The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 08, 2005, Page 11, Image 11
■ SCRIMMAGE
Continued from page 10
“Our receivers are good,” he
said. “They are fearless and they
have heart. (Junior) Syvelle
Newton caught a lot of passes
today and that is encouraging. It
was an encouraging day.”
Junior Noah Whiteside
finished the day with two catches
for 23 yards and Newton finished
with four catches for 89 yards.
One of the day’s highlights came
when Mitchell eluded a pass
rush, scrambled to his right and,
while on the run, found a
| streaking Newton for a 42-yard
pass completion.
weanebuay a »iiiiiiiuage
began with a quick three-and
out led by Mitchell. However,
on the next drive, Mitchell led
the first team on a 14-play drive
that drove down the field to the
4-yard line. The offense was
unable to score on third down
when Mitchell threw a fade pass
to redshirt freshman wide
receiver Sidney Rice who caught
the ball but was ruled out of
bounds. Rice looked to have
another touchdown catch later
in the scrimmage before senior
cornerback Tremaine Tyler
ripped the ball from his hands
in the end zone for an
interception.
I The offensive line played
' considerably better than in
Saturday’s scrimmage, allowing
five sacks Wednesday versus 13
Saturday.
“The tackles, guards and the
center need to improve, but
when they do, we have a very
good chance of having a pretty
decent offense in the fall,”
Spurrier said.
Carolina’s defense has looked
solid all year long, and
Wednesday’s scrimmage was no
exception. Carolina’s D
combined for 11 tackles for losses
from 11 different players. The
biggest surprise this spring on the
defense has to be sophomore
defensive lineman Stanley
Doughty. Doughty has come out
to play, and he is extremely vocal.
“Nobody can block Stanley
Doughty,” Spurrier said. “He is
all over the place making
tackles.”
The secondary also played well
Wednesday, coming away with
two interceptions — one by
Tyler and the other by
sophomore linebacker Dustin
Lindsay, who returned it for a
43-yard touchdown.
tjn tne injury rront, wmtesiae
is fully recovered from his
sprained wrist. Junior running
back Cory Boyd, sophomore
offensive lineman James
Thompson and senior defensive
end Charles Silas will not return
for spring practice.
“None of the guys who are
listed on the injury list will play
this spring,” Spurrier said. “They
will have to learn how to play in
the summer. But it hasn’t been
that bad of a spring, injury wise.”
The Gamecocks will practice
again at 4:15 p.m. Friday at the
Bluff Road, practice fields, and
practice will be open to the
public. Next week Carolina will
practice Monday and Wednesday
before taking off two days for the
Garnet and Black game, which
will be held Saturday, April 16 at
1 p.m. at Williams-Brice
Stadium.
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■ SOFTBALL
Continued from page 10
repeats itself and that they are abli
to defend Beckham Field as well a:
I they did in 2003. With both team:
desperate to wipe the bad taste o
SEC defeats out of their mouths
this midseason matchup i:
guaranteed to be all the mor<
exciting.
The Gators are one of the SEC’:
best-hitting squads, with a lineup
that includes three players battinp
well above .300 for the season
Junior outfielder Lindsep
Cameron, batting in the cleanup
spot, is leading the way for Florid;
with an impressive .378 mark
Cameron is followed by Gato:
sophomores Shelley Stevens (.353,
and Melissa Zick (.333). In th<
Georgia series, Zick extended he:
career-long hit streak to 11 game:
to set a new Florida sophomort
record, and she is riding the third
longest streak in school history.
1 The Gamecocks will also hav<
to keep a close eye on junioi
infielder Stacie Pestrak, who lead:
the Florida squad with 17 stoler
bases. USC can expect some heav)
heat from Florida senior pitchei
Mandy Schuerman (9-3), whc
leads the team with a 1.55 ERA
Sophomore Stacey Stevens ha:
been the workhorse for th<
Gators, logging 140.0 inning:
pitched and 140 strikeouts on
the season.
Florida started this season
with an 11-game winning
steak, broken by Notre Dame
Feb. 13. The Gators, third in
the SEC Eastern division, have
a 6-4 record, with all losses
coming at the hands (or gloves)
of SEC opponents. Florida will
be in action Thursday night
against in-state rival Florida
State before heading north to
Columbia.
Before their matchup with
the Georgia Bulldogs, USC
went 4-0 last week with a pair
of doubleheader sweeps against
North Carolina and SEC
opponent Kentucky. The wir
against UK snapped USC’s four
game conference-losing streak
Freshman Jessica Josker led th<
Gamecocks in hitting with a .6li
average, while senior Alec;
Johnson went 2-0 and recordec
her fourth save of the year
Johnson has 17 career saves and i:
USC’s all-time leader in thi:
category, surpassing Megar
Matthews’ record of 16.
