The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, June 19, 2002, Page 10, Image 10
t. "
>
10 THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, June 19, 2002
rnNtaptik "DAT)rrO THIS WEEK IN USC SPORTS HISTORY
LiUiMAUl L O I I I rl I i^S 1990: USC pitcher Brian Williams signs with the
E-mail us at gamecocksports@hotmail.com JL V/ JL _L Houston Astros after being selected 31st in the MLB draft.
-- -.-.-.- - -
COLLEGE WORLD SERIES
Cocks send Nebraska packing
CAROLINA WINS FIRST GAME IN OMAHA SINCE 1981
BY BRAD SENKIW
THE GAMECOCK
The USC baseball team discov
ered the highs and lows of the
College World Series this weekend
in their first trip to Omaha since
1985.
After playing one of their worst
games of the year, an 11-0 loss to
Georgia Tech, the Gamecocks (54
17) bounced back in the elimination
game versus Nebraska with a 10-8
victory.
Friday: Georgia Tech 11,
USCO
South Carolina ran into a wall on
Friday by the name of Kyle Bakker.
The 6-foot- 9-inch lefty baffled the
Gamecock hitters as he recorded
nine strikeouts in eight innings
pitched.
Bakker (13-3) allowed only six
hits and one walk to USC, who was
kept scoreless for the first time this
seaspn. Bakker combined with re
liever Brian Burks to hurl the first
CWS shutout since 1985.
Carolina starter Gary Bell (10-3)
lasted only four innings as he gave
up five earned runs on nine hits.
The Gamecocks used four more
pitchers in an attempt to shut down
the Yellow Jackets’ hitting.
Georgia Tech jumped on
Carolina in the first with two runs,
coming with an RBI triple by Victor
Menocal ,who went 4 for 6 for the
day, and an RBI single from Jeremy
Slayden.
The Gamecocks answered with
putting two runners on with one out
after a Yaron Peters single. Bakker
then forced Brian Buscher to pop
out and struck out Garris Gonce to
the end the inning.
The back-breaker came in the
fifth inning when the Yellow Jackets
added five runs in which Wes
Rynders and Matthew Boggs hit
doubles that scored two runs each.
USC’s only other threat to score
came after Kevin Melillo’s leadoff
double in the seventh inning,
Carolina’s only extra-base hit of the
afternoon.
Melillo was left on base, as the
Gamecock hitters were stifled once
again.
Georgia Tech added two more
runs in the eighth and Burks
pitched the ninth inning to secure
PHOTO BY ROBERT GREUN/THE GAMECOCK
Carolina Pitcher Blake Taylor(42) leads the cheers after the
baseball team’s Super-Regional victory over Miami.
the shutout and put the Gamecocks
one loss away from elimination.
Sunday; USC 10, Nebraska 8
USC fought back after being
down early to Nebraska (47-21) to
stay alive with a 10-8 win. Peters, 1
for-3, was the hero of the day when
he knocked a two-run homerun in
the top of the ninth while reliever
John Wesley (2-0) held on to get the
win for the Gamecocks.
It looked like another early
blowout, but the Carolina bats came
alive to make Nebraska the first
team eliminated from this year’s
CWS. USC trailed 4-0 after three in
nings.
Gonce had a 3-for-5 day with an
♦ RECAR SEE PAGE 11
Peters’
patience
rewarded
BY J. KEITH ALLEN
THE GAMECOCK
In a game described by USC
baseball coach Ray Tanner as a
“heavyweight fight,” Yaron
Peters connected on the knock
out punch. He just had to bide his .
time before he could deliver.
The Nebraska staff stayed
away from the SEC Player of the
Year all afternoon, electing to
walk him three times instead.
They tried to stay away again in
the ninth inning with Drew
Meyer on second and first base
open, but the plan didn’t work.
Peters knocked a 2-2 pitch over
the leftfield wall to give Carolina
a 10-8 lead.
“I finally got something to hit,
Peters said of the home run. “He
made a mistake and I took ad
vantage of it.”
Peters continued, “My eyes
just blew up when I saw some
thing over the plate.”
If you want to win ...
Don’t hit it to Tim-Seaton. He
has turned into something of a
♦SERIES, SEE PAGE 11
Robinson runs away with title
STAFF REPORTS
USC’s Marci Robinson led from
start to finish, firing a 3-over 74 in
Thursday’s final round in capturing
the Columbia Women’s City Golf
Championship by 6 strokes at The
University Club in Blythewood.
The Lady Gamecock veteran im
proved on her second-place finish
last year where she finished 1 stroke
back in the field.
Robinson, a rising junior, posted
a first-round 68, led by 5 strokes af
ter both 18 and 36 holes and ran
away with the title with teammate
and rising senior Kacy Thompson
finishing second. Robinson had a
three-day 215 team total, 6 strokes
ahead of Thompson’s 221.
Thompson, a native of Irmo, had
three birdies on the back nine
Thursday to move from fourth to
second place with a 1-under 70 to
give the USC women’s golf team a
1-2 sweep.
The course played 5,277 yards and
a par 71, some 600 yards shorter
than the 5,900-yard, par 72 layout the
Lady Gamecocks practice on and
play in hosting the annual Lady
Gamecock Classic. Robinson had a
3-over 38 on the front side, but saw
her lead grow to 7 strokes and was
not challenged throughout.
“This is a tournament that’s a lot
♦ GOLF, SEE PAGE 11
PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK !
Marcy Robinson’s 3 over 74 won
the Columbia Women's title.
Athletes capture new
academic records
STAFF REPORTS
As USC continues to have a ban
ner year athletically, Gamecock
student-athletes have also turned
in their best academic perfor
mance ever, as USC released its
athletic department academic re
port for the recently completed
spring semester.
The overall grade point average
for USC student-athletes for the 2002
spring semester was 2.894, the high
est on record. This performance
tops the previous standard of 2.88,
set a year ago in the spring of 2001.
Additionally, the Gamecock
football squad posted its highest
GPA ever with a 2.561. which bet
ters the previous best of 2.511 last
fall semester.
The men’s basketball GPA was
also up to 2.553, an improvement
from last spring’s 2.002.
Two other teams, women’s soc
cer (3.303) and men’s swimming
(3.272), recorded their highest
GPAs over the past six years.
From a total of 417 student-ath
letes, a record 24 individuals
earned a perfect 4.0 GPA this past
» ACADEMIC REPORT, SEE RAGE 11