Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Gamecock Sports Schedule ■ Men’s tennis vs. Wake Forest, 2 p.m. Monday ■ Baseball at The Citadel, 7 p.m. Tuesday ■ Track and field at home (S.C. State Championships), Wednesday ■ Women’s tennis vs. LSU, 2 p.m. Wednesday I 'Che (BamtCOCk Monday, April 9,2001 Carolina schooled by defending champs ■ Baseball team wins on Sunday, but LSU takes the series 2-1 by Darrah Densmore The Gamecock In Sunday’s series finale against defending national champion LSU, ninth ranked South Carolina returned to the formula that has time and again produced victories during the past two years: good pitching, good defense and the long ball. Hie results were impressive. Pitchers Chris Spigner and Cee Gronkiewicz allowed only two runs on nine hits, Bryon Jeffcoat and Chris Plummer homered in a three-run fifth inning and the Gamecocks played errorless baseball in a 4-2 victory before 4,710 at Saige Frye Field. “That’s what wins games,” junior Marcus McBetli said. “You have to play good defense, and our offense came Mound at the right time and helped us to win it. “We had to make up our own minds to come out and win, and that’s what we did today.” Spigner (6-2) picked up the victory with six strong innings, and Gronkiewicz earned his seventh save. “ft was a tremendous outing by our pitching staff,” USC head coach Ray Tanner said. “Spigner had agqod fastball today, and Gronkiewicz was masterful, as he has been all yeM.” The win was a sweet consolation for USC, which dropped the first two games of die series. LSU defeated the Gamecocks 5-3 on Friday Mid 12-5 on Saturday: Carolina got on the boMd first in the bottom of the fourth. Drew Meyer and Sean Rayford/The Gamecock - Head coach Ray Tanner gets ejected from Saturday’s game, a 12-5 USC loss. It was the second time in his career that he had been tossed. McBeth walked to begin the inning, then advanced on Wilson’s wild pick-off throw to second. Meyer scored on a sacrifice fly by Tim Whittaker, kicking the ball out of the catcher’s mitt on his slide into home. “Meyer is starting to be eneigetic on the bases, which lets him create some things,” Tanner said. LSU tied the score in the top of the fifth with a sacrifice fly by Ryan Theriot, the Tigers’ lead-off hitter who was a thorn in Carolina’s side throughout the series. Theriot’s sacrifice scored Matt Heath, who had singled and advanced to third on a double by David Raymer. Carolina put the game out of reach in the bottom of the fifth with Jeffcoat’s solo home run, his ninth of the season, and Plummer’s two-run shot, his fifth. “I went up there and wanted to get something to drive,” Jeffcoat said. “The second pitch was a slider, and he hung it a little, so I was able to get the meat of the bat on it.” LSU mounted a rally in the top of the sixth with two consecutive doubles by Bryan Moore and pinch hitter Todd Linden, but the Tigers were only able to get one run in the inning, as Spigner was able to work out of the jam. LSU wouldn’t threaten again, as Gronkiewicz relieved Spigner in the top of the seventh and struck out four in his three-inning stint. Gronkiewicz lowered his ERA to 0.41 in 18 appearances. “Gronkiewicz is a tough kid, and he’s a good pitcher with great numbers,” Tanner said of his senior right-handed closer. “He actually called me and Coach Meyers (pitching coach Jerry Meyers) last night and said, ‘I know Spigner is scheduled, but I can pitch more than an inning or two.’” With the win, the Gamecocks move to 26-9 overall, 8-7 in the SEC. LSU falls to 24-9-1 overall, 10-5 in the conference. On Saturday, LSU showed the muscle that made it national champion by pounding out 16 hits, including four home runs, to trounce USC 12-5. Gamecock pitcher Gary Bell (64) left the game after recording only two outs in the first inning. Bell gave up six runs on four hits, including home runs by Aaron Hill and Matt Heath, a walk, and an error, and didn’t strike out a batter. The Gamecocks, down 8-1 after an inning and a half, pulled to within four runs twice. In the bottom of the fifth, Jeffcoat drove in Meyer with a double to center field. McBeth, who earlier had singled and moved Meyer to third, scored on a groundout by Tim Whittaker to make it 84. LSU tacked on one run in the top of the sixth when an error by Meyer allowed Ray Wright to score from third. The Gamecocks would make it 9-5 on an RBI single by Meyer, but that would be as close as they would get. LSU tacked on three more runs in the final two innings for the final maigin of victory. “We gave them too many opportunities,” Tanner said. “My guys are playing hard, but we aren’t playing well enough. Wfe’re just not getting the breaks, but good teams make the breaks.” The victory by LSU was its 15th against Carolina since USC joined the SEC in 1992. Carolina has beaten LSU three times since joining the conference. 2000 National Player of the Year Kip Bouknight struggled for his third consecutive outing on Friday and was out dueled by freshman Lane Mestepey, as LSU SEE PAGE 9 Softball wins eighth straight Aaron Hark/The Gamecock Debralee Troesh throws out a runner during USC’s sweep of Tennessee last week. by Kyle Almond The Gamecock The No. 19 USC softball team swept the Auburn Tigers on Sunday with a 4-3 win and extended its season-high winning streak to eight games. Carolina’s Stacey Johnson (15-4) got credit for the win in all three games of the series despite only starting in one. The freshman hurler came into the other two games in relief of Megan Matthews. USC (19-12-1,134 SEC) held off Auburn 5-3 in the first game and smoked the Tigers 10-0 in the second game before finishing the sweep on Sunday. The Tigers (23-19,6-9) hit three home runs in the third game, but all were solo shots. The Gamecocks were able to score two runs in the fourth inning while the teams were deadlocked at two runs apiece, and that proved to be the difference. Adrianna Baggetta led the Gamecocks