USC will need its sluggers tc
connect at the plate. Josker ha:
been one of the most consisten:
players at the plate, recording hit:
in two of the three Georgia games
Junior catcher Ashley Smitl
■ TIGERS
Continued from page 10
increased his streak to 12 games.
Both have taken the pressure' off
senior Steve Pearce (eight home
runs, 26 RBIs) and junior Steven
Tolleson (28 RBIs) to lead the
offensive attack. Other players
I have also taken on increased roles
after injuries to senior Brendan
Winn and junior Cory
Vanderhook — namely junior
Mark Stanley, who has started four
of the past five games at right field.
Each player has performed well
and will continue to vie for playing
time when everyone returns
healthy.
“I’m proud of these guys,”
Tanner said. “No one has made
excuses. Vanderhook went down,
and (sophomore Ryan) Mahoney
is only 10 months removed from
surgery, but (junior Ian) Paxtor
has stepped up. We’ve beer
missing Winn, and Mark Stanlej
has stepped in to do a good job. I
you’re going to be a good program
you’ve got to find a way to win.’
LSU will greet the Gamecock
with three left-handed pitchers
beginning with senior Lam
Mestepey (5-3, 2.93 ERA)
Saturday’s starter will b(
undefeated sophomore Clay Dirk
(7-0, 3.02 ERA), with junior Grej
Smith (4-1, 2.98 ERA) taking tht
mound Sunday. Mestepey ha:
been LSU’s No. 1 pitcher ir
rotation since arriving in Bator
Rouge in his All-American 2001
season.
“He’s been at LSU longer thar
I’ve been at Carolina,” Tannei
joked. “It seems like we’ve facec
him 10 times. He’s a qualit)
pitcher.”
The series begins at 7:30 p.m
Briefly
, Track teams succeed
at USATF tide meet
USC track and field
competed in the USATF State
Championship Wednesday,
finishing with an impressive
performance that included top
finishes in both track and field
events.
The Gamecocks swept men’s
hammer. Freshmen Tyler
Trout, Jacob Minskey and
Anthony Faulkner finished first,
second and third, respectively,
in the event.
use also swept the discus
event. Sophomore Joseph
Schroeder finished first with a
throw of 157 feet. Trout finished
second with a throw of 151-3,
and Jason Cook was third at
137-10. Schroeder was also first
in the javelin throw with a toss of
192-9. Cook finished third in
men’s shot put with a distance of
43-3.
Freshman Derek Pressly was
second in the triple jump and
finished fifth in the long jump
with a distance of 21-9.
Sophomore Trey Bell finished
second in pole vault with a
regional-qualifying height of
16-7. 1
AMY SANCETTA/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Defending Masters champion Phil Mickelson tees off on the 9th hole during first-round play of the
2005 Masters at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Ga. Mickelson finished at 2-under-par.
■ MASTERS
Continued from page 10
out of whack before players even
arrived at Augusta National — tee
times were pushed back five times
as more than an inch of rain fell,
leading to a 5 1/2-hour delay and
players starting from both tees.
Along with picking up three
birdies on the front nine, Singh
twice saved par with 10-foot
putts. His only bogey came on the
11th hole, the last one he played
before the round was suspended,
leaving him at 2 under.
Mickelson was all smiles when
he stepped to the first tee, looking
not much differently from when
he left the Masters last year
wearing a green jacket. He opened
with a bogey, but kept himself out
of trouble most of the day and gave
himself ample birdie chances.
Goosen, the forgotten figure in
all the hype over the “Big Four,”
made a rare birdie on the par-3
12th, then recovered from a tee
shot into the azaleas on the par-5
13th to escape with par.
It wasn’t the fast, fiery course
most players wanted to see,
conditions that have not been
around since the course was
super-sized three years ago.
Even with the greens soft and
holding approach shots, only 10
of the 92 players were under par,
and already there were five scores
at 80 or higher among those who
finished.
Woods hasn’t broken par in
the first round of the Masters
since he won in 2002, and that’s
where he was headed this year —
some of that because of bad shots
and bad judgment, some from
sheer bad luck.
He reached the par-5 13th in
two with a risky shot out of the
pines, leaving him a 70-foot eagle
putt. But he misjudged the speed
so badly that the ball raced by the
hole, tumbled down the bank and
went into Rae’s Creek. He looked
as though he might get that shot
back when his approach into No.
1 descended on the flag, but
Woods turned away in shock
when it hit the bottom of pin and
spun off to the side into a bunker,
turning birdie into bogey.
