HPU Baseball Clinches Series With 10-2 Win Over No. 27 Campbell

• High Point clinched the weekend series against No 27 Campbell with a 10-2 win over the Camels on Saturday night.
• Sophomore Cas Silber earned the win in his first start of the season after pitching six innings and giving up two runs while striking out six.
• Senior Spencer Angelis and sophomore Josh Greene had back-to-back home runs for the Panthers.

HIGH POINT, N.C. – The High Point University baseball team clinched its third-straight weekend series with a 10-2 win over No. 27 Campbell on Saturday night at Williard Stadium. The Panthers scored 10 unanswered runs in the come-from-behind win.

“We are playing really good baseball right now,” head coach Craig Cozart said. “These guys have worked hard to get to this point and things are going well for us right now. The middle of our order was great tonight. Cody Manzella had two two-out RBI to extend innings. Cas Silber battled on the mound and Conor Lourey closed it out. This team has come a long way offensively and is a lot of fun to watch right now.”

Sophomore Cas Silber earned the win on the mound in his first start of the season to improve to 2-0. Silber pitched six innings and allowed just two earned runs on two hits and two walks while striking out six.

Senior Conor Lourey pitched the final three innings to earn his first save of the season. The right-hander allowed just two hits while striking out five in three scoreless innings of work.

Nick Thayer took the loss for Campbell, dropping to 4-1 in 2015. Thayer pitched just 3-2/3 innings and allowed eight runs, five earned, on nine hits and a walk while striking out four.

The win is High Point’s eighth in the past 10 games. The Panthers have moved back to .500 overall on the season at 10-10 and 2-0 in the Big South. Campbell drops to 18-5 overall and 3-2 in the Big South with the loss.

Campbell got on the board first for the second-straight night and for the second-straight night it came courtesy of a home run by Cole Hallum in the second inning. The junior connected for a two-run shot to put the Camel up, 2-0.

High Point charged back with five runs in the third to take a 5-2 lead. Senior Josh Spano drove in the first run with a bases-loaded single on a line drive that hit off the leg of Campbell’s Thayer. Senior Cody Manzella drove in the second run on a fielder’s choice and senior Spencer Angelis followed with an RBI double. After a walk to sophomore Josh Greene reloaded the bases, freshman Carson Jackson drove in the final two runs of the frame with an RBI single.

The Panthers used the long ball in a four-run fourth inning to open their lead to 9-2. Senior Tony Fortier-Bensen led off the inning with a triple and scored on an RBI single by Manzella. Angelis followed and connected for a two-run home run to left, his first of the season. After a Campbell pitching change, Greene connected for his third home run of the season with a solo shot to right.

Angelis and Greene are the first HPU players to go get back-to-back home runs since Ryan Retz and Adam Barry did it against NC Central on April 17, 2013.

High Point would tack on one final run in the eighth when Manzella picked up his third RBI hit of the day with a single to score Fortier-Bensen.

Angelis finished 2-4 at the plate with a double, a home run, a walk, three RBI and two runs scored. Fortier-Bensen went 3-4 with a double and a triple and three runs scored while Manzella finished 2-5 with three RBI and two runs scored.

High Point will try to complete the weekend sweep in the series finale against Campbell on Sunday, March 22, at Williard Stadium. First pitch in the game is set for 1 p.m.