April 21, 2003

Columbia, S.C. – The South Carolina baseball team hosts UNC Asheville on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. at Sarge Frye Field in the first of two midweek games this week for the Gamecocks. Carolina will also host Davidson on Wednesday night before heading to Oxford, Miss. for a weekend series with Ole Miss. South Carolina is 25-15 and 9-9 in the SEC, 1/2 game ahead of Florida for first place in the SEC Eastern Division. UNC Asheville is 17-18 on the year and won two of three games over the weekend at Liberty.

The Gamecocks head into the week fresh off a weekend series with Mississippi State in which Carolina took two of three games from the eighth ranked Bulldogs. Carolina has won eight of the last 12 SEC games played, including three of the last four series in the SEC.

South Carolina and UNC Asheville first met on the baseball diamond three years ago with the Gamecocks owning a 3-0 lead in the series. South Carolina won 3-1 in Columbia and 7-3 in Asheville in the 2000 season. The teams also met last year in Columbia with Carolina coming out on top 10-4.

Sophomore LHP Matt Campbell is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Gamecocks. Campbell will be making his 13th mound appearance of the season and his ninth start. He has a 1-3 record with one save and an earned run average of 5.90 in 39 2/3 innings. He has struck out 46 and walked 27.

Heading into Tuesday night’s contest, South Carolina head baseball coach Ray Tanner is one win shy of his 300th win at South Carolina. Tanner is 299-128 in his seven years at South Carolina for a winning percentage of .700. Now in his 16th year as a head baseball coach, Tanner is also closing in on another milestone, win No. 700. Tanner currently holds a career record of 694-301-3.