Harrisonburg, Va.- Georgia State (24-9, 6-5 CAA) got a complete game by senior Charley Olson and two home runs from Ryan Fleming as the Panthers earned a 16-3 game two win over James Madison (22-10, 11-6) to split Saturday's Colonial Athletic Association doubleheader at Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park. The Panthers dropped game one to the Dukes, 9-6.
Mark Micowski and Brandon Williams also homered in the game two win, as GSU matched a season high with 14 RBIs and four home runs.
"What happened today is we played really good baseball for a majority of the innings," head coach Greg Frady said. "One bad inning changed the outcome of game one, which is extremely disappointing, but I think the team responded very well in game two."
The Panthers' game two win over the CAA-leading Dukes is just the third in eighteen tries against James Madison since 1980.
Game One: James Madison 9, Georgia State 6
Will Campbell threw six strong innings and Drew Shields went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored but James Madison rallied to score eight consecutive runs in a 9-6 Dukes win in game one Saturday.
The Panthers jumped out to a 6-1 lead after five innings, but the nation's highest scoring team rallied for eight unanswered with two runs in the sixth, one in the seventh and five more in the eighth to claim the win.
Campbell, who entered the game a CAA-leading 6-0, went six innings, holding the Dukes to just three runs- two earned- on seven hits, while striking out four and walking one. He did not factor into the decision.
GSU claimed a 3-0 lead in the second inning on an RBI double by Carter Sackett, a sacrifice fly from Bryan Condotta and a defensive error by the Dukes that brought Sackett home.
The Panthers then added one run each over the next three innings, including Brett Maxwell's solo home run in the fourth, his third of the season.
JMU pulled to within 6-3 in the sixth after an RBI single by Matt Tenaglia. Then, after adding one run in the seventh, the Dukes went ahead for good with a five-run eighth, including four off senior Aidan Francis (4-2), who took the loss.
Dukes catcher Jake Lowery added his NCAA-leading 17th home run to help power JMU.
Sackett, Brandon Williams and Mark Micowski joined Shields with two hits in the losing effort as Dukes reliever Sean Tierney (5-1) earned the win with 2.2 scoreless innings.
Game Two: Georgia State 16, James Madison 3
Charley Olson (3-3) shut down the JMU offense and the Panthers flipped the script on the NCAA's top home run-hitting squad, belting four homers of their own en route to a 16-3 game two win over JMU.
Ryan Fleming piled up a season high six RBIs in the fifth multiple home run game of his career.
"I felt like the great thing that happened is we were able to put that first game behind us quickly, which is not easily done," coach Frady said. "We moved on, and I thought our team responded with a great purpose."
Olson went the distance Saturday for the second time in his Panther career- the first since a complete game win over William & Mary last season- with 117 pitches over 9.0 innings, allowing just three runs on nine hits while striking out four and walking only two. He also grounded the Dukes into five double plays.
"I just tried to throw the ball in the strike zone so my defense could make plays behind me," the senior from Largo, Fla., said. "Today, I tried to put the pressure on them and fill up the strike zone."
Olson had plenty of support from the Panther offense, as GSU produced sixteen hits en route to its second highest scoring output of the season.
Fleming added a double to his homers in the third and ninth innings, while Brandon Williams launched his first home run of the season in the first inning and Micowski hit his third of the season in the ninth.
Micowski finished the game 4-for-6 with three RBIs and Bryan Condotta went 3-for-5 with three RBIs of his own as the two teamed up with Fleming to drive in 12 Georgia State runs. Rob Lind also went 2-for-3 with a walk and three runs scored for the Panthers.
GSU managed half of its runs against JMU starter Alex Valadja (3-3), who took the loss.
"James Madison is not easily beaten at home," Frady said. "We expect tomorrow to be an absolute battle. For us to win the series tomorrow is going to require a lot of toughness and determination."
Sunday's rubber match is scheduled for 12 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park.
