May 1, 2008
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Columbia, S.C. –
South Carolina (31-14, 11-10 SEC) returns to action with a three-game series with Florida (27-16, 12-9 SEC) beginning on Friday night at 7 pm at Sarge Frye Field. Saturday’s game is scheduled for 4 pm with the Sunday series finale at 1:30 pm. Friday’s game will be televised live on Sun Sports with Sunday’s game also to be televised on CSS-TV. All three games can also be heard on the Gamecock Radio Network with Mike Morgan and Tommy Moody handling the call.
South Carolina currently sits in a tie for fourth place, in the Eastern Division just one game behind the Gators.
Friday
SC Mike Cisco, Jr. (RHP) 5-2, 5.08 ERA, 62.0 IP, 36 K, 13 BB
FLA Tommy Toledo, Fr. (RHP) 4-4, 3.40 ERA, 45.0 IP, 20 K, 23 BB
Saturday
SC Will Atwood, Jr. (LHP) 4-2, 4.22 ERA, 53.1 IP, 44 K, 24 BB
FLA Stephen Locke, Jr. (LHP) 3-2, 3.21 ERA, 56.0 IP, 36 K, 12 BB
Sunday
SC Blake Cooper, So. (RHP) 5-4, 3.52 ERA, 64.0 IP, 31 K, 14 BB
FLA Patrick Keating, Jr. (RHP) 8-0, 2.69 ERA, 60.1 IP, 38 K, 14 BB
Series Results
South Carolina leads series history 32-22
Last Year's GamesApril 6, 2007 South Carolina (12) Florida (2) Gainesville, Fla.April 7, 2007 Florida (9) South Carolina (8) Gainesville, Fla.April 8, 2007 South Carolina (8) Florida (6) 11 inn. Gainesville, Fla.May 23, 2007 South Carolina (4) Florida (3) 12 inn. Hoover, Ala.May 25, 2007 South Carolina (5) Florida (3) Hoover, Ala.
A LOOK CLOSER AT SOUTH CAROLINA-FLORIDA SERIES
South Carolina and Florida met five times last season with the Gamecocks winning four of the five contests. Carolina won two of three games vs. the Gators in Gainesville and won both match-ups at the SEC Tournament in Hoover, Ala.
South Carolina leads the series history 32-22 vs. the Gators including series victories seven of the last eight seasons (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007). Carolina swept the Gators two years ago in Florida’s last visit to Columbia.
NUMBERS TELL A STORY
South Carolina owns a 25-1 record when scoring six runs or more this season. The Gamecocks are also 26-1 when out-hitting its opponent and 28-0 after leading in eight innings. When the Gamecocks score first, they are 24-8 on the year as well. South Carolina is 11-9 in games decided by three runs or less.
SMOAK’N
Junior first baseman Justin Smoak has been on a tear at the plate as of late and leads the team in hitting with a .395 batting average as well as a team-high 18 homers and 51 RBI. Smoak just recently had an 18-game hitting streak and is batting .443 (35-for-79) over the last 20 games as well as .500 (21-for-42) in the last 10 games.
Smoak went 10-for-20 last week and had a pair of homers in the LSU series. In the 11-10 loss on April 26 vs. the Tigers, Smoak reached base in all seven plate appearances, going 4-for-4 with three walks.
Twice this season, Smoak has tied a school record with three home runs in one game. He accomplished the feat in a 10-1 win over Wofford on April 23 as well as on April 14 in a 14-4 victory over USC Upstate.
Four times this season, the Gamecocks have tied the single-game school record for home runs in a game. Both James Darnell and Justin Smoak have each put together a pair of three-homer games this year. Smoak tied two single-game school records with three homers and nine RBI as South Carolina defeated USC Upstate 14-4 on April 15 at Sarge Frye Field. Smoak finished 3-for-5 on the evening as he became the 12th player in school history to record three homers in one game. His RBI total of nine marked only the fifth time in school history that the feat had been achieved and the first time since April 23, 1997 when Ryan Bordenick drove in nine runs vs. Clemson.
Smoak currently owns the school record in home runs with 57 in the Garnet & Black. He is also is seventh in school history with 50 career doubles (school record 67-Mac White) and is fourth in school history with 186 career RBIs (school record 198 – Mac White).
