Bulldogs Punch Finals Ticket With Rally, Felder's Heroics

CHARLESTON, S.C. ?Brad Felder’s walk-off single in the bottom of the 10^th plated William Ladd and capped off the top-seeded Bulldogs’ comeback as they edged No. 4 seed Elon 6-5 in game 12 of the 2010 Bennett Hofford Southern Conference Baseball Championship presented by Carolina Ford Dealers.

A crowd of 4,033 witnessed the come-from-behind victory, making it the 10^th-largest in tournament history.

With the win, The Citadel (41-20) will make its 13^th appearance in the tournament championship game in 26 seasons. The Bulldogs will face either Western Carolina or Appalachian State Sunday at 2 p.m. Elon (38-22) suffered its second loss of the tournament and was eliminated.

The Bulldogs overcame a three-run deficit to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth. First baseman Justin Mackert singled to right center to score Felder. Two batters later, third baseman David Greene hit a single just beyond the outstretched glove of Ben Scott at third, plating Kyle Jordan and Mackert.

Drew Mahaffey (4-3) picked up the win for the Bulldogs. He pitched two-thirds of an inning, allowing no runs or hits. Starting pitcher Michael Clevinger went 5.2 innings, giving up one run on five hits while striking out four.

Mitch Conner (0-1) took the loss for the Phoenix. He allowed one earned run on two hits in one-third of an inning’s work. Kyle Webb, Elon’s starter, went 8.2 innings, giving up five runs, three of which were earned, on seven hits. He retired three batters. A reliever making his first career start on Saturday, Webb’s previous career high was three innings.

Felder was 2-for-4 on the day, tallying two RBIs and scoring twice. Mackert, Greene and catcher Grant Richards also finished 2-for-4. Greene brought in two runs.

Outfielder Niko Fraser, catcher Alex Swim and second baseman Seth Canipe each hit 2-for-4 at the plate. Fraser scored three times.

In the bottom of the second, Richards singled to left field scoring Mackert and giving The Citadel a 1-0 lead.

Elon tied it at one in the top of the fourth. A single up the middle by shortstop Neal Pritchard plated Fraser.

The Bulldogs’ took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth as Felder hit a solo shot beyond the right field wall.

In the top of the seventh the Phoenix tallied three runs to take a 4-2 advantage. On a full count with the bases loaded and two outs, designated hitter Mike Melillo walked to bring in Justin Hilt. Ryan Adams, the next Elon batter, doubled down the left field line scoring Fraser and Harry Austin.

Elon extended its lead to three in the top of the ninth as Adams flied out to right field plating Fraser.

The Phoenix committed two errors to the Bulldogs’ one while Elon left nine runners on base and The Citadel stranded three.

Game Notes

Attendance of 4,033 was the 10th-largest crowd in Southern Conference tournament history.

The Citadel’s rally tied for the largest rally in the 9th inning or later in tournament history (3 runs) ? tied Furman vs. Western Carolina, 1991 and Furman vs. Georgia Southern, 1998.

This was the fourth extra inning game in of this tournament, which is the most in SoCon Tournament history. The previous record of 3 was set in 1997, 2000 and 2008.

This will be The Citadel’s 13th appearance in the SoCon Tournament championship game in 26 seasons. The Bulldogs are 7-5 in championship games with losses in their last two (2006, 2007).