The Claflin University baseball team will visit Lander University for a Peach Belt Conference (PBC) three-game series this weekend at Dolny Stadium. The series will feature a double-header on Saturday (Feb. 13) starting at 2 p.m. and wraps up Sunday (Feb. 14) with a single game at noon.
Claflin (1-2, 1-2), dropped two-of-three games in its season-opening series against the University of North Georgia (UNG) last week. The Panthers, who will be seeking its first PBC series win, claimed the program’s first-ever PBC victory with a 16-13 decision in game two of the UNG series.
Keyon Smith and Gerardric Dobbs led the Claflin offense during the series, collecting four hits each. Smith also drove in seven runs highlighted by a two-run homer. He batted .364 in the three games and was a triple away from hitting for the cycle.
Dobbs batted .400 in the series along with 3 RBIs.
Jaden Harden, 1-0, was credited with the lone win for Claflin.
Lander, who swept Erskine over the opening weekend, brings an undefeated record (3-0) into the contest. The Bearcats are led offensively by Ward Betts with eight hits along with a .727 batting average and Roury Glanton, who is hitting .429. Both players had home runs last weekend.
The Bearcats host two pitchers in Marshall Thompson and Carson Schlegel who has allowed just three earned runs between the two. Thompson did not give up any earned runs while Schlegel has allowed just three earned runs in six innings of work.
After this weekend’s series, Claflin will return home for its next two PBC series to host Georgia College (Feb. 19-20) and UNC Pembroke (Feb. 26-27).