Palmetto State Baseball team of the week, Jan. 28-Feb. 4: Lander

Lander (3-0 for the week)

(swept Erskine, winning one on the road and two at home)

Even though the schools compete in different NCAA Division II conferences, the Erskine and Lander campuses are less than 20 miles apart. That's the closest opponent for either school, so the competitive juices get flowing when the neighbors meet. 

Coach Jason Burke's Bearcats claimed the bragging rights for the first weekend of the season, although a cursory glance at the offensive numbers makes you wonder how.

Lander hit  just .247 for the series, while Erskine was at .304. Other statistics tell the tale more accurately. Flying Fleet pitchers walked 20 batters and hit another 10. Erskine also committed four errors. 

The Bearcats' batters were, if nothing else, timely with their production.

In the season opener at Due West, Lander fell behind 3-1 early, but rallied for an 8-7 win despite being outhit 12-7. Game 2 on Friday at Dolny Stadium was more of the same: Lander fell behind 2-0 after a half-inning, but rallied to win 8-6 while being outhit 14-5.

On Saturday, the Bearcats were cruising along with a 5-0 lead, only to fall behind 8-7 in the sixth. Lander had a strong closing kick, though, scoring the final six runs for a 13-8 win while finally winning the hits category, 11-8.

Taichi Nakao, a junior from New Zealand who transferred in from Southeastern (Iowa), did his part on offense, going 4-for-10, walking three times, driving in five runs and going 5-for-5 in stolen bases in the series. Chandler Moeller hit .300 and scored seven runs.

Up next for the Bearcats: at Belmont Abbey, Tuesday.

Also considered
Claflin (1-1) - matched 2023 win total, got first home shutout since 2018.

Francis Marion (2-1) - won two of three over No. 12 Newberry.

Limestone (3-1) - won series at Chowan.
North Greenville (2-1) - winning record on Florida road trip.

Spartanburg Methodist (3-0) - swept opening series.

USC Beaufort (2-1) - two come-from-behind wins against Anderson.