April 18, 2010

Rankings are from CBI Composite Poll

click here for complete list of scores

CBI Live: Virginia Tech 8, No. 3 Virginia 5

CBI Live: Vanderbilt 3, Auburn 2

Around the Bases
Georgia Tech completes sweep of Clemson

Kentucky knocks off Florida, Ole Miss wins at South Carolina

In Atlanta, Jacob Esch, Tony Plagman and Jeff Rowland each went 4 for 5 as No. 5 Georgia Tech completed a three-game ACC sweep of No. 17 Clemson with an 11-3 win Sunday at Russ Chandler Stadium. Rowland had three runs and three RBI, Plagman drove in two and scored twice, while Esch knocked in one on a homer in the eighth, giving the Yellow Jackets (15-3, 31-5) 15 straight games with at least one dinger. Rowland had a three-run triple in a four-run second as Tech took a 5-1 lead. Thomas Nichols had two hits, two walks and three runs for the Jackets. Jed Bradley (5-2) earned the victory, holding the Tigers (10-8, 23-14) to eight hits and three runs in seven innings with eight strikeouts. Kyle Parker went 2 for 3 with a homer and two runs for Clemson. John Nester and Addison Johnson both had two hits for the Tigers.

Kentucky 6, No. 9 Florida 5

In Lexington, Ky., Lance Ray went 3 for 3 with a run and a walk to help Kentucky (5-10, 22-14) hold off Florida’s (10-5, 25-10) ninth-inning rally and avoid a SEC series sweep. In the first, doubles from Chad Wright – for one RBI – and Cory Farris – for two RBI – put Kentucky up 3-0. Taylor Black’s RBI single in the third gave the Wildcats a 6-0 lead, but Florida held them scoreless during the next five innings. Matt den Dekker hit a RBI single in the fourth to give the Gators their first run, and they got two more from Preston Tucker and Austin Maddox’s solo home runs in the sixth and eighth. Josh Adams’ two-run home run in the ninth made it a one-run game, but the Wildcats kept them from scoring again. Jordan Cooper (2-3) pitched three innings, letting up one run and two hits, striking out three and walking one to earn the win. Matt Little picked up a save (6) after he struck out one and allowed two hits and one earned run in 0.2 innings.

No. 18 Ole Miss 5, No. 10 South Carolina 4

In Columbia, S.C., David Phillips hit the game-winning home run as Ole Miss (8-7, 24-13) edged South Carolina (11-4, 28-8) to prevent a SEC series sweep. The Gamecocks took a 2-0 lead when Scott Wingo and Adam Matthews hit solo home runs in the third and fourth. Matt Smith’s two-run home run capped a four-run fourth inning that put the Rebels up by two. Jeffery Jones hit a two-RBI double in the bottom of the inning to tie the game, but Phillips’ home run in the seventh gave the win to Ole Miss. Matt Tracy (2-2) let up one hit while striking out two and walking one in 3.2 innings to earn the win. Brett Huber, who struck out one and allowed one hit in ninth-inning relief, picked up the save (4).

No. 1 Arizona State 14, USC 6

In Tempe, Ariz., Kole Calhoun went 2 for 5 with three RBI as Arizona State swept a three-game Pac-10 set from USC in front of 3,489 fans at Winkles Field-Packard Stadium at Brock Ballpark. Johnny Ruettiger had three hits and two RBI for the Sun Devils (9-3, 31-3). Jake Borup (7-1) allowed six hits and five runs (three earned) in seven innings with two walks and six strikeouts to record the win. The Trojans (2-10, 15-20) had their first five hitters reach base in the top of the first as they took a 4-0 lead. Riccio Torrez had a run-scoring groundout in the bottom of the first and Andrew Aplin’s RBI single sparked a four-run second as ASU took a 5-4 lead. Deven Marrero and Austin Barnes both had run-scoring singles in the third and Ruettiger added a two-run triple in the fourth. Calhoun’s two-run double in the fifth gave the Sun Devils an 11-4 lead. Kevin Roundtree had two hits and two RBI for USC.