TRACKING SMOAKHOME RUN CAREER TOP 10 LIST57 Justin Smoak (2006-07-08)48 Hank Small (1972-73-74-75)47 Garrett Carter (1985-86-87-88)45 Jeff Parnell (1990-91-92-93)44 Landon Powell (2001-02-03-04)43 Chris Boyle (1981-82-83-84)42 Steve Pearce (2004-05)41 Tripp Kelly (1998-99-2000-01)41 Charlie Aldrich (1985-86-87)38 Phil Disher (2005-06-07-08)38 Eric Stanton (1996-97-98)
RBI CAREER TOP 5 LIST198 Mac White (1991-92-93-94)198 Chris Boyle (1981-82-83-84)193 Landon Powell (2001-02-03-04)186 Justin Smoak (2006-07-08)
DOUBLES CAREER TOP 7 LIST67 Mac White (1991-92-93-94)61 Landon Powell (2001-02-03-04)54 Michael Campbell (2003-04-05-06)53 Greg Morhardt (1982-83-84)51 Mike Curry (1996-97-98)51 Derick Urquhart (1995-96-97-98)50 Justin Smoak (2006-07-08)
RUNS CAREER TOP 9 LIST223 Derick Urquhart (1995-96-97-98)215 Mike Curry (1996-97-98)212 Drew Meyer (2000-01-02)209 Mac White (1991-92-93-94)182 Jeff Parnell (1990-91-92-93)181 Michael Campbell (2003-04-05-06)176 Landon Powell (2001-02-03-04)174 Garrett Carter (1985-86-87-88)170 Justin Smoak (2006-07-08)
HITS CAREER TOP 12 LIST303 Mac White (1991-92-93-94)299 Michael Campbell (2003-04-05-06)285 Drew Meyer (2000-01-02)265 Landon Powell (2001-02-03-04)265 Derick Urquhart (1995-96-97-98)250 Mike Curry (1996-97-98)245 Hank Small (1972-73-74-75)231 Dave Willman (1989-90-91-92)230 Skeets Thomas (1988-89-90)227 Jeff Barns (1985-86-87)225 Jeff Parnell (1990-91-92-93)224 Chris Boyle (1981-82-83-84)224 Justin Smoak (2006-07-08)
TRACKING Justin SmoakTHE SEC RECORD BOOKCareer Home Runs1. Eddy Furniss, LSU (265 games) 80 1995-982. Brad Cresse, LSU (236 games) 78 1997-003. Matt LaPorta, FLA (215 games) 74 2004-074. Rafael Palmeiro, MSU (183 games)67 1983-855. Andy Phillips, ALA (244 games) 61 1996-996. Will Clark, MSU (175 games) 61 1983-857. Trey McClure, LSU (234 games) 59 1996-99 Josh Etheredge, AUB (222 games) 59 1995-989. Bruce Castoria, MSU (202 games) 58 1979-8210. Justin Smoak, SC (177 games) 57 2006-08 Danny Hamblin, ARK (246 games) 57 2004-07
AT THE PLATE, ON THE MOUND & IN THE FIELD
Carolina leads the SEC in home runs on the year with 82 in 45 games. The team is batting .303 (481-for-1588) with 323 runs scored in 45 games. The pitching staff owns a team ERA of 393 in 407.1 innings with 358 strikeouts to 151 walks. Carolina is fielding .977 as a team.
THE HOME RUN
The Gamecocks have 38 home runs in the last 17 games as well. Four different Gamecocks have double figure home run totals: James Darnell (13), Phil Disher (15), Reese Havens (12) and Justin Smoak (18).
THE CISCO KID
Junior right-hander Mike Cisco enters Friday night’s start with a 5-2 record and a 5.08 ERA. He has logged 62 innings on the year. Cisco’s fifth win of the year came on April 18, a 6-2 win over Ole Miss. He allowed just one run on eight hits in 6.2 innings of work.
HANGIN’ WITH MR. COOPER
South Carolina sophomore right-hander Blake Cooper heads into the weekend with a 5-4 record and a 3.52 ERA. He is fourth in the SEC in innings pitched with 64.0 innings logged. Cooper has 31 strikeouts to 14 walks.
Cooper SEC Pitcher of the Week following his complete game six-hitter in a 4-1 victory over Ole Miss. The complete game victory was the first of Cooper’s career and the first by a Gamecock pitcher this season. It also was the first complete game win by a Gamecock pitcher since Wynn Pelzer’s CG in a win over Evansville to capture the 2006 NCAA Regional in Charlottesville, Va. Cooper allowed just one run on six hits while striking out two and walking two to pick up the victory.
