June 10, 2011
COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina (48-14) is making its ninth appearance in the last 12 years in the NCAA Super Regional as the Gamecocks host Connecticut (45-18-1) this weekend with the winner of the series advancing to Omaha and the 2011 College World Series. Saturday’s opener is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN2 with Sunday’s game at 7 p.m. on ESPNU. Monday’s if necessary game will be at either 1, 4 or 7 p.m. on ESPN2 or ESPNU.
The Gamecocks are one of four teams from the SEC to make the NCAA Super Regionals along with Florida, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. South Carolina is the defending national champion after winning the title in the 2010 CWS. Carolina has reached nine College World Series as well.
NCAA DIVISION I SCHOOLS TO REACH NCAA SUPER REGIONAL OVER THE LAST 12 YEARS(2000-11)1. Florida State 10 2000-01-02-03-04-05-08-09-10-112. South Carolina 9 2000-01-02-03-04-06-07-10-11 Cal State Fullerton 9 2001-03-04-05-06-07-08-09-10 Miami (Fla.) 9 2000-01-02-03-04-05-06-08-105. Rice 8 2001-02-03-05-06-07-08-09 Clemson 8 2000-01-02-05-06-07-09-10 Texas 8 2000-02-03-04-05-06-10-118. Arizona State 7 2003-05-07-08-09-10-11 LSU 7 2000-01-02-03-06-08-09 Stanford 7 2000-01-02-03-06-08-11
SOUTH CAROLINA HAS THE MOST NCAA SUPER REGIONAL APPEARANCES OF THE 12 SEC SCHOOLS IN THE LAST 12 YEARS
NCAA Super Regional Appearances The Last 12 Years (2000-11)1. South Carolina 9 2000-01-02-03-04-06-07-10-11 LSU 7 2000-01-02-03-04-08-093. Florida 5 2004-05-09-10-114. Arkansas 4 2002-04-09-10 Georgia 4 2001-04-06-08 Mississippi State 4 2000-01-07-11 Ole Miss 4 2005-06-07-098. Vanderbilt 3 2004-10-119. Alabama 2 2006-10 Tennessee 2 2001-0511. Auburn 0 N/A Kentucky 0 N/A
SOUTH CAROLINA & THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
This is South Carolina’s 27th overall appearance in the NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament. The Gamecocks are one of seven teams from the SEC to make the 2011 NCAA Tournament. South Carolina’s 12 consecutive trips to the NCAA Baseball Tournament is the longest current streak of the 12 SEC schools. Carolina is one of only eight schools in the nation that has reached the NCAA Regional in the last 12 consecutive years.
NCAA DIVISION I SCHOOLS TO REACH NCAA REGIONALS IN LAST 12 CONSECUTIVE SEASONS (2000-11)
1) SOUTH CAROLINA2) Arizona State3) Cal State Fullerton4) Florida State5) Miami (Fla.)6) Oral Roberts7) Rice8) Texas
NCAA REGIONAL APPEARANCES FROM 2000-11 IN THE SEC
1 South Carolina 12 2000-01-02-03-04-05-06-07-08-09-10-112. Arkansas 10 2002-03-04-05-06-07-08-09-10-11 Florida 10 2000-01-02-03-04-05-08-09-10-114. Alabama 9 2000-02-03-05-06-08-09-10-11 LSU 9 2000-01-02-03-04-05-08-09-10 Ole Miss 9 2001-03-04-05-06-07-08-09-107. Mississippi State 8 2000-01-03-04-05-06-07-118. Georgia 7 2001-02-04-06-08-09-11 Vanderbilt 7 2004-06-07-08-09-10-118. Auburn 6 2000-01-02-03-05-1011. Tennessee 3 2001-04-0512. Kentucky 2 2006-08
SEC CHAMPIONS
SEC CHAMPS!!! South Carolina broke out of the gates with an early two-run lead and behind solid work from starter Colby Holmes and three relievers the Gamecocks defeated Alabama 3-2 on thte final day of the regular season to claim at a share of the SEC Championship. It is the school’s third SEC Championship in baseball and the first since the 2002 regular season. Carolina also claims a share of the SEC Eastern Division title, the school’s fifth (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2011).
