USC Upstate Wins Second Consecutive Big South Baseball Title

From: USC Upstate Athletics

BACK-TO-BACK! Baseball Repeats as Big South Champions with 8-1 Winner-Takes-All Victory over No. 6 Seed Longwood

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C. – The goal before every season for the USC Upstate baseball program is to play in an NCAA regional. This season, the path to said goal did not come without adversity, trials, or tribulations. But in the end, the Spartans accomplished their goal by punching their ticket to the NCAA Tournament as Big South Champions for the second straight season.

The road to this season’s league title took a slight detour as the 2026 Big South Baseball Championship, due to Mother Nature, was moved from HomeTrust Park in Asheville, N.C., to John Henry Moss Stadium in Boiling Springs, N.C. Championship Sunday also featured a slight speed bump, ending in a winner-take-all, second game on the event’s final day. After dropping the day’s first contest, the Spartans responded, dispatching No. 6 seed Longwood 8-1 to claim the title.

Pitching proved the difference maker in the winner-take-all finale as Upstate limited the Lancers to two hits, tied for the fewest allowed by the club to an opponent all season. Junior left-handed pitcher Chris Torres, returning on short rest to start the final game, surrendered one run on no hits and struck out four over 3.0 innings. Behind him, relievers, redshirt freshman right-hander Jacob Kirby and freshman righty Andrew Kummer combined to toss 6.0 scoreless innings.

How It Happened (Game One)

• T1: Opening the day’s scoring, Longwood’s Ben Pulliam doubled off the wall in right-center, chasing home Tre Keels for the day’s first tally.
• B1: Answering the Lancers’ run, Johnny Sweeney split the right-center gap with a triple, scoring Tyler Lang from first as Upstate knotted the game.
• T3: Loading the bases behind a pair of hits and a walk, the Lancers’ Jae’den Carter drew a base-loaded walk, forcing across the team’s go-ahead run.
• T7: Adding much-needed insurance, Longwood’s Jon Howard clubbed a two-run shot to left.

Game Information (Game Two)
Score: USC Upstate 8; Longwood 1
Records: USC Upstate (33-28; 13-11 Big South); Longwood (34-27; 11-13 Big South)
Location: John Henry Moss Stadium | Boiling Springs, N.C.

How It Happened (Game Two)

• B1: Taking control early in the winner-take-all contest, USC Upstate scored thrice in the opening frame without the benefit of a hit. Jake Armsey, Preston Lucas, and Wylie Waters each displayed their patience, pushing across tallies via walks.
• B2: Adding another run without using a hit. The Spartans’ latest tally crossed on a groundout to the right side off the bat of Johnny Sweeney.
• T3: Longwood, like Upstate, scratched its first—and only tally—without benefit of a hit, scoring on a sac fly from Jae’den Carter.
• B3: Answering the run surrendered in the prior half, Wylie Waters smoked a 2-2 pitch deep into the trees in left-center, a two-run shot for his third long ball of the event.
• B5: Tacking on the final runs of the Spartans’ Championship, Brady Small slugged a two-run, pinch-hit blast to left-center.

Notable

• Earning its second straight Big South Tournament Championship, USC Upstate is the first league team to claim the conference’s automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament in consecutive seasons since Campbell in 2022 and 2023.
• Under head coach Kane Sweeney, Upstate improved to 7-1 in the Big South Baseball Championship, winning the title in each of his two seasons at the helm. Over the past two seasons, the Spartans are 7-0 when hitting at least one home run in a tournament game.
• While Upstate’s streak of consecutive tournament games with a home run snapped at six Sunday, the Spartans closed the 2026 Big South Baseball Championship with eight home runs in five games. Over the past two seasons, Upstate has homered 17 times in eight tournament games.
• Following the 2026 Big South Baseball Championship, five Spartans found themselves on the All-Tournament Team. Wylie Waters earned MVP honors, while Trey Bentley, Tyler Lang, Brent Stukes, and Henry Zenor also received recognition.

Up Next for the Spartans
With their ticket punched to the NCAA Tournament, USC Upstate awaits the reveal of its regional location to be announced during the NCAA Baseball Selection Show Monday at noon. Fans are encouraged to join the Spartans inside the G.B. Hodge Center beginning at 11:30 a.m. ET to celebrate the 2026 Big South Champions.