He wasn’t alone in his misery.
Paul Casey, who tied for sixth last
year in his Masters debut, took a 10
on the 13th hole and shot 79. David
Toms stood over a 20-foot putt on
the 14th hole until a gust blew his
ball down the slope and into the
fairway. He made a double bogey,
and shot 41 on his outward nine.
Still, nothing quite compared
with Casper.
A 51-time winner on the PGA
Tour who got overlooked in the
Big Three era of the 1960s, the 73
year-old got plenty of attention in
his return to Augusta National.
He hit five balls into the water
on the par-3 16th and took 14,
the highest score on any hole in
the Masters. By the time he
finished 12 holes, he already shot
his age. His score of 106 would
also go down in the record books,
except that Casper declined to
turn in his card.
“That’s going in the
scrapbook,” Casper said.
First- and second- round coverage j Third-round coverage
(all times EDT) i April 9, 3;30 p.m. to 7 p.m,, CBS
April 7-8, 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., 8 p.m. I Fourth-round coverage
to 11 p.m. (replay), USA Network ; April 10, 2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., CBS
YARDAGE AND PAR (7,290 yds. • par 72)
HOLE ' 1 l 2 3 4 5 6 7 j 8 9 OUT
YARDS 435 575 350 205 455 180 [410 j 570 460 3,640
PAR 4 54 J3I4”g " | 36
HOLE «JllJl2lj3N4jj?Tl6jl7T^ IN
YARDS 495 490 155 510; 440 500 170 425 465 3,650
par "4 5 3 4' f 4 ^ 36.
SOURCE: Augusta National Golf Course AP
displayed her hitting prowess in
the third game against Georgia,
batting in both runs in the
Gamecocks’ 9-2 loss..
. USC also needs to do a better
job of bringing Gamecocks around
the horn, having left 18 players
stranded on the bases in the
Georgia series.
This weekend’s series is crucial
for both' teams with the SEC
Tournament only five weeks away.
The first pitch of Saturday’s
doubleheader is set for 1 p.m.
Sunday’s game is set for a 2 p.m.
start.
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Friday at Alex Box Stadium in
Louisiana and continues 3 p.m.
Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.
“There’s not too many teams
that go out to The Box and
survive,” Tanner said. “It’s a great
environment for college baseball
and our guys are looking forward
• »
to it.
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gamecocksports@gwm.sc. edu
■ HILLYARD
Continued from page 10
a few years ago — it has taken eyes
off Tiger and spread fan support of
young people to other golfers.
After taking the world by storm in
2000 and 2001, the phenom has
cooled down. Or has he? Golfers
have stepped up their game a
notch and are rto longer scared of
Tiger. Now, the 29-year-old
golfing legend seems to have
picked up the slack. Could we be
witnessing a return to supremacy?
Mickelson’s tournament
winning putt last year at Augusta
drew a roar Tiger has never felt.
When Mickelson and Woods were
matched up in the final day of the
Ford Championship at Doral this
year, golf couldn’t have asked for a
better finish. “Lefty” will now look
to become the first back-to-back
winner since Woods in 2001 and
2002 and will also look to win his
fourth tournament of the season.
Mickelson has already won more
than $3.5 million this year.
Singh lurks behind Mickelson
and Woods in popularity but
quietly is still the No. 1 player in
the world. The Fiji native can play
with anybody when he’s hot, and
this week should be no different. A
three-time major champion, Singh
is no stranger to pressure.
Then there’s Els, the “Big Easy.”
Why have we forgotten about
Ernie Els? Do we not realize that
this guy was the best player in the
world just last year? The quiet
South African could shock us all
this week and re-establish himself
as the man to beat.
i nen mere s tne a ractor.
Augusta National. Where a 6-foot
putt can be just as difficult as a
150-yard bunker shot. It’s the
Masters, where just a slight
miscalculation could turn a birdie
into a double bogey (just ask Tiger,
who on Thursday saw a slow
rolling putt pick up speed and
plummet into Ray’s creek).
So who will it be? I’d love to see a
four-way playoff between these
giants. Then again, it might not be
any of them. We could see another
Mike Weir creep out of the shadows
and into the spotlight. That’s what
is so great about this game.
But as you watch the
tournament this weekend, keep an
eye on the Big Four, the oldest of
which is Vijay Singh at 42, and
just think about what a ride we
could be in for. It should be fun.
2005 Faculty/Staff and Student
Baseball Ticket Distribution^^
Monday,Tuesday, Wednesday
April 11,12,13 ^
Pick-up w/ ID @ the use Box Office
8:30am-5:00pm
Clemson Baseball Game
i i
'I, April 20,2005
f @Sarge Frye Field
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