April 20, 2008

Rankings are from CBI Composite Poll

Wake Forest 14, Virginia 3

Around the Bases
No. 2 FSU evens series with top-ranked Miami (Fla.)

Oregon State wins Pac-10 series at No. 3 ASU; SIU blanks No. 6 Wichita St.

In Tallahassee, Fla., Jason Stidham had four hits and drove in three as No. 2 Florida State evened its ACC series with top-ranked Miami (Fla.) 9-5 in front of a record crowd of 6,789 at Dick Howser Stadium. A two-run homer by Dennis Raben capped a three-run first for the Hurricanes (16-2, 32-4). Mark Sobolewski added a sacrifice fly in the third for UM. Dennis Guinn’s two-run double keyed a four-run third as the Seminoles (18-2, 34-4) knotted the score at 4-4. Adan Severino went deep in the top of the fourth as UM regained the lead. FSU scored three in the sixth to take the lead, with a sacrifice fly by Tyler Holt putting the Seminoles ahead to stay. Stidham’s two-run double in the eighth completed the scoring.

Oregon State 12, No. 3 Arizona State 3

In Tempe, Ariz., Tanner Robles allowed three hits and one run in six innings as Oregon State clinched its first-ever Pac-10 series victory at Arizona State. Robles (2-0) walked four and fanned five. Ryan Ortiz had three hits for the Beavers (6-5, 18-12). Lonnie Lechelt drove in four for OSU. His three-run homer in the fourth gave the Beavers a 5-1 advantage. Joey Wong belted a two-run dinger in the third and Jordan Lennerton added a two-run bomb in the ninth. Brett Wallace and Petey Paramore each had two hits for the Sun Devils (6-5, 30-6).

No. 4 North Carolina 6, Boston College 0

In Cary, N.C., North Carolina shut out ACC-foe Boston College. Adam Warren threw seven shutout innings and relievers Colin Bates and Tyler Trice threw an inning each to complete the shutout against the Eagles (5-15, 19-20). Offensively, Kyle Shelton and Garret Gore led the Tar Heels (15-4, 33-7) offense with two hits and two RBI apiece.

Southern Illinois 3, No. 6 Wichita State 0

In Wichita, Kan., Shawn Joy tossed a five-hit shutout as Southern Illinois blanked Wichita State at Eck Stadium to even their MVC series at one game apiece. Joy (4-2) did not walk a batter and struck out five. The Salukis (4-7, 20-16) snapped a scoreless tie in the seventh on RBI singles by Bret Maugeri, Tyler Bullock and Dean Cademartori. The Shockers (8-3, 29-7) had only three runners in scoring position in the contest.

No. 7 Rice 5, East Carolina 4 (10)

In Houston, Chad Mozingo’s bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the 10^th gave Rice the Conference USA series win over East Carolina in front of 2,921 fans at Reckling Park. Diego Seastrunk had a leadoff double for the Owls (12-2, 30-10) in the 10^th. After an intentional walk to Aaron Luna, Rick Hague advanced both runners with a sac bunt. An intentional walk to Adam Zornes loaded the bases for Mozingo, who battled back from an 0-2 count to coax a walk and end the contest. Ryan Woods had a sacrifice fly in the sixth for the Pirates (8-6, 27-12) that tied the game at 4-4. Zornes had a three-run homer to cap a four-run first for Rice.

No. 8 Missouri 6, Oklahoma 5 (10)

In Norman, Okla., Steve Gray’s RBI double in the top of the 10^th carried Missouri clinched the Big 12 series victory and its first series win at Oklahoma since 1971. Gray finished with three hits and two RBI for the Tigers (9-5, 28-9). Aaron Senne drew a leadoff walk in the 10^th for Mizzou, advanced to third on a base hit by Trevor Coleman and scored on Gray’s double. Nick Tepesch retired the Sooners (3-10-1, 24-15-1) in order in the bottom of the frame to secure the victory. Greg Folgia’s homer in the seventh gave the Tigers a 5-3 lead before Matt Harughty’s two-run triple tied it in the bottom of the inning.

