First Battle at Bull Street Draws Record Setting Crowd
Columbia, S.C. – The Columbia Fireflies and the City of Columbia hit multiple milestones in the Palmetto State’s largest sporting rivalry when Segra Park hosted the neutral site game between Clemson and South Carolina for the first time in the rivalry’s history on February 29. The fans in attendance created
Columbia, S.C. – The Columbia Fireflies and the City of Columbia hit multiple milestones in the Palmetto State’s largest sporting rivalry when Segra Park hosted the neutral site game between Clemson and South Carolina for the first time in the rivalry’s history on February 29. The fans in attendance created the largest regular season crowd ever for the baseball Palmetto Series rivalry, with 8,986 fans in attendance. The former record was 8,242 fans, which was set multiple times at Founders Park and most recently occurred February 28.
“Saturday was a great day for Segra Park and the region,” said Fireflies team president John Katz. “Two historic NCAA baseball powerhouses took the field in the BullStreet District at the same time for the first time ever, and both Universities’ fan bases came in out in droves to support them. Our staff is already thinking of plans for the game’s return in March of 2022.”
Not only was the event a great success for Segra Park, but it also had a significant economic impact for the City of Columbia. Experience Columbia SC Sports estimates that the event resulted in $326,709 of direct visitor spending in the city. Direct visitor spending is defined by the US Travel Association as the total amount of spending by tourists while either visiting or passing through the region.
“We’re thrilled for the success of Battle at BullStreet and the impact this event had on the Columbia region,” said Executive Director of Experience Columbia, SC Sports Scott Powers. “The Fan Fest gave attendees a reason to come out early and spend more time eating, drinking, enjoying live music and participating in activities outside of the game itself. We hope visitors come back when we host again in 2022 and look forward to continuing to grow this event over time, providing even more experiences and drawing more visitors to Columbia SC.”
The 8-5 win was the first for the Gamecocks at Segra Park, as their only previous game at the venue was a 9-0 loss to the College of Charleston on May 9, 2018. It also marks the Gamecocks first win in a neutral site game versus Clemson since a 4-1 victory at Fluor Field in Greenville in 2015. Former Fireflies outfielder, Gene Cone, manned center field and led off for the Gamecocks in that contest.
Following the match-up, both USC and Clemson have a 1-1 record at Segra Park. Clemson beat the College of Charleston 4-1 on March 20, 2019 in their other contest at Segra Park.
The next collegiate game hosted at Segra Park will be between Clemson and the College of Charleston on Tuesday, March 31 at 7:00pm. Tickets for that game are on sale now. To purchase tickets, visit ColumbiaFirelfies.com, call 803-726-4487 or stop by the Fireflies Box Office located at Segra Park.