with a pair of RBIs in the game. The other two runs were unearned because of Auburn errors. Matthews had a difficult time Sunday, getting only one strikeout and allowing two home runs in two innings pitched, but Johnson was able to come in and hold off a late chaige by the Tigers. “This was a tough one,” Auburn head coach Tina Deese said. “We were in a position to win the game.” Lily DuBois (6-3) was credited with the loss for Auburn. “Lily looked comfortable on the mound, but we couldn’t pull it out,” a disappointed Deese said. Game one of the series was a 10-inning marathon, but the Gamecocks managed to squeak out a 5-3 win. Tied at two in the tenth inning, the Gamecocks had the bases loaded with no outs. Jodi Fittro was able to score on a fielder’s choice, and Baggetta added two more runs with an RBI double. Auburn was able to score only one run in the bottom of the tenth. In a shortened game two, the Gamecocks rode roughshod over the Tigers in a 10-0 romp. USC scored in all five innirigs of the game, and Johnson shut down the Auburn bats, throwing a two-hitter. Johnson has won six straight decisions. Joyce McMillin and Megan Donohoo led the USC attack with two RBIs each in game two. The Gamecocks will look to increase their SEC East lead this weekend when they travel to Lexington, Ky., to take on the Kentucky Wildcats. The sports desk can be reached at gamecocksports@hotmail.com Men’s Basketball Gonzaga coach joins a growing list of candidates by Kyle Almond The Gamecock Apparently, money is no object to USC athletics director Mike McGee. After reportedly offering Kentucky’s Tubby Smidi about $2 million to replace Eddie Fogler as men’s basketball head coach, coaches around the nation can’t help but take a second look at the USC job opening. “It’s just crazy, the type of money (USC) is offering,” Gonzaga head coach Mark Few told the Spokesman Review in Spokane, Wash. “The South Carolina job is intriguing. They have the new facility (to come in 2002), and they’re returning a solid nucleus of players.” Few is a hot coaching candidate after taking the Bulldogs to back-to-back Sweet 16 ap pearances, but he has already told Tennessee and Wisconsin that he is happy out west. “I’m extremely happy and content; ' this is a part of the FEW country I want to live in,” Few told the Coeur d’Alene Press in Idaho. “But every now and then, you’ve got to listen. It would take a very special offer to get me to leave.” Few said he had been contacted by USC, but wouldn’t comment as to whether he had been interviewed. Cremins says he’s a candidate Bobby Cremins, a USC graduate and former head coach at Geoigia Tech, told The State on Saturday that he was definitely a candidate for USC’s coaching vacancy. “I am a candidate now,” he said. “I’m letting Mike (McGee) handle the process of talking to candidate;, but I am a candidate. There are other candidates, and until Mike’s finished talking to everybody and makes his selection, that’s where everything lies. “As I told Mike from the beginning, I want what’s best for the university... It would be a wonderful opportunity, but I want what’s best for the university.” Cremins was named USC head coach in 1993 as a replacement for Steve Newton, but changed his mind three days later and decided to stay at Geoigia Tech. Some have said he would never be considered for the vacancy because of the about-face. Basketball seepages USC’s Whittaker making the most * of his senior year ■ Catcher leading SEC in home runs by Charles Tomlinson The Gamecock This is Tim Whittaker’s first year as a regular starter on the Gamecock baseball team, and the senior catcher is making every at-bat count. After getting limited playing time in his first three seasons, Whittaker has made the best of his senior season, bringing a strong defensive presence and a powerful bat Whittaker to the No. 9 Game cocks. ror the past two years, Whittaker has played as reserve catcher under some very talented Carolina catchers. Two seasons ago, Whittaker played backup catcher for Ryan Bordenick, and last season he backed Brandon Pack, who was drafted and signed by the Texas Rangers. During fall practice, however, Whittaker revealed his full potential and showed he was ready to take control of the starting catcher position, batting .348 in intrasquad games. “This fall, I felt a little more comfortable at the plate,” Whittaker said. “But even if I didn’t get to play that much, I just wanted to come in and help the team whenever I could and hopefully get a couple of starts.” This season, Whittaker has gotten more than a couple of starts; he has become a fixture at catcher and the clean up spot in USC’s lineup. Last season, he played in 27 games as a late-inning defensive replacement and started only once. This season, he has started ii ,28 of Tim Whittaker Senior Catcher 5’11”, 215 lbs. Conway, S.C. ■ Leads the SEC in home runs with 13 on the season ■ Named as a candidate for the Johnny Bench Award, given to the ' nation’s top collegiate catcher ■ Has committed only five errors in his four years at Carolina ■ Currently hitting .319 with a team-high 47 RBIs the 32 games played and has seen playing time in all of them. Whittaker has patiently waited for years to be a starter. “It feels wonderful,” said the Conway native. “I’ve been here for four years, ) and I’ve always wanted to start.” Whittaker has proven to Gamecock head coach Ray Tanner that he is deserving of the starting position. “Timmy Whittaker has always been solid, ever since his freshman year,” Tanner said. “Now, it’s worked out for him well.” It’s worked out well for the Gamecocks, too. In addition to his superior work behind the plate, Whittaker has brought power to a USC team that is first in the SEC in home runs. He holds the conference lead in homers with 13 on the season. He’s also has a .333 batting average, a vast improvement over last season’s .250. Tanner holds great respect for __ 9 Whittaker see page 9