THE WILL TO WIN
Junior left-hander Will Atwood will bring a 4-2 record with a 4.22 ERA into Saturday’s game. He has worked 53.1 innings and has struck out 44 batters with opponents only hitting .234 against him. He has won four of his seven SEC starts with one no-decision.
WHAT A CROWD
Gamecock fans have been out and about this season at Sarge Frye Field. The Gamecocks are averaging 4,749 fans per contest and have a total attendance of 132,990 on the year. The season-high for attendance in a game was 5,921 fans on March 1 as Carolina defeated Clemson 10-1. South Carolina has recorded an attendance of 5,000-plus fans in 10 games this year, the last on April 23 vs. Wofford.
The Gamecocks set a school record for total attendance last year with 159,545 as a total in 2007 that averaged 4,985 fans per game. It is “Extra Innings” at Sarge Frye Field as the Gamecocks prepare to move into a new baseball stadium in the beginning of the 2009.
A STRONG DISH IN THE CLUTCH
Senior Phil Disher’s three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning lifted Carolina to a 5-3 win over Furman on Tuesday night. Disher is hitting .299 (50-for-167) with 15 HR and 44 RBI as well. With 38 career homers, Disher is tied for 10th on the top 10 list in Carolina history.
He put together his second career multi-homer game in the 8-6 win over Auburn. His two-run homer in that game helped Carolina rally to the victory. Disher went 5-for-12 in the series with three doubles, two homers and four RBI.
Eight of his 15 homers have come in SEC games.
Disher was big in the Kentucky series going 5-for-12 with a home run and team-high seven RBI in the series to earn SEC Player of the Week honors. Disher’s home run came in Saturday’s victory over Kentucky and was his 30th career homer in a Gamecock uniform. The senior came up in the clutch again for Carolina on Sunday with a pair of RBI singles including the game-winning hit in the eighth inning.
DARNELL DRIVES THEM IN
Junior third baseman James Darnell hit his second grand slam of the season, the key hit for Carolina in the 6-2 victory over the Rebels on April 18. Darnell is hitting .304 with 13 HR and a team-high 58 RBI. Six of Darnell’s 13 homers have come in SEC games.
For the third time this season, James Darnell recorded a multi-homer game as he hit a pair of home runs and tallied five RBI in a 7-1 win over Clemson. Earlier this year, Darnell twice tied a USC single-game record for home runs in a game with three in a win vs. Kentucky (3-29) and in a win vs. College of Charleston (3-18).
The three vs. Kentucky marked the 12th time in school history that a Gamecock player has hit three homers in one game and the first time ever that one player has done it twice. All three homers were two-run shots as he set a career-high with six RBI in the contest. That helped Darnell earned National Player of the Week from Collegiate Baseball.
COMPLETE PERFORMANCES
South Carolina continues to be impressive in 31 victories this season with a total of 279 runs in those wins. That averages to 9.0 runs per contest. 13 of the 31 wins on the year have featured at least 10 runs scored by the Gamecock offense.
HAVENS AT THE FRONT OF THE LINE
Junior shortstop Reese Havens continues to swing a solid bat with a .390 batting average (69-for-177) and also owns 12 HR and 43 RBI. He has scored a team-high 53 runs. Havens has hit safely in 15 straight games as well. Havens had three hits on Wednesday at Clemson and reached base in all five plate appearances on Tuesday vs. USC Upstate with three hits, two walks and four runs scored. He has spent all 41 games this year at the front of the lineup as the leadoff hitter.
Havens earned SEC Player of the Week honors following his performance on opening weekend vs. East Carolina. Havens was 7-for-14 (.500) for the series with a pair of homers, six RBI and seven runs scored. His five hits in the season opener tied his career-high and he set a career-high as well with five RBI in the 22-5 win over the Pirates.
BT
Senior right-hander Brandon Todd made his first appearance in over a week and earned a save in the 5-3 win at Furman on April 22. He is 2-1 on the year with a 4.50 ERA and five saves. He has 13 appearances and has struck out 21 batters in 16.0 innings.
Todd was also productive out of the bullpen two weeks ago with a pair of saves and a win in five games. Todd earned his first save of the week on Tuesday vs. Western Carolina. He worked 1.1 innings and struck out two to finish the game. “BT” would then pick up a win on Friday night with two innings of work, allowing one run on three hits in the 7-6 victory over Auburn. Todd was summoned for the final two outs in Sunday’s 7-6 win over the Tigers.
