Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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■ DEFENSE ■ Continued from page 10 f burglary and suspended indefinitely. The loss of Thompson could have left the front lines a bit short of manpower, but the recent play of sophomore defensive tackle Stanley Doughty has impressed the USC coaching staff. “Nobody can block Stanley Doughty,” Spurrier said earlier in the spring practice. With the loss of defensive end George Gause to graduation, senior Charles Silas is also looking to step up and fill a huge hole in the defensive line. The coaching » staff has also expressed confidence in senior defensive end De’Adrian Coley, who has impressed many this spring. USC’s linebacking core is out to make sure no one gets far from the teeth of the Gamecock defense in 2005. Senior linebacker Ricardo Hurley looks to finally step into the shoes he brought with him upon his arrival at Carolina. Hurley was touted as one of the best linebackers in the country coming out of high school, but injuries have sidelined his progress in recent years. Alongside Hurley will be fellow seniors Lance Laury and Orus Lambert at the linebacker position. After spending a large part of their careers as backups, Laury and Lambert will be called upon to start and succeed in the SEC. They will get help from newly signed Mike West out of Butler Community College, who could play outside linebacker or strong safety. His arrival to Columbia is one that could help give the linebackers a man to rotate with early in the season. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc. edu ■ OFFENSE Continued from page 10 player penciled in to be a starter until the opener against Central Florida on Sept. 1. “None of them will be named number one or anything like that,” Spurrier said. “We’ll probably do that the week before the first game »of the season. We’ll say this guy is starting the game and he has. the chance to go the distance. If there was a clear-cut guy, we would say ‘he’s our quarterback,’ and he would be the leader all summer. But we don’t have that.” What Spurrier also doesn’t have is a solid core of wide receivers. Three players have stepped above the rest of the crowd in juniors Noah Whiteside and Syvelle Newton and redshirt freshman Sidney Rice. Whiteside, whom Spurrier regards as the team’s toughest player, is the leading returning receiver from last season, while Newton has successfully made the switch from quarterback back to receiver, the position he • played his freshman season, amassing 277 yards on 22 receptions. Regarded as the playmaker of the group, Newton will get a run for his title with Rice’s emergence. The 6-foot-4 inch receiver from Gaffney is an amazing jumper with the ability to grab any ball thrown his way. “I don’t think I’ve ever had a receiver that can go get the ball like Sidney right now,” Spurrier said. GROUND ATTACK Demetris Summers’ dismissal has done little other than allow more talented players to step up. In what should be the deepest offensive position given former coach Lou Holtz’s run philosophy, Spurrier has seen an ample ^amount of players impress in W practice. Junior Cory Boyd, the supposed favorite for starter, went down with a pulled hamstring the first day of practice. The injury opened the way for a productive spring by senior Daccus Turman and redshirt freshmen Antonio Lamar and Albert Ashcraft. Ashcraft and Turman received the majority of reps, with redshirt junior walk-on Jermaine Sims also catching Spurrier’s eye with his will and determination, despite being listed as the smallest Gamecock at 5-foot-6. Boyd’s return to the field Wednesday only strengthened the position that could be relied upon early in the year. “This was the first tim., Cory has scrimmaged with us,” Spurrier said after the scrimmage. “He’s obviously a really good tailback. He made some plays and made a long run.” The biggest question as the spring concludes regards the offensive line. Despite heralding two future Sunday players in seniors Jabari Levey and Na’Shan Goddard, the line has too many players learning positions to play consistently at this point. Junior Chris White has moved from guard to center, senior Freddy Saint-Preux has switched from the defensive line and sophomore James Thompson has missed the spring with a stress fracture in his right foot. In the first scrimmage on April 1, the line yielded 13 sacks to the defense. “I’m scared to death of our protection right now,” Spurrier said. “We’re just not as sound as we need to be. If we had to play a game we couldn’t throw a whole bunch. There would be too many sacks. It’s a combination of not executing assignments and getting run over.” Prnfprrinn will aUn rnmp in rhf» tight end position, one that will be used more than, during previous seasons. Redshirt senior James Scott and junior Andy Boyd will anchor the catching-blocking position, with the possibility of more players stepping up. Spurrier plans on getting the majority of his players on the field Saturday in an effort to showcase their skills in the last mandatory tuneup before the freshman arrive in the summer. Boyd summed up the excitement to perform best when returning from his injury. “It was wonderful to back out there with the guys,” Boyd said. “We all want to compete. Since this is the spring, everybody is getting a chance to play.” Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu ■ CLEMSON Continued from page 10 was pulled in favor of fellow freshman Wynn Pelzer. Pelzer proceeded to throw three consecutive balls to freshman ^second baseman Taylor Harbin Pbefore committing a balk that scored Adrian Casanova and gave Cruse his third earned run of the game. The Tigers spread out their next three home runs. Designated hitter junior Kris Harvey sent Pelzer’s 3-1 pitch over the left field wall in the bottom of the third. Sophomore left fielder Tyler Colvin took the first pitch he saw against Gamecock junior pitcher Andy Lambert and made the score 8-2 in the bottom of the seventh. With runners on the corners in the bottom of the eighth, Harbin cranked a shot to right-centerfield to wrap up the slugfest. I Senior first baseman Steve Pearce led USC batsman with two hits — a double and an RBI single. Mahoney produced the Gamecocks’ other RBI, driving himself in with a solo shot ofFFaris in the top of the fifth. Faris ensured USC did not mount a rally. “The guys played behind me real well tonight,” Faris said. “We played really good defense and hit the ball real well.” Harbin went 2-of-5 from the plate for Clemson, driving in five runs. Chalk came up with three hits and scored twice, while Storrer drove in two runs on two hits and also scored. The game was the third of four in which the rivals will face each other this season, with the Gamecocks taking the first two. The season series wraps up Wednesday in Columbia. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu I Softball falls in battle of birds, will play host to Crimson Tide By STEPHANIE PENDRYS FOR THE GAMECOCK USC softball’s twin bill against the Winthrop Eagles in Rock Hill on Tuesday proved to be just that for the Gamecocks — rocky. The Gamecocks were shut out 2-0 by the Winthrop Eagles and finished game two with a no-run tie. Game two of the doubleheader was suspended because of storms and called in the top of the seventh inning with a scoreless tie. USC is 24-21 on the season, while the Eagles are 25-17. In game one, sophomore Jenny Scrimygeour, a bronze medalist at the 2003 Canadian National Softball Championship, put Winthrop on the board when she hit a solo four-bagger off Gamecock rookie pitcher freshman Kate Pouliot in the second inning and put the Eagles ahead 1-0. Winthrop had a KATIE KIRKLAND/THE GAMECOCK Freshman shortstop Lisa Longo takes a crack at a pitch earlier this season. Longo and (JSC will play host to Alabama this weekend. chance to score a run in the first with runners at first and second, but quick thinking by sophomore McKenna Hughes and junior Ashley Smith ended the threat when Smith threw out senior Eagle Katie Kipisz, who attempted to dash home from second, at the plate and prevented the run from scoring. In the top of the third, Gamecock freshman Jessica Josker coaxed a two-out walk from Winthrop senior southpaw Kelli Johnson and was followed by a single from senior first baseman Meghan Cornett and base-on balls by Hughes to load the bases. The USC scoring threat was subdued when freshman Stefanie Norman fouled out to the catcher and stranded the runners around the horn to end the inning. Winthrop doubled its one-run advantage in the bottom of the third on an RBI double from junior Lindsey Merriman, who drove in freshman Stephanie Reid after drawing a two-out walk to reach base safely. A pair of runs would prove to be all the cushion Johnson and Eagles would need to record their first win against the Gamecocks since 1983. USC would be unsuccessful in accumulating base runners, as the Gamecocks would see only two more runners head to first base instead of the dugout in the final four innings. Johnson (12 8), a five-time Big South Conference Pitcher of the Week in her career, held the Gamecocks to three hits in her seven innings and struck out six batters. Pouliot (6-8) gave up the two runs on six hits and struck out four for a slumping USC squad that has been shut out in five of its last eight games. Game two was called because of heavy rain. In the top of the seventh inning, USC sophomore Darcy Norem was at bat ,and on a 0-1 count with two outs, officials suspended the game at 8:13 p.m. Ten minutes later, the game was called and went down in the books as a 0-0 tie. Senior Aleca Johnson was the Gamecocks’ pitcher in game two, and she pitched six strong innings giving up only three hits. Junior righty Shahna Ashard was on the mound for the Eagles, throwing 6 2-3 innings, allowing four hits and fanning eight Gamecocks. Eagle sophomore Hilary Peacock recorded two of the three hits against Johnson, while fellow sophomore Lauren Blaser contributed one. T k-irl on nnnortuniftr tr\ r r / score in the fourth inning when sophomore Chrissy Schoonmaker and freshman Lisa Longo had a double steal and advanced to second and third only to get stranded, and the scoring threat put the kibosh on with a third out on the ground. The last time the Gamecocks had a tie was in 2001 against Stanford at the NFCA Leadoff Classic. Cornett went 3-for-6 for the series, as USC combined for seven hits on the damp night. Longo was the only other Gamecock to record a hit in both games. The Gamecocks have not scored more than two runs in a game since April 3 against Kentucky. USC next takes to the diamond this weekend when they play host to the Alabama Crimson Tide for a three game series. The opening pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 1 p.m. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu Odom s recruiting results leave something to be desired ■ Junior college picks dilute USC talent pool, only serve as quick fix Despite two NIT final appearances, an NIT championship and an NCAA Tournament berth, USC has been unable to bring in a consistent number of solid, let alone great, recruits to a program with all the tools, in the world for a big-time player in college basketball. Instead of capitalizing on last year’s tournament, this year’s recruiting class appears to be right along in the trend of being worse than the year before. Coach Dave Odom’s best class, by far, was from two seasons ago when he brought in Tre’ Kelley, Renaldo Balkman and Brandon Wallace. Add junior college transfers into the mix, and you have without a doubt Odom’s best class. But just as we saw with Lou Holtz in football, Odom seems dead-set