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Game schedule THlPfeAMECOCK bll Baseball vs. Wofford, 7 p.m. . f ^ ~~I 'V t r I 'l 6 NJ Men’s basketball vs. Louisville, 9 p.m. \ I ■ / 1 | [ I I 1 Softball vs. Virginia Tech, 2 & 4 p.m. Page 8 ^—3 I -1, Monday, March 27,2006 Sarge Frye no swamp for Gators In battle of top-10 teams, Carolina sweeps Florida Alex Riley ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR Coming into the weekend, the Carolina sports programs had been pretty dominant over the Florida Gators. The Gamecocks beat the Gators in football and took two-of-three games in basketball over the course of the past seasons. That power over Florida continued over the weekend as the No. 7 USC (22-3) baseball team swept the No. 9 Gators (17-11) at Sarge Frye. On Friday, it was.lefty Arik Hempy who tamed the Florida batting order, holding the Gators to just three hits in 7 2/3 innings of work, allowing USC to start the weekend with a 4-1 victory. That was outstanding, that was a first-round performance for me,” USC coach Ray Tanner told Gamecockcentral. com. “That was very, very impressive. (Hempy) had great stuff. I was afraid we weren’-t going to get any mns for him.” Carolina collected nine hits, including 2-for-3 hit days from both Michael Campbell and Neil Giesler, who combined for three RBI’s to lead the Gamecocks. “I’m just happy we got the win,” Campbell told Juan Bias / THE GAMECOCK Sophomore pitcher Conor Lalor fires home a strike against Florida over the weekend. The No. 7 Gamecocks swept the No. 9 Gators in Columbia. jj Gamecockcentral.com. “Hempy threw a great game. The seniors have to lead the way. Coming out here and seeing four, five thousand people screaming at the top of their lungs is what college baseball is all about. It’s just a great atmosphere.” The Saturday affair turned into a nail biter, as Florida cruised out to a five-run lead in the fourth inning. But a four-run fifth inning for Carolina headlined by Robbie Grinestaff’s three run homer put USC up for good, sealing a 6-5 win. “I’m really proud of our guys with the way we battled today,” Tanner said. “We battled back twice. The Grinestaff homerun was certainly big for us.” Though the Gators recorded nine hits off of freshmen Mike Cisco, it was the relief pitching of sophomore Wynn Pelzer that shut down the Florida attack. Pelzer threw over two innings of hitless relief to help USC hold on for the win. “Pelzer did a tremendous job coming in and shutting the door,” Tanner said. “He was really good at Auburn, but he was certainly good today, too. When he locates his pitches he is tough to beat.” With the series already won, USC took the final game against Florida as a chance to put on a hitting clinic. The combo of Campbell, Giesler, and Cheyne Hurst totaled 10 hits, while Grinestaff continued to swing a hot bat, blasting two BASEBALL • 9 Youthful arms take shot Underclassman quarterbacks get chance to shine during scrimmage play fllyssa fiber THE GAMECOCK The Carolina football team hit the field Saturday morning in a scrimmage at Williams-Brice Stadium. The scrimmage was a key test for the Gamecocks, who have completed eight of their scheduled 15 spring practices. The event was also an exciting preview of the upcoming season for many devoted Gamecock fans. “We look for each player to play his assignment and make a play or two,” said coach Steve Spurrier. “We’re going to practice everybody about the same amount - mostly the younger guys, the guys who haven’t played much, which is about the whole team. We’re going to try to improve, try to get better..” The scrimmage got underway at 10:30 a.m. under optimal conditions: sunny skies and temperatures in the fifties. Several thousand fans, including alumni, students and members of the community, were present for the event. When the 90-minute scrimmage ended around noon, it seemed that Spurrier’s goal to play as many of his players FOOTBALL • 9 Juan Blasfmt. GAMECOCK Freshman quarterback Cade Thompson checks off at the line during Saturday’s scrimmage. Baseball set for whimpering Terriers USC gets mid-week match with in-state rival Wofford Hiatt dloore THE GAMECOCK The USC baseball team and the Wofford Terriers will go into Tuesday’s game with two very different weekend series behind them. Wofford (15-12) fell in all three games at Western Carolina this weekend. The Terriers’ pitching staff struggled, giving up 40 rims in the series, and bats which just couldn’t produce quite enough to get over the hump. Carolina, No. 7 in the country, had a much more enjoyable weekend. The Gamecocks (22-3, 5-1 in the SEC) squeaked by No. 9 Florida on Friday and Saturday and followed the two victories with a 21 4 thumping on Sunday. It was Carolina’s fourth sweep of the season. Wofford’s pitching staff has struggled, but they do present a lineup with the ability to put some runs on the board. Catcher John Brandt bats .341 for the Terriers with six homeruns to go along with 20 RBI’s. Shortstop Brandon Waring, a West Columbia native, also has 20 RBI’s while batting .266 for Wofford. The Terrier’s leading pitcher Appears to be junior Austin Redwine. Redwine is 5-1 on the season with a 3.26 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 47 innings pitched. South Carolina has faired well in in-state games throughout the season. USC split a tough weekend series with then-No.l Clemson in the beginning of the month, and then beat Charleston Southern and Furman on back-to-back days before the Florida series. USC continues to out hit their opponents in an PReuieiii • 9f Back to NYC _, i Katie Kirkland/ THE GAMECOCK Senior forward Tarence Kinsey dribbles upcourt in a game earlier this season. The Gamecocks take on Louisville in the semi-finals of the NIT on Tuesday at 9 p.m. Gamecocks make trip to NITfinal four % The lights of Madison Square Garden will be on USC once again as the Gamecocks travel to New York City for the semifinals of the NIT tournament for the second year in a row. The Gamecocks, who won the tournament last year, will take on Louisville at 9 p.m. to the viewing of a national television audience on ESPN2. 9 Carolina (21-15) will face its third-consecutive former Metro Conference rival in Louisville (22-12). The Gamepocks defeated Florida State (69-68) and Cincinnati (65-62) both of which were members of the Metro Conference. In the last meeting between the two teams, USC won in Columbia 70 67 in 1991. f — Alex Riley