ALL-SEC GAMECOCKS
South Carolina senior second baseman Scott Wingo, junior left-hander Michael Roth and sophomore right-handed reliever Matt Price earned first-team All-SEC honors with head coach Ray Tanner also picking up Coach of the Year accolades as the Southeastern Conference announced its award winners for the 2011 season. Sophomore first baseman Christian Walker was also a second-team All-SEC choice and right-hander Forrest Koumas was named to the SEC All-Freshman team. Walker, Wingo and junior outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. picked up All-SEC Defensive honors as well.
Roth and Price add all-conference honors to an already impressive list of accolades that the duo has received during the 2011 campaign. Roth, a quarterfinalist for the Pitcher of the Year award and a semifinalist for the Howser Award, is 12-3 with a 1.10 ERA on the year with six of his wins coming in league play. His 1.10 ERA is the best mark in the SEC as well. Price, also a semifinalist for the Howser Award, owns a 5-3 record and 17 saves for the 2011 season. This is the second straight year Price has earned all-conference accolades as he was a second-team choice as a freshman in 2010. Price has struck out 63 batters in 48.0 innings and opponents are hitting only .202 against him. Nine of his in the SEC as well.
Wingo’s picks up his first All-SEC honor as the senior captain led the team in hitting in SEC games with a .380 clip in 30 conference games. Wingo is hitting .335 (71-for-212) for the year and has a .468 on-base percentage that is among the best in the SEC. It is also the second consecutive year he earned All-SEC Defensive honors.
Walker, just named to USA Baseball’s Collegiate National team, is in the midst of a strong sophomore campaign as he leads the Gamecocks with a .361 batting average (87-for-241) as well as a team-high nine HR and 58 RBI. His .556 slugging percentage also tops the squad. Walker is one of two Gamecocks this year to start all 62 games. His 58 RBI are among SEC leaders. In addition, Walker hit .316 (37-for-117) in 30 SEC games and had eight doubles, a pair of homers and 24 RBI vs. conference teams.
Koumas has quietly put together a 6-1 season in his first year with the Garnet and Black to go along with a 3.07 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 67.1 innings pitched. Five of Koumas’ six wins also came in the SEC along with a SEC Co-Freshman of the Week honor after a quality start in a win over Kentucky.
Bradley started 37 games for Carolina being injured at Mississippi State. He was stellar patrolling center field and making catch after catch for the Gamecock defense.
Head coach Ray Tanner picks up SEC Coach of the Year honors for the third time in his career. Tanner was also honored by the league in 1998 and 2000. He is the second winningest coach in SEC history by winning percentage at .696. Coach Tanner is also a two-time national coach of the year (2000, 2010). The Gamecocks have won one national championship (2010), three SEC championships (2000, 2002, 2011), five SEC Eastern Division titles (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2011) and one SEC Tournament title (2004) under Tanner’s direction. In addition, this season is the Gamecocks’ 12th straight year with 40 or more victories.
40-PLUS
With a 6-5 win on May 14 vs. Arkansas, it marks South Carolina’s 12th consecutive season with 40 or more wins; the Gamecocks are the only team in the Southeastern Conference to win 40 or more games in each of the last 12 seasons.
MARZILLI ON THE MOVE
Sophomore outfielder Evan Marzilli has had the hot bat of late and was named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team. Marzilli tied a school record with nine consecutive hits with three vs. Alabama on May 20, four vs. Alabama on May 21 and two hits to start of the game on May 25 vs. Auburn.
