The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, August 13, 2004, Page C2, Image 20
Baseball has successful summer, falls at CWS
BY JONATHAN HILLYARD
AND BRAD SENKIW
THE GAMECOCK
The USC baseball team en
joyed its third consecutive post
season run but found disappoint
ment as the team came up one
win short of the championship se
ries. The Gamecocks lost to Cal
State Fullerton twice but beat
them once along with LSU and
Miami.
After returning home from
Omaha and the College World
Series, the USC baseball team will
look back at an extremely suc
cessful season and prepare for
what should be another memo
rable campaign in 2005.
The 2004 Gamecocks saw a
roller coaster of events mold
into one of the best seasons in
school history. After starting off
in an impressive fashion with
an undefeated 18-0 streak, the
team quickly cooled with a puz
zling 2-4 start in conference
play.
Toward the end of the regular
season, the Gamecock faithful be
gan to stir as the team won four
of its last five SEC series.
PHOTO BY JOEY BORDEL/THE REVEILLE
USC’s Kevin Melillo runs into LSU catcher Matt Liuzza during a game at the College World Series.
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Probably the greatest turning
point in the season came when
the team trailed Ole Miss 6-2 in
the top of the ninth inning of the
opening game of the SEC
Tournament. Following a come
from-behind win in that game,
the team would win nine games
in a row prior to losing in the
first round of the College World
Series.
The win streak included the
first SEC Tournament champi
onship in school history and
sweeps in both Regional and
Super Regional competition in
the NCAAs.
USC’s third consecutive trip to
the College World Series drew
ironic comparisons to the first in
the trilogy as the team lost the
opener, only to reach the semi-fi
nals of college baseball’s national
championship. As the Cal State
Fullerton Titans celebrated their
national championship, USC ar
rived back in Columbia having
come up just short for the third
straight year.
Several Gamecocks had
dreams come true over the sum
mer at the Major League
Baseball draft. Senior catcher
Landon Powell, the 24th selec
tion by the Oakland Athletics,
and Matt Campbell, the 27th se
lection by the Kansas City
Royals, were both chosen in the
first round, marking the first
time in school history two
Gamecocks were chosen that
high in the draft. Closer Chad
Blackwell will join Campbell as a
member of the Royals’ minor
league staff as a sixth-round
pick. The Royals also selected
another USC pitcher in junior
college transfer Billy Buckner in
the fifth round.
Bryan Triplett signed with the
Houston Astros after being draft
ed in the 12th round, and second
baseman Kevin Melillo was a
fifth-round pick of Oakland.
Steve Pearce was drafted by the
Boston Red Sox in the 10th round
as well.
The Gamecock coaching staff
lost a member as well when
pitching coach Jerry Meyers left
USC July 19 to become the head
coach at Old Dominion, where
he was an assistant in 1996.
Meyers had been by head coach
Ray Tanner’s side for eight sea
sons.
“We’re excited for Coacfy
Meyers and the opportunity he’^
been presented at Old
Dominion,” Tanner said. “He’s
done a terrific job for us at South
Carolina, as a pitching coach and
developer of talent.”
Tanner and his staff will pre
pare for the 2005 season over the
fall semester. The Gamecocks
will bring back talented players
including Steve Tolleson,
Michael Campbell and Aaron
Rawl, as Well as another strong
recruiting class.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecocksports@gwm. sc. edu
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