The ECU Baseball team had another strong pitching performance that helped carry them to a 5-2 win over Troy in the Keith LeClair Classic.
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Photo credit: (ECU Sports Information)
The East Carolina Pirates continued their strong weekend at the LeClair Classic on Saturday afternoon, defeating Troy 5-2 at Lewis Field inside Clark-LeClair Stadium. With the win, ECU improves to 2-0 in the tournament and moves one step closer to capturing its 16th LeClair Classic title.
Since the start of the tournament in 2004, the Pirates have won or shared the LeClair Classic championship 15 times and now look to add another title to that storied tradition.
Saturday’s victory was powered by a dominant showing on the mound from ECU’s now-established Saturday duo of Gavin Van Kempen and Sean Jenkins. Van Kempen delivered a career-best performance, striking out nine batters over 5.1 innings to earn the win. His previous single-game high of eight strikeouts came during his freshman season in 2023 at West Virginia. The right-hander allowed just one run on four hits and did not issue a walk, setting the tone early.
Jenkins entered in the sixth inning and shut the door, tossing 3.2 innings with four strikeouts to earn his first save of the season. The pair combined for 13 strikeouts and zero walks, marking the first time since May of 2024 – when ECU sealed a conference sweep of the Rice Owls with a 6-4 victory – that Pirate pitchers completed a game without allowing a walk.
It also marks the second consecutive Saturday that Van Kempen and Jenkins have teamed up as the only two pitchers used, earning back-to-back Saturday wins in dominant fashion and establishing themselves as a duo to be reckoned with in the Pirates’ rotation.
Offensively, ECU tallied 11 hits and answered every Troy push with timely swings. After the Trojans grabbed a 1-0 lead on a solo home run in the top of the third, Matt Lashley immediately responded in the bottom half with a solo shot of his own to even the score. Lashley’s first home run as a Pirate sparked a three-run inning that shifted momentum firmly in ECU’s favor.
Lashley finished with two hits and an RBI, continuing his steady presence in the lineup while anchoring the defense at shortstop. Colby Wallace led the Pirates with three hits and two RBI, including a key two-run double in the sixth inning that extended the lead. Davin Whitaker also recorded three hits and drove in a run, while Austin Irby contributed two RBI in the pivotal third inning.
Troy threatened in the seventh inning, capitalizing on a passed ball to plate an unearned run, but Jenkins calmly worked through the pressure and retired the side in the ninth to secure the win.
In front of 5,372 fans (26th all-time attendance) on a cool 55-degree afternoon in Greenville, the Pirates showcased the formula that has defined their early-season success: power arms, disciplined pitching and timely offense.
Now 2-0 on the weekend, ECU returns to the field to take on Western Carolina on Sunday with a chance to complete a perfect LeClair Classic and claim its 16th tournament championship. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m. EST.