After Maryland baseball starter Hunter Parsons’ first strikeout Sun- day against Stetson, the right-hander walked toward third baseman Tommy Gardiner with his glove up, eager to get back on the mound immediately after the Terps finished throwing it around the horn.
Parsons continued his torrid pace on the mound, an adjustment he made after a disastrous first start against Tennessee. Since that Feb. 18 contest, Parsons compiled four quality starts and added another in the rubber match against the Hatters.
Hitters began holding their hands up for time, trying to disrupt Parsons’ pace. It didn’t phase him, and Parsons’ two-seam fastball helped him earn a career-high nine strikeouts and induce 13 groundouts in a two-hit complete-game shutout.
Behind a second gem from a Terps pitcher this weekend, Maryland’s continually shuffling lineup managed enough support to secure a series win with a 2-0 victory.
“The thing that people were so excited about with him out of high school is his fastball has really good action to it,” coach Rob Vaughn said. “It’s just hard for that not to get below your barrel. When he’s good, that’s what he’s getting. And for us, that’s huge.”
Last week, Parsons (3-2, 3.23 ERA) surrendered one earned run in seven innings against No. 18 East Carolina, but a Terps lineup in the thick of their scuffles couldn’t produce a run to support him. Facing Stetson (19-5) starter Mitchell Senger on Sunday, Maryland (12-12) still struggled but managed to piece together enough offense for its third series victory of the season.
In the fifth, Senger (3-1, 1.70 ERA) followed an infield single from left fielder Richie Schiekofer with two walks to load the bases. Then, a passed ball plated Schiekofer, though Senger bounced back to strike out right fielder Marty Costes and strand three runners.
Senger was charged with another unearned run in the sixth following an error from left fielder Andrew MacNeil. Then, with runners on second and third, first baseman Kevin Biondic beat the throw home on a Schiekofer grounder to give Maryland a 2-0 lead.
“That’s what you have to do with good teams. It’s not a great day to hit,” Vaughn said. “For us to win consistently at the level we want to win at, those are the things we need to do: play great defense and be able to just execute when we need to.”
With the two-run cushion, Parsons clapped his hand inside his glove as he walked off the mound in the seventh, matching his career high with seven strikeouts. The junior needed fewer than 10 pitches in three innings Sunday.
“He went from having one of the worst paces on our team last year to just attacking the zone with an unbelievable pace,” Vaughn said. “A lot of toughness, a lot of poise. Had a little swag out there to him today. That’s fun to watch.”
After the final out, catcher Justin Morris gave Parsons a hug at the mound as the hurler has continued the form he discovered after regressing his sophomore year and allowing eight runs in one inning against Tennessee to begin this season.
“He caught me last year when I was struggling, and he’d come out and say, ‘You’ve just got to trust in me and trust that God’s got a plan with you right now,'” Parsons said. “I had to fight through that and then to come out there and be able to throw to him today was pretty awesome.”