No. 2 UCLA 5, Oregon 1

In Los Angeles, Rob Rasmussen allowed four hits in 6.1 scoreless innings as UCLA salvaged the finale of its Pac-10 series with Oregon in front of a capacity crowd of 1,986 at Steele Field at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Rasmussen (6-0) walked two and struck out six. Dan Klein allowed one hit over the final 1.2 scoreless innings to earn his seventh save. Cody Regis had a three-run double to cap a four-run first for the Bruins (5-4, 27-5). Brett Krill homered in the bottom of the third for a 5-0 lead. Danny Pulfer had a run-scoring fielder’s choice in the eighth for the lone run for the Ducks (6-6, 23-12). KC Serna finished with two hits for Oregon.

No. 4 Texas 8, Texas A&M 0

In College Station, Texas, Brandon Workman pitched a four-hit shutout as Texas completed a three-game Big 12 sweep of Texas A&M at Olsen Field. Workman (7-1) walked one and struck out eight in nine innings for his second career shutout. Kevin Keyes clubbed a three-run homer in the fourth to start the scoring for the Longhorns (13-2, 30-7). Jordan Etier went deep in the fifth and he doubled and scored in the seventh to make it 5-0. Russell Moldenhauer belted a two-run homer in the eighth and Tant Shepherd tripled and scored on a wild pitch in the ninth to complete the scoring. Caleb Shofner went 2 for 3 for the Aggies (6-8-1, 20-14-1).

No. 6 LSU 6, Alabama 5 (14)

In Baton Rouge, La., Grant Dozar smacked a game-winning homer in the bottom of the 14th as LSU completed a three-game SEC sweep of Alabama at Alex Box Stadium. Dozar had tied the game in the ninth with a RBI single. Matty Ott (1-0) earned the win after pitching seven innings in relief with four hits and two runs. Clay Jones had a two-run homer in the first for the Crimson Tide (5-10, 22-15). David Kindred had a pinch-hit RBI single to spark a two-run eighth as Alabama took a 5-3 lead. Mikie Mahtook, who homered in the third, was hit by a pitch and scored in the eighth to make it 5-4. Leon Landry (4 for 6, 2 R) had a leadoff single in the ninth and was sacrificed to second. Matt Gaudet’s base hit put runners on the corners. Dozar singled to right to even the score at 5. Taylor Dugas went 3 for 7 with a run for the Crimson Tide.

No. 7 Florida State 8, Duke 3

In Cary, N.C., Sherman Johnson went 3 for 4 with two runs to help Florida State (12-6, 28-9) win the rubber match of its ACC series against Duke (5-13, 20-17). Jake Lemmerman scored on an error in the third to give Duke a 3-0 lead, but the Seminoles shut out the Blue Devils during the next six innings. Mike McGee hit a two-RBI double in the fifth to give Florida State its first lead, 4-3. Devon Travis had his own two-RBI double in the eighth that made it a 7-3 game and McGee’s RBI single in the ninth drove in the final run. The winning pitcher was John Gast (5-2), who struck out one, walked one, and allowed five hits and three runs in five innings.

No. 8 Arkansas 13, Georgia 5

In Fayetteville, Ark., the Razorbacks (12-3, 31-6) defeated Georgia for the third time of the weekend to complete its SEC sweep. Arkansas had a breakout six-run fifth inning to take a 12-3 lead. First baseman Andy Wilkins plated three runs going 1 for 4. Razorback reliever TJ Forest (5-0) picked up the win in relief, allowing one run on one hit and fanning three in his two-inning stint. On the mound for the Bulldogs (3-12, 11-25) Michael Palazzone (4-4) was stamped with the loss, giving up six runs in three innings. Georgia’s Peter Verdin was 1 for 3 with a home run.

No. 11 Coastal Carolina 13, Gardner-Webb 0

In Forest City, N.C., Coastal Carolina blanked Gardner-Webb to complete its Big South series sweep. By the bottom end of the second inning the Chanticleers (11-0, 32-5) held a commanding 8-0 lead. On the hill Coastal threw six pitchers who posted nothing but zeroes. Starter Jim Birmingham (5-1) tallied the win. Emilio Pagan (1-2) gave up eight runs in 1.1 innings for the loss. All nine Chant starters had at least one base knock, but Tommy La Stella gave a Ruthian effort as went 5 for 6 with a homer and three runs batted in. Zeke Blanton was 1 for 3 with a walk for the Bulldogs (5-7, 16-19).