Marzilli’s batting average is at .302 (58-for-192) with 11 doubles, two triples, three homers and 30 RBI. In SEC games, Marzilli hit .349 (29-for-83), second best on the team with 13 RBI and 16 runs scored.
WINGO & RECORDS
Senior second baseman Scott Wingo continues to lead on the field as he was named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team. He went 5-for-10 over the weekend in the tournament.
For the season, Wingo is hitting .335 (71-for-212) with four homers, 25 RBI a .434 slugging percentage and a .468 on-base percentage. Wingo has also walked a team-high 43 times. He led Carolina in SEC games hitting at a .380 clip, among the league leaders in conference play. Wingo is now third on the all-time games played list at Carolina with 247 games with the Garnet & Black, four behind Landon Powell for second.
Wingo also holds the school career record for hit by pitches with 59 so far in his career.
All-Time Games Played List
255 Michael Campbell 2003-04-05-06251 Landon Powell 2001-02-03-04247 Scott Wingo 2008-09-10-11
His leadoff solo home run in the bottom of the ninth gave South Carolina a thrilling 6-5 victory over Arkansas on Saturday at Carolina Stadium. He had three hits in the victory. It was Wingo’s third walk-off hit of the year along with a game-winning RBI single in a 2-1 win over Auburn on April 29 and also drove in the winning run in the ninth in a 2-1 win over Georgia.
WALKER NAMED TO TEAM USA
South Carolina sophomore first baseman Christian Walker has been selected to the 22-man roster for the 2011 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team, it was announced on May 22. It is the 11th time in school history for a Gamecock player to be selected to the collegiate team and it is the second straight season a Gamecock has been on the team as Jackie Bradley Jr. played for the Red, White & Blue last year.
Walker is in the midst of a strong sophomore campaign as he leads the Gamecocks with a .361 batting average (87-for-241) as well as a team-high nine HR and 58 RBI. His .556 slugging percentage also tops the squad. Walker is one of two Gamecocks this year to start all 62 games. His 58 RBI are among SEC leaders. In addition, Walker hit .316 (37-for-117) in 30 SEC games and had eight doubles, a pair of homers and 24 RBI vs. conference teams.
Team USA will have an SEC flavor this year with four other SEC players already announced to the team. DJ Baxendale (RHP) and Dominic Ficociello (INF) of Arkansas and Nolan Fontana (INF) and Brian Johnson (LHP) of Florida have also been selected to the team.
SOUTH CAROLINA PLAYERS & USA BASEBALL COLLEGIATE NATIONAL TEAM
2011 – Christian Walker, 1B
2010 – Jackie Bradley Jr., OF
2007 – Justin Smoak, 1B
2003 – Matt Campbell, P
2002 – Landon Powell, C
1997 – Adam Everett, SS
1994 – Jason Haynie, P
1993 – Jason Haynie, P
1991 – Jared Baker, P
1989 – Brian Williams, P/OF
1986 – Dave Hollins, 3B
HOLMES PROVIDES THE ANSWER
South Carolina sophomore right-hander Colby Holmes earned his seventh win of the year in the 11-5 win over Stetson in the NCAA Regional.
For the season, Holmes is 7-3 with a 3.76 ERA in 76.2 innings with 68 strikeouts to just 20 walks. Opponents are hitting just .230 against him.
Against Arkansas, Holems earned SEC Pitcher of the Week honors for the second time this season. Holmes came within one pitch of a complete game shutout as South Carolina clinched a series victory over Arkansas with a 7-1 win on Sunday afternoon. Holmes pitched 8.2 innings – the longest outing by a South Carolina pitcher this season – giving up just one run on six hits while tying a career-high with seven strikeouts and walking just one Razorback hitter. 8.2 innings is a career-high as well for Holmes.
Holmes earned SEC Pitcher of the Week the first time after he worked seven innings and struck out career-high seven batters to earn the win in a 2-0 victory over Tennessee. Holmes was stellar the entire night as he limited the Vols to just three hits and no walks.