THOMAS MAKES AN APPEARANCE
Junior left-hander Craig Thomas leads the Gamecocks in appearances on the year with 16 this season. He has 23 strikeouts in 22.1 innings and has a 4.43 ERA. Thomas hurled one scoreless inning of relief in the 10-1 win vs. Wofford on Wednesday night.
Parker Bangs ENTERS THE MIX
Freshman RHP/UT Parker Bangs earned his third win of the year out of the bullpen with a win on Tuesday vs. Furman. Bangs is 3-2 with a 3.22 ERA in 13 relief appearances and has pitched 22.1 innings and struck out 29 batters. He also has one save. Opponents are only batting .181 against him.
He had his biggest week as a member of the Carolina baseball team in Auburn when he made two key relief appearances in a pair of wins vs. Auburn this weekend and picked up his first career save on Saturday. His first relief appearance on Friday night saw him go one inning scoreless with two strikeouts.
He then helped out with both the arm and the bat on Saturday as he got his second career start at designated hitter. Bangs went 2-for-4 with his first career homer in the 8-6 win. He then worked the final two innings of the game to pick up the save. Bangs also started at DH on Sunday and recorded a hit.
WIDEBERG STARTS IT UP
Senior right-handed pitcher Sean Wideberg made his first start of the season in last Wednesday night’s win vs. Davidson and struck out a career-high nine batters to improve to 2-0 on the year. Wideberg has pitched 19.2 innings and has 27 strikeouts in nine appearances for the Gamecocks.
GODWIN IS GOOD
Senior right-hander Nick Godwin continues to be effective in a midweek starting role with his 7.1 innings of work at Furman. He struck out a career-high 10 batters and helped Carolina to the 5-3 victory over the Paladins.
Last week he hurled 7.2 scoreless innings in Wednesday’s 6-0 win at Clemson. Godwin defeated Clemson twice this year and owns a 4-2 record with a 2.24 ERA. He has 60 strikeouts in 60.1 innings pitched with opponents only batting .177 against him.
Sam Dyson STEPS UP
Freshman right-handed pitcher Sam Dyson hurled six scoreless innings and took a no-hitter into the fifth inning of Wednesday’s 10-1 win over Wofford. He struck out six batters to improve to 5-0 on the year. He allowed just two hits and walked three batters.
ENDERS CONTINUES TO CONTRIBUTE
Carolina sophomore catcher Kyle Enders is among the team leaders in multi-hit games as well with 15 on the year. Enders tallied three hits in Saturday’s game at LSU.
The sophomore from Riverside HS came up big in the clutch for the Gamecocks in a 7-6 rally over East Carolina as his two-run single with the bases loaded and one out gave Carolina a one-run victory and clinched the series.
D-MACK DELIVERS
Gamecock sophomore outfielder DeAngelo Mack had his best offensive game to date on Tuesday night with a home run, triple and career-high four RBI in the 9-6 win over Western Carolina.
He is hitting .254 and has 15 runs scored as well as four homers and 11 RBI. Mack hit a solo home run in the 6-2 win over Kentucky and was 1-for-1 with two runs at The Citadel.
RIDE THE HARLEY
Senior outfielder Harley Lail provides the leadership in the outfield for the Gamecocks and shows his way with the bat as well. Lail has 16 extra base hits (11 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR). He is hitting .263 on the year.
MERRIFIELD SHOWS SOME POWER AND SOME SACRIFICE
Freshman outfielder Whit Merrifield has shown some pop in the bat and also has played some small ball in his first weeks. He had three multi-hit games vs. Ole Miss as well as a pair of multi-hit games last week at LSU. He is now hitting .302 with three homers and 20 RBI He also leads the team and the SEC in sacrifice hits with 18 this year.
ON BASE WITH WINGO
Carolina freshman second baseman Scott Wingo owns an on-base percentage of .444 after 36 games played. He has shown power at the plate lately with four homers in the last week. He started it off with a solo homer at Clemson on April 16 as well as a two-run homer on Tuesday night in the win at Furman. Wingo added a solo homer on Wednesday vs. Wofford and Saturday at LSU Wingo has played in 36 games with 25 starts. He is fielding .980 as well with three errors at second d base.
Wingo reached base 11 times in a weekend series vs. Duquesne with a single, five walks and five hit by pitches. He also tied a school record earlier in the year when he was hit by pitch three times in one game.