No. 13 Louisville 10, West Virginia 1

In Morgantown, W.Va., Phil Wunderlich went 4 for 5 with a home run, three RBI, a stolen base and a walk to lead Louisville (9-3, 29-6) as it completed a Big East series sweep of West Virginia (3-9, 16-20). Ryan Wright hit a solo home run in the first and was the third consecutive batter – the first two were Jeff Arnold and Adam Duvall – to hit a RBI single in the second, which put the Cardinals up 4-0. Wunderlich’s two-run home run in the fourth extended the lead to 6-0 and Arnold hit another RBI single in the fifth to make it 7-0. Mark Dvoroznak tripled in the bottom of the fifth and scored on the next play to give the Mountaineers their only run. Cade Stallings hit a solo home run in the eighth to give Louisville its last run. The win went to Gabriel Shaw (4-0), who struck out six, walked one, and gave up five hits and one run.

Texas Tech 8, No. 14 Oklahoma 3

In Lubbock, Texas, Kevin Whitehead whacked a three-run homer to cap a five-run third as Texas Tech won the rubber match of its Big 12 series with Oklahoma in front of 3,100 fans at Dan Law Field. The Red Raiders (8-7, 20-19) won their third straight conference series. Barrett Barnes (3 for 4, 2 R, 2 RBI) had a RBI double in the second and Michael Reed (3 for 5) added a run-scoring two-bagger in the fourth to push the lead to 7-0. Cody Reine (2 for 4) had a RBI single in the fifth for the Sooners (6-7, 26-10). After Chris Ellison knocked in two for OU in the sixth, Barnes went deep in the bottom of the frame to complete the scoring. Colt Farrar (1-1) earned the win, while Chad Bettis allowed just two hits over the final four innings with six strikeouts for his sixth save.

No. 15 Miami (Fla.) 8, North Carolina 7

In Coral Gables, Fla., Miami swept North Carolina in walk-off fashion in a shortened eight-inning ACC tilt. The Hurricanes (14-4, 27-9) pushed across three runs in the final frame, ending the contest with a score from third on a passed ball by Scott Lawson. Daniel Miranda (3-1) recorded his third win, pitching the final two scoreless innings. The Tar Heels (6-11, 26-16) held an early 5-2 advantage, but the ‘Canes battled back. Nate Striz (0-2) recorded his second loss in just 0.2 innings, while Brian Goodwin was 2 for 4 with a RBI.

Stanford 10, No. 16 Oregon State 7

In Corvallis, Ore., Brian Busick pitched six solid innings as Stanford completed a three-game Pac-10 sweep at Oregon State. Busick (4-1) allowed seven hits and two runs in his longest career start, exiting with a 9-2 lead. Jake Stewart had a three-run homer in a six-run third as the Cardinal (7-5, 18-13) built a 9-1 advantage. Jonathan Kaskow had three hits for Stanford for his fourth consecutive multi-hit game. Danny Hayes went 3 for 4 with a homer, three runs and four RBI for the Beavers (3-6, 20-11).

No. 20 Cal State Fullerton 6, UC Santa Barbara 1

In Santa Barbara, Calif., Tyler Pill struck out a career-high 11 in eight innings and went 4 for 5 at the plate as Cal State Fullerton won its Big West series over UC Santa Barbara at Casar Uyesaka Stadium. Pill (3-4) gave up a RBI double to Matt Valaika in the bottom of the first for the Gauchos (3-3, 16-14), but retired 17 of the final 18 batters he faced. Nick Ramirez, who pitched the ninth, had a run-scoring double in the second to tie the score at 1. Gary Brown and Pill added RBI singles later in the frame for a 3-1 lead. Ramirez homered to spark a two-run fourth for the Titans (7-2, 20-13). Joey Siddons finished with three hits for Fullerton.

(photo courtesy of Georgia Tech Media Relations Office)