ROTH RECEIVES ACCOLADES
South Carolina junior left-handed pitcher Michael Roth keeps garnering awards as his successful 2011 season continues. Roth, a semifinalist for the Golden Spikews award, was named to the Louisville Slugger All-America Third Team last week as announced by Collegiate Baseball. He has also been named to the Capital One Academic All-America First Team as selected by CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America). An international business major, Roth has been successful both on and off the field at Carolina. Last week, Roth improved to 12-3 as he hurled seven innings and allowed just one unearned run as South Carolina defeated Georgia Southern 2-1in the NCAA Regional as Roth earned All-Tournament Team accolades. He also earned All-Tournament Team honors at the SEC Tournament, as he earned his 11th win of the season hurling his the first complete game by a Gamecock this year in the 7-3 win over Auburn. It marked Roth’s second career complete game as well.
Roth, a quarterfinalist for the Pitcher of the Year award and a semifinalist for the Howser Award, is 11-3 with a 1.17 ERA on the year with six of his wins coming in league play. His 1.17 ERA is the best mark in the SEC as well.
Roth was SEC Pitcher of the Week after earning a win vs. Vanderbilt. Roth did not allow a hit until the fifth inning and limited the Commodores to just one run on three hits in a 3-1 win on Friday night in the series opener vs. Vanderbilt. The three-hit total was the lowest in a game this season for the Commodores, who came into the weekend as the top hitting team in the conference. Roth’s eight strikeout total was one short of his career high.
NEFF SAID
Steven Neff has provided a power bat as he hit a solo home run in the 11-5 win over Stetson in the NCAA Regional. He also had a solo home run that helped Carolina in the 3-2 victory at Alabama. Neff was a key bat for Carolina in the series victory over Arkansas. In the 6-5 win, Neff hit his first career home run, a two-run shot, and was 3-for-4 with a double as well as Carolina defeated the Razorbacks. Neff followed that up with three more hits in Sunday’s 7-1 victory including two more home runs, only the second time this season that a Gamecock player has had two home runs in a game.
In addition, Neff also showed off his arm, as the left-hander earned a win in the 6-1 midweek victory over Presbyterian as he worked five innings and allowed one run on five hits with five strikeouts and a walk. He is now 3-1 on the year on the mound.
At the plate for the season, Neff is hitting .258 with 11 of his 16 hits, extra base hits (six doubles, five homers). He is 3-1 with a 2.45 ERA on the mound also.
BRADY BEHIND THE PLATE
Senior catcher Brady Thomas has been stellar at the plate as well as behind hit. The Gamecock backstop has his average at .310 (63-for-203) for the season. Thomas collected three hits in the 6-5 win over Arkansas. He was also 3-for-5 with two RBI in the win over Charleston Southern.
THE VERSATILE MR. BEARY
Senior outfielder/catcher Robert Beary earned NCAA Regional MVP honors after a stellar weekend for the Gamecocks. Beary tripled and drove in a run in the 8-2 clinching win over Stetson and had a grand slam in the 11-5 win over the Hatters. HIs four RBI tied a career-high.
The Gamecocks’ most versatile player, Beary has played left field, right field, third base, designated hitter and catcher this season. For the season, he is hitting 295 (54-for-183) with 11 doubles, a triple, three homers and 33 RBI.
Beary had a career night for the Gamecocks in the 17-8 win over Rhode Island. Beary tied his career-high with four hits and drove in four runs. He also homered in the game. Beary hit .353 (6-for-17) in the five games (vs. College of Charleston, Rhode Island, Florida series) with five runs scored.
TRIPLE THREAT
Junior outfielder Jake Williams tallied his fifth triple in the 7-6 loss at Ole Miss. Williams is now one short of the school record of six set by current Gamecock student assistant coach Brian Buscher in 2002. Williams also had two RBI in the 9-3 win at Wofford. For the season, Williams is hitting .276 (51-for-185) with nine doubles, two HR and 36 RBI as well.