No. 10 Texas A&M 11, Baylor 1

In Waco, Texas, Texas A&M used five home runs to belt Baylor in Big 12 play in front of 4,794 fans at Baylor Ballpark. Darby Brown went deep in the first for the first-place Aggies (14-3, 32-7). Kyle Colligan’s solo shot was followed by a Jose Duran two-run homer in a six-run third as A&M grabbed a 7-0 advantage. Brian Ruggiano homered in the fifth and a two-run shot by Luke Anders keyed a three-run sixth. The Bears (8-9, 23-16) avoided the shutout as Adam Hornung homered in the seventh.

No. 20 Ole Miss 5, No. 11 South Carolina 2

In Columbia S.C., Ole Miss scored a run in each of the last four innings to beat SEC-foe South Carolina. Cody Overbeck played a part in every Rebel run, driving in three and scoring two, while going 3 for 4. Ole Miss (10-7, 25-14) pitcher Drew Pomeranz (4-1) threw six innings and Scott Bittle hurled three to keep the Gamecock offense in check. USC (10-7, 28-11) never got much going offensively, but Whit Merrifield went 2 for 5 with an RBI to lead them.

No. 12 Georgia 9, LSU 8

In Baton Rouge, La., Georgia scored a run in the ninth to beat LSU in an SEC thriller. LSU (6-11, 23-16) was down 8-1 in the eighth, but put together a seven-run inning to tie the game. Two triples and walks were the key to the Tigers’ big inning, as Michael Hollander (3 RBI) and Taylor Davis (2 RBI) had multiple-RBI triples in the frame. The Bulldogs (14-3, 27-12) rallied when Ryan Peisel drove in Michael Demperio with a two-out single. Gordon Beckham led the Bulldog attack with three RBI and his NCAA-leading 19^th home run.

Washington 7, No. 13 California 4

In Berkeley, Calif., Doug Cherry’s pinch-hit RBI single in the eighth snapped a 2-2 tie and propelled Washington to the win over California at Evans Diamond, evening their Pac-10 series at one game apiece. Jake Rife added a grand slam in the ninth for the Huskies (4-4, 24-13). The Golden Bears (6-5, 25-10-2) tallied two in the bottom of the ninth, but Paul Dickey came in to get the final out and record his fourth save.

No. 14 San Diego 6, Saint Mary’s 0

In San Diego, Josh Romanski allowed five hits in seven innings as San Diego won its West Coast Conference series against Saint Mary’s at Cunningham Stadium. Romanski (7-0) fanned five as the Toreros (9-2, 30-11) won their 11^th straight game. Victor Sanchez reached on an error and scored in the second. James Meador’s two-run homer keyed a three-run third for USD. Sean Nicol had an RBI triple and scored in the seventh.

Auburn 6-2, No. 15 Vanderbilt 3-8

In Nashville, Tenn., Vanderbilt and Auburn split the first two games of their SEC series at Hawkins Field. The Tigers (7-10, 23-17) won the completion of Friday’s suspended contest, while the Commodores (9-7, 27-11) claimed the regularly-scheduled game. Matt Hall’s two-run single highlighted a three-run seventh for Auburn in the suspended game. Kevin Patterson had a two-run homer in the second and Hunter Morris added a solo shot in the eighth for the Tigers. In the regularly-scheduled contest, Caleb Cotham (6-2) struck out 11 in 8.1 innings for Vanderbilt with six hits and one walk. Ryan Flaherty’s two-run double in the fifth gave the Commodores a 3-0 lead. After Auburn got a run in the top of the sixth, Vandy answered with four in the bottom of the frame, keyed by a two-run double by Pedro Alvarez.

No. 19 Oklahoma State 8, No. 17 Texas 7

In Austin, Texas, Oklahoma State scored three runs in the top of the ninth to rally past Big 12-rival Texas. Pinch-hitter Michael Dabbs hit a one out, two-run single to tie the game and then outfielder Donnie Webb (3 for 6, RBI) drove in the game-winner. Jordy Mercer pitched a perfect ninth to pick up the save. The Cowboys (10-7, 26-11) were led offensively by Neil Medchil (3 for 4, home run, 3 RBI, 2 runs). Texas (8-9, 23-15) had rallied back from a four-run first inning deficit to take a 7-4 lead in the fifth. They were lead offensively by Brandon Belt (2 RBI) and David Hernandez (3 for 4, 2 RBI).