Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Cl GAMECOCK DEBUTS MEN'S SOCCER vs. App. State, August 23 CROSS COUNTRY at CSU Invitational, August 30 CONT.40T l IS WOMEN'S SOCCER vs. Birmingham So., August 30 VOLLEYBALL at MSU Tournament, August 30 Story ideas? Questions? Comments? FOOTBALL vs. New Mexico State, August 31 E-mail us at gamecocksports@hotmail.com USC eliminates four in CWS - % PHOTO BY ROBERT GRUEN/THE GAMECOCK The USC Baseball team celebrates after a victory over Miami that sent them to the College World Series for the first time since 1985. They would eventually fall to Texas In the CWS final. BY BRAD SENKIW THE (iAMECOCK The USC baseball team discov ered the highs and lows of the College World Series in their first trip to Omaha since 1985. After playing one of their worst games of the year against Georgia Tech, the Gamecocks bounced back with victories over Nebraska and Georgia Tech. Carolina fol lowed with consecutive wins over Clemson before losing to Texas in the championship game. GAME ONE: GEORGIA TECH 11, USC 0 South Carolina ran into a wall in Game One by the name of Kyle Bakker. The 6-foot-9-inch lefty baf fled the Gamecock hitters as he recorded nine strikeouts in eight innings pitched. Bakker (13-3) allowed six hits and one walk to USC, which was kept scoreless for the first time this season. Bakker combined with reliever Brian Burks to hurl the first CWS shutout since 1985. Carolina starter Gary Bell (10 3) lasted four innings as he gave up five earned runs on nine hits. The back-breaker came in the fifth inning when the Yellow Jackets added five runs in which Wes Rynders and Matthew Boggs hit two run doubles. Georgia Tech added two more runs in the eighth and Burks pitched the ninth inning to secure the shutout and put the Gamecocks one loss away from elimination. GAME TWO: USC 10, NEBRASKA 8 USC fought back after being down early to Nebraska to stay alive with a 10-8 win. Yaron Peters, l-for-3;' was the catalyst when he knocked a two-run home run in the top of the ninth while reliever John Wesley (2-0) held on to get the win for the Gamecocks. Garris Gonce had a 3-for-5 day with an RBI as the team pounded out 15 hits, handing Nebraska pitcher Jeremy Becker (2-2) the loss. USC used five pitchers in the contest and was led by Wesley’s three and two-thirds innings of re lief in which he allowed one run on two hits. The Comhuskers struck early with one run in the second inning to the delight of the nearly 20,000 Nebraska fans that packed Rosenblatt Stadium. They fol lowed with a three-run third in ning, highlighted by home runs from Daniel Bruce and Jeff Blevins. USC came back in the fourth when Gonce, Trey Dyson, Kevin Melillo and Justin Harris all had RBI singles. Dyson and Landon Powell crossed the plate to give Carolina a 5-4 lead, their first lead of the tournament. However, the lead was short lived. Nebraska struck again and took a two-run lead in the bottom half of the inning. Irt the top of the ninth inning, with Meyer at second, Peters hit a 2-2 pitch to left-center that just cleared the wall to give the Gamecocks a 10-8 lead. Wesley then struck out one batter and forced two pop flies to end the game and advance USC in dra matic fashion. GAME THREE: USC 9, GEORGIA TECH 5 USC advanced to the semifinals and a game against upstate rival Clemson with a stunning 9-5 win over Georgia Tech. In just his sec ♦ BASEBALL, SEE PAGE 2 Football ready to go 4Holtz takes the field with new faces on both sides of the ball BY BRAD SENKIW THE CAMECOCK The USC football team is gear ing up for another season under Lou Holtz. The Gamecocks are starting the year with several new faces on both sides of the ball. After coming off a nine-win sea son and another Outback Bowl . victory over Big Ten powerhouse * Ohio State, Carolina looks to reach for higher goals. The Gamecocks have come close in the past two seasons in hopes for a SEC East title and were picked to finish fourth be hind Tennessee, Georgia and Florida this year. Alter hnismng tnis past season at No. 13 in the national poll, the Gamecocks begin this season at No. 22 in the ESPN/USA Today poll. “We’re excited, yet at the same time we know we have a difficult challenge ahead of us,” Holtz said. With the graduation of quar terback Phil Petty, USC will look to Corey Jenkins for leadership at ~ quarterback. ft “Corey Jenkins came out of spring practice as our starting quarterback. He has a very strong arm. I think Corey will only get better and better,” Coach Holtz said. Offensive coordinator, Skip Holtz, thinks the offense could be more explosive with Jenkins at the helm this year, but he ques tions whether his team can play mistake-free football. There will be a couple of famil iar faces in the backfield for the Gamecocks this season. Senior Andrew Pinnock will be the carrying the load for the run ning game once again. Pinnock led the team in rush ing yards and touchdowns last season and will see help at tail back from senior Ryan Brewer. Brewer is expected to fill many roles for the offense including tail back, receiver and special teams. Brewer is coming off knee surgery, but is healing quickly and is expected to make a contri bution early on. Also, Thez Robinson, Gonzie Gray and Daccus Turman will