TAYLOR MAKES AN APPEARANCE
Senior reliever John Taylor leads the SEC with 43 relief appearances. He is 5-1 with a 1.32 ERA in 61.1 innings with 61 strikeouts to just 23 walks. Opponents are hitting only .178 against Taylor. Taylor appeared in all three regional games. His 43 appearances, is a school record by a Gamecock pitcher, besting the previous high of 37 set by Michael Roth (2010), Chad Blackwell (2004) and Blake Taylor (2002).
MOONEY KEEPS RISING
Junior shortstop Peter Mooney continues to provide solid depth for the Gamecocks. Mooney had a pair of RBI in the 7-3 win over Auburn at the SEC Tournament. He is hitting .272 (62-for-228) with 42 runs scored and a .385 on-base percentage.
THE PRICE IS RIGHT
Sophomore right-hander Matt Price picked up two saves in the NCAA Regional with two scoreless outings in the 2-1 win over Georgia Southern and the 8-2 win over Stetson. Price is one of five finalists for the 2011 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award. Price earned two saves In the Alabama series with three innings of work in the 6-3 win and 1.1 hitless innings with a pair of strikeouts in the 3-2 victory that helped clinch the conference championship.
He finished a league-high 17 SEC games with five victories and nine saves in those conference tilts. His 1.71 ERA is second best among all SEC pitchers in SEC games also.
For the season, Price owns a 5-3 record and 17 saves for the 2011 season. This is the second straight year Price has earned all-conference accolades as he was a second-team choice as a freshman in 2010. Price has struck out 63 batters in 48.0 innings and opponents are hitting only .202 against him.
Price was key in both wins over top ranked Vanderbilt. The sophomore Gamecock reliever factored into two wins this weekend with a save in the 3-1 victory on Friday night and a victory in Sunday’s 5-3 win in the rubber game vs. No. 1 Vanderbilt. Price was dominant in his stints with 4.1 scoreless innings of relief. 11 of the 13 outs he tallied were by strikeout. All four batters he faced in the 43-1 win struck out as he picked up the save. In the 5-3 win over VU, he worked a season-high three innings and limited VU to just two hits and struck out a season-high seven batters to pick up his fourth win of the year.
Price is third at Carolina in all-time saves with 27. HIs 17 saves this year is tied third highest in a single season at Carolina.
Top 3 Saves All-Time
30 Rob Mosser (1990-93)
28 Brian Beatson (1987-90)
27 Matt Price (2009-11)
Top 5 Saves Single-Season
21 Blake Taylor (2002)
20 Chad Blackwell (2004)
19 Lee Gronkiewicz (2001)
17 Matt Price (2011)
WELL ARMED
South Carolina’s pitching staff continues to be one of the best in the nation. South Carolina’s pitching staff owns a 2.65 ERA, second best in the league. Opponents are hitting just .229 against the team and the team has 490 strikeouts; both marks are second best in the SEC as well. The Gamecocks led the SEC in SEC games with a 2.46 ERA in 30 conference contests. Opponents hit just .227 in conference games as well.
At Tennessee, South Carolina’s pitching staff had its best weekend of the season with just one run allowed in 27 innings pitched. The Volunteers has just 15 hits for three games with a .179 batting average and Carolina finished with 24 strikeouts and just six walks allowed as well.
In a home series vs. Kentucky, the Gamecock pitching staff allowed just five runs the entire weekend and Kentucky hit only .181 as a team with just three extra base hits. The staff ERA for the weekend was 1.61.
The South Carolina pitching staff also has a tremendous weekend against the Gators in Gainesville. The Gamecock pitching staff allowed just six earned runs in 26 innings of play and the Gators hit just .217 in the series at McKethan Stadium. The staff ERA for the weekend was 2.08.
