take pride in a well-rounded win that showcased the kind of complete team performance that has them squarely in the national conversation.
It wasn’t the loudest win of the year. It didn’t feature a walk-off homer or a dramatic comeback. But in many ways, it was one of the most satisfying — a clean, clinical, confident win powered by a pitching staff that’s rounding into form at just the right time.