SEC Tournament game 1 recap: South Carolina falls to Alabama 9-3

South Carolina is one-and-done again in the SEC Tournament this year, as the Gamecocks fell behind early and were never able to recover against Alabama.

The Crimson Tide took a 6-0 lead in the third inning with a lot of help from USC - four wild pitches and two walks - and a Peyton Wilson double, a single from Owen Diodati, and a three-run homer by Jackson Tate. Alabama tacked on two more runs in the top of the next inning, courtesy of a double from William Hamiter and a Sam Praytor sac fly, making the score 8-0.

Carolina got those two runs back in the bottom of the inning, when Wes Clarke walked to start things off and Braylen Wimmer went yard to make it an 8-2 game. Each team scored one more time, both in the sixth inning. The Tide’s final run of the game came on another sac fly by Praytor, while the Cocks added their last run on a solo shot by Clarke.

USC starter CJ Weins worked 2.2 innings and gave up one hit and four runs, walked four batters, struck three out, and threw five wild pitches. He took the loss and is now 1-1. John Gilreath, Daniel Lloyd, and Julian Bosnic combined to go the rest of the way for the Gamecocks. Alabama starter Tyler Ras got the win and improves to 7-4, while reliever Brock Guffey earned the save, his second. Wimmer led the Gamecocks at the plate with two hits and two RBI.

South Carolina is now 33-21 overall, while the Crimson Tide is 30-22. The Cocks now await the announcement of where they’ll play in a Regional, which will be revealed on Sunday.