BY THE NUMBERS
For the season, South Carolina is hitting .296 on the year as a team (610-for-2064) sixth best in the conference. Carolina’s .388 on-base percentage is second best in the conference and the team’s .432 slugging percentage is fourth best in the SEC. Carolina has 44 home runs.
FLASH THE LEATHER
South Carolina is among SEC leaders with a .974 fielding percentage. Carolina’s .976 fielding mark in SEC games was second best in the conference.
SUPERLATIVES
South Carolina is 41-0 on the year when leading after six innings and 44-0 on the year when leading after eight innings. Carolina is 45-7 when limiting teams to just five runs or less. Also in superlatives, Carolina owns a 38-3 record when out-hitting the opponent. South Carolina is 15-9 in games decided by two runs or less.
PACK THE HOUSE
The crowds at Carolina Stadium continue to be some of the best in the country including a sellout of 8,242 on Saturday in the 10-2 win over Auburn. Carolina has a total attendance of 280,795 fans in 38 games for an average of 7,389.All three games vs. Vanderbilt were played in front of 8,242 fans, three consecutive sellouts at Carolina Stadium adding to seven for the season. The three-game series attendance was 24,726, the best three-game mark in Carolina Stadium history. There have been great crowds at Carolina Stadium this year with eight total sellouts. The Gamecocks had sellouts of 8,242 in the first two games vs. Santa Clara as well as the Friday victory over Clemson and the 4-3 10-inning win over Kentucky on April 2.
KOUMAS KEEPS IT GOING
Freshman right-hander Forrest Koumas has quietly put together a 6-1 season in his first year with the Garnet and Black to go along with a 3.07 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 67.1 innings pitched. Five of Koumas’ six wins also came in the SEC.
Koumas earned SEC Co-Freshman of the Week honors after he pitched 6.1 scoreless innings in the 4-1 win over Kentucky. Koumas, who spent three days in the hospital earlier in the week due to an allergic reaction, was effective in his second career start as he limited the Wildcats to just two hits and one walk while striking out three batters.
After earning SEC Co-Freshman of the Week honors, Koumas served up an encore top performance as the Gamecock righty worked a career-high 7.1 innings and struck out a career-high seven batters and the Gamecocks rallied with two runs in the sixth inning to come from behind and defeat Tennessee 2-1 to sweep a three-game SEC baseball series at Lindsey Nelson Stadium. After yielding a run in the first inning, Koumas settled in and limited the Vols to just three hits on the afternoon and two walks while tallying seven strikeouts.
MORALES LEADS THE WAY
Senior infielder Adrian Morales earned NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team honors. Morales is known for a clutch bat as he had the game-winning RBI single in the 3-2 win at Alabama thta clinched the conference championship. Morales is hitting .283 (62-for-219) for the season with three HR and 38 RBI. He has a .384 on-base percentage and a .388 slugging percentage.
Morales tied a school record for doubles in a game with three in the 4-3 win over Kentucky on Saturday. Morales reached base five times and was 3-for-3 in the win. He scored the game-winning run in the victory as well. He is the 24th player in school history to have three doubles in a game; the last was Christian Walker on May 2010 at Kentucky.
WEBB MEASURES UP
Sophomore left-hander Tyler Webb is the tallest pitcher on the Gamecock staff at 6-6. He earned the win in the 9-5 win over UNC Asheville. He has had a good sesaon with a 3-1 record and a 3.21 ERA in 33.2 innings pitched. He has 28 strikeouts to 15 walks allowed.
Webb hurled a career-high 7.1 innings and tied a career-high with seven strikeouts and teamed with relievers Bryan Harper and John Taylor to hurl a five-hit shutout as South Carolina defeated Southern Illinois 4-0 in game two of a weekend series. Webb was effective throughout the game allowing just four hits in his longest start of his career. His seven strikeouts tied the career-high he set March 14, 2010 vs. Brown.