on going the junior college route again for a second year. Last year, two freshmen were brought in, Dwayne Day and Stephen McDowell, to go along with two junior college players Antoine Tisby and Rocky Trice. While Trice turned out to be a pleasant surprise, Tisby waited until the end of the season to turn his game on. ■ BASEBALL Continued from page 10 record, a 5-5 mark during the last 10 games and a recent ejection from the top 25. That’s not to say Vanderbilt doesn’t have some powerful weapons to unleash upon Ray Tanner’s crew. The Commodores’ most powerful bats include junior first/third baseman Mike Baxter and senior infield utility man Tony Mansolino, who have started every game they have played this season and have a close batting average of .379 and .377, respectively. Baxter has an unreal Under normal circumstances, a year of adjustment to play in a competitive league like the SEC is perfectly normal, but here lies the problem with junior college transfers — after a year of adjustment, they only have one year left to play and are gone as quick as they came. While Day didn’t see many minutes last season, he got to develop his skills and adjust to the MATTHEW SEC level NAGY Play , “ a freshman SECOND-YEAR instead of as RETAIL a junior. Day MANAGEMENT . . ’ still nas three years to play, four with a redshirt, while Tisby and Trice leave next year after only two seasons. Holtz used junior college transfers as stopgaps to fill immediate needs, something the football team needed five years ago and something the basketball team doesn’t need now. The recruiting class this season is bringing in at least two more junior college transfers: Bryce Sheldon, a shooter from .649 slugging percentage. But with great power comes great folly, as Baxter is pacing the Commodores in another less flattering categoiy: strikeouts. His stat of 22 on the year is a sharp contrast to another of his team leading statistics — 28 RBIs. Vanderbilt’s strength, however, is certainly with their pitching staff. Lefty freshman David Price is baffling batters with a 1.49 ERA in 10 appearances, while right-handed junior Jensen Lewis rounds out the dominating tandem with a 1.51 ERA of his own, and a 5-1 record in nine appearances. Lewis is certainly the team’s Fullerton, Calif., who chose USC over CSU Fullerton, and Alassane Savadogo, a 6-foot-8 swing man originally from Africa who chose USC over Southern Cal. Odom is looking at two other junior college transfers this season, which would lead his potential class to consist of four junior college transfers and one freshman, none given higher than a three-star rating by Scout.com. That would leave USC with only two current players that will still be here in 2008 — Day and McDowell — and one recruit coming this season, Dominique Archie. The senior leadership necessary for every team will fail to be in place with such quick turnover by the majority of the team’s roster. With the past week’s rumors about Odom and Virginia, you have to wonder what the shape of the program will be if recruiting continues to be this lopsided when Odom moves on or retires. Carolina is still looking at Theryn Hudson, and Odom is trying to convince him he can play at the SEC level. Hudson has been recruited by SMU and Middle Tennessee State, though he has seen some interest from other major schools lately. Also in the mix is Keving Palacios, who is being looked at by Penn State, ironman, having hurled 50 innings and allowing only 40 hits with a surprising nine walks. Both pitchers have 51 strikeouts on the year, while the entire staff has a yearlong collective 3.07 ERA. The Gamecocks look to meet the Vandy pitching staff with some of their own powerful bats. Carolina has six players with batting averages more than .300, including sophomore outfielder Jon Willard, who is just shy of .400. Steve Pearce is also continuing his monster season, as the senior infielder from Lakeland, Fla., has nine home runs on the year to go with his .667 slugging Oregon State, South Florida and Oklahoma. The incoming class doesn’t appear to be addressing depth in the right areas, as Archie and Savadogo are cut from the same mold as Gamecocks Tarence Kinsey, Balkman, Day and Brandon. Palacios has the weight to be a force in the middle, yet he lacks the ideal size at 6-foot-8 to be a solid SEC center. While five-star guard Louis Williams appears headed to the NBA, five-star point guard junior Mike Mercer is still most likely headed to Georgia along with three other recruits ranked higher than Carolina’s recruits this season. So tell me, Odom, how the worst team in the SEC can out-recruit a program coming off ' two straight 20-win seasons and an NIT championship. With the departure of Ricky Stokes to East Carolina, the Gamecocks have the opportunity to bring in a stellar recruiter as an assistant to go along with Odom’s prowess with Xs and Os. Once the Virginia job is finally signed, sealed and delivered to a coach that is not Odom, however, are the fans and media going to be able to look past the disaster the past week and a half has provided both to Odom’s recruiting efforts and his relationship with USC fans? percentage. Despite the solid team Vanderbilt will surely bring to Columbia, USC has history and a hot pitcher on its side. Since joining the conference, the Gamecocks hold a 36-7 all-time record against Vanderbilt. Zac McCamie, the senior RHP from Orlando, is 7-1 on the year and was recently named the SEC’s Pitcher of the Week. The three games in the weekend series are scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gmm.sc.edu TH»%AMECOCK Write for Sports. gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu ~~T DREAM FIGHT BOXING CAMP Experience the ultimate in physical fitness! Beginner classes starting soon. Private lessons available. Contact Dominic Robinson-Neal at (803) 463-7435. * | } )