It was a moment of déjà vu as Slade Wilks hit a grand slam, and Christopher Sargent followed with a home run in the fifth inning of Southern Miss’ 15-2 run-rule win against James Madison.
But the reason there was so much familiarity was because just two innings earlier, the duo had already homered in back-to-back at-bats, which helped end the game early in the seventh inning. The only difference was that back in the third inning, Wilks hit a 3-run bomb, and Sargent hit a solo homer. However, both of Wilks’ big hits came on a 3-0 count.
“I like the chances there (on a 3-0 count),” Wilks said. “On a 3-0, especially with guys on, they are not going to try and walk you. They are going to come right after you.”
“That was pretty special. Sarge is looking pretty good right now, and if he gets going, then it’s going to be scary.”
The designated hitter has not hit 14 home runs on the season, which supersedes his season total of 10 from last season.
“The day-to-day is to just go down to the cage and get my swings in,” Wilks said. “Honestly, I just keep doing what (I’ve been) doing. I like to say I’m not superstitious.”
According to Southern Miss coach Scott Berry, it was not much of a thought to give Wilks the green light to swing on the 3-0 count.
“I think that’s his third home run on 3-0 pitches,” said Berry on Wilks’ performance. “When you have a guy that can hurt you that bad, is seeing the ball, and certainly has matured to a point where he is not missing his pitch, then I have no problem doing that.
“He is really seeing the ball well and not missing his pitch. Both of those home runs were on 3-0 swings. When you lock him in, then you have a chance to get hurt. That’s exactly what happened, especially with the grand slam with no place to put him on.”
Wilks also tied the school record for eight RBIs in a game, which was previously accomplished by Hunter Slater in 2019, Tommy Davis in 1994, and Freed Cooley in 1988. Sargent is now tied with Davis for the sixth most career home runs at 43.
In total, Wilks and Sargent combined for seven hits and 11 RBIs.
“Slade, for a while, struggled with that high pitch,” Sargent said. “Now, there is no pitch that can get by him. He can hit the high pitch for a home run, and he can hit the low pitch for a home run. I think for Slade, it’s getting a good pitch to hit. He’s not swinging at pitches out of the zone. When he gets a pitch over the middle, his exit velocity is ridiculous.”
James Madison (20-15, 5-8 Sun Belt) took an early 1-0 lead with a 2-out RBI single, but Southern Miss (22-12, 10-5) quickly got the runs back, with USM taking advantage of the Dukes’ issues on defense to help aid the Golden Eagles in scoring three runs. One of those runs was Wilks’ first RBI of the day, which was a sacrifice fly.
After USM plated three more runs in the second, including a fielder’s choice RBI by Sargent, the Golden Eagles broke away by scoring four runs in the third and five more in the fifth. Matthew Etzel reached base in every at-bat while Dustin Dickerson was 4-for-5, the second 4-hit game for USM.
On the mound, starting pitcher Niko Mazza threw five innings, struck out five batters, walked three and allowed one earned run off three to pick up his fourth win of the season.
Southern Miss returns to action on Tuesday as the Golden Eagles travel to Louisiana Tech. First pitch for that game is set for 6 p.m.
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