get a look at tailback. Once again, the Gamecocks will call on another big receiver to make big plays this year. Redshirt senior James Adkisson’s size and speed make him the perfect choice if he can overcome inconsistency at re ceiver. Carolina will boast one of their fastest receiving corps this year with help from the emerging red shirt sophomore Andrea Gause. Matthew Thomas and Michael Ages will also be expected to come up big in the passing game. The offensive line will be the best the Holtz era has seen with junior left tackle Travelle Wharton, a pre-season all-SEC sec ond team selection, Shane Hall and Cedric Williams leading the way. The serious changes for the Gamecocks come on defense this season. With Kalimba Edwards, Sheldon Brown and Andre Goodman off to the NFL, Carolina will showcase fresh talent on the field. “There will be a whole new look out there on defense,” said Charlie Strong, defensive coordinator. “The talent is there, but we’ll have to draw from it and get the maximum out of what we have.” Senior nose-guard Langston Moore is back to anchor the de fensive line with the next super star George Gause at defensive end. Gause was selected to the All ♦ FOOTBALL, SEE PAGE 2 > PHOTO BY AARON HARK/THE GAMECOCK Andrew Pinnock will start at running back for USC this fall. Pinnock rushed for a team leading 12 touchdowns last year. Tanner wins local honor USC coach wins regional award after his best season at S. C. BY CHRIS FOY TIIK GAMECOCK South Carolina head baseball coach Ray Tanner has been named American Baseball Association’s South Region Coach of the Year, an award voted on by regional head baseball coaches. The accolade comes after Tanner took the Gamecocks to the College World Series Championship game for the third time in school histo ry. The team finished their season with an overall record of 57-18. In the past three years under Tanner’s direction, USC has won more games than any other NCAA Division I program. Over the past four years, Tanner’s programs have won two Southeastern Conference Championships, as well as three SEC East titles. Tanner received a new five year contract from the university this past April. Afterwards, Tanner expressed his enjoyment of coaching at USC. “The Athletics Department, the players, assistant coaches and our great fans have made Sarge Frye Field a very spe cial place for college baseball,” PHOTO BY ROBERT GRUEN/THE GAMECOCK USC Coach Ray Tanner. Tanner said. “The staff and I are excited about the continuation of our quest for SEC championships, NCAA Tournament appearances and the College World Series. Carolina is a special place, and I’m extremely happy to be here.” Since his arrival here, Tanner has complied a 274-113 (.708) record. He has also received National Coach of the Year hon ors after the 2000 season and has been named the SEC Coach of the year twice. Comments on this story?E-mail gamecocksports@hotmail.com Watson officially transfers to S.C. State PHOTO BY SEAN RAYFORD/THE GAMECOCK Detek Watson will be a S.C. State Bulldog this season. BY J. KEITH ALLEN THE GAMECOCK After months of specula tion, former USC tailback Derek Watson announced he would transfer to S.C. State and play football for the Bulldogs this fall. Watson will reunite with former USC Assistant Coach Buddy Pough, now the head coach at S.C. State. The announcement comes barely a week after USC foot ball Head Coach Lou Holtz pub licly broached the idea of Watson requesting re-admit tance to Carolina, sitting out this season and rejoining the team next year. Because Watson is transferring from a Division I school to a Division I-AA program, he does not have sit out this season, and can play for the Bulldogs when they open their schedule on Sept. 7 against Benedict. Watson left Carolina in January after an arrest for marijuana possession. His ar rest also expelled him from a Pre-Trial Intervention pro gram he was participating in as a result of an earlier arrest for simple assault. Although Holtz did not like the way the Watson’s career concluded at USC, he wishes nothing but the best for the troubled tailback. “Even though he is at S.C. State, I hope he will feel confi dent to realize I will continue to do everything I can to help him, not only during the next year but for the rest of his life,” ’Holtz said. Holtz also explained why he was considering bringing Watson back to school this summer, “I wasn’t ready to give up on Derek Watson be cause I believe he has a lot of potential as a person,” Holtz said. Watson’s ex-teammate Ryan Brewer echoed Holtz’s senti ments. “I wish the best for him; Derek and I have been friends ever since we’ve been here.” Brewer continued, “It’s going to be difficult to replace a great player, but we’ll step it up.” Pough formally introduced Watson at a press conference on the SC State campus, and a large media contingent turned out for the event. “There sure weren’t this many people here when they announced my hiring,” Pough quipped. Pough was interested in giv ing Watson another chance, and felt S.C. State was the ideal environment .for the ex Gamecock. The coach felt that the small er university environment and lessened media exposure would assist Watson in his return to the gridiron and the classroom. ♦ WATSON, SEE PAGE 3