For our Sunday roundup, let's run through the Top 25 series, then take a look at some of the day's other highlights:
• (1) Vanderbilt at (3) South Carolina: The Gamecocks won their second series this season against the nation's top-ranked team, coming from behind to take the rubber game against Vanderbilt, 5-3. The Commodores built a 3-1 lead on back-to-back homers by Aaron Westlake and Jason Esposito (his second of the game) in the sixth against Forrest Koumas (5.1 IP, 5 H, 3 ER). But the Gamecocks chased Vandy starter Taylor Hill (6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K) in a four-run seventh, sparked by Steven Neff's leadoff double—the first career collegiate hit for Neff, a pitcher by trade. Three Vandy relievers were ineffective in the frame before Jack Armstrong got the 'Dores out of the inning, but by then the damage was done. South Carolina closer Matt Price (3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K) earned the win with his second overpowering appearance of the weekend. The Gamecocks moved into sole possession of first place in the SEC.
• Duke at (2) Virginia: Steven Proscia went 5-for-8 with a homer and three RBIs to lead the Cavaliers to a doubleheader sweep of Duke, 3-2 (11 innings) and 18-4. The Cavs outscored the Blue Devils 31-6 in the three-game series sweep. Virginia got strong pitching from Tyler Wilson (7.2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 10 K) and Branden Kline (3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K) in Sunday's first game. Will Roberts (5 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 ER) picked up the win in his first weekend start in the finale, improving to 8-0 on the season. John Barr (3-for-3, 2 R, 5 RBI, 3 2B) led a 17-hit attack in that one.
• (4) Florida at Georgia: The Gators trailed 7-6 after six innings Sunday, then exploded for eight runs over the final three innings to win 14-7 and win a big road series against the Bulldogs. Preston Tucker (2-for-5, 2 HR, 6 RBI) hit a grand slam to highlight Florida's pivotal five-run eighth.
• Baylor vs./at/at (5) Texas A&M: Ross Stripling (9 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K) out-dueled Logan Verrett (8 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K) to lead the Aggies to a 2-1 win, clinching the series. Texas A&M scored single runs in each of the last two innings to earn the come-from-behind victory against Verrett, who pitched well in his first Sunday start after struggling in recent weeks as the Friday starter.
• Texas Tech at (6) Texas: The Longhorns came from behind with three runs in the eighth, capped by Tant Shepherd's tie-breaking two-run triple, to win Sunday's rubber game against Texas Tech, 3-1. Sam Stafford (5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K) pitched well in a no-decision in his return to the weekend rotation, and three Texas relievers—including Hoby Milner (2 IP, 0 H, 0 R)—combined to work four innings of one-hit, shutout relief.
• (7) North Carolina at North Carolina State: The Woflpack erupted for 10 runs in the fifth and sixth innings to complete a huge sweep of North Carolina with a 10-2 win. John Gianis (4-for-5) paced N.C. State's 17-hit barrage in support of Rob Chamra (5.1 IP, 4 H, 0 R). The Sunday starter spot has been a problem for UNC all season, and Chris Munnelly (4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER) took the loss, but Michael Morin (1.1 IP, 7 H, 6 ER) was hit harder. The sweep vaults the Wolfpack back into at-large contention after a tough sweep at the hands of Miami last weekend. N.C. State is now 8-10 in the ACC
• UC Santa Barbara at (8) Cal State Fullerton: Despite a strong outing from Tyler Pill (8 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 11 K), the Titans needed a three-run ninth-inning rally to complete their sweep of the Gauchos with a 5-4 win. Sparkplug Anthony Trajano tied the game with a two-run single up the middle, then scored the winning run on Blake Barber's walk-off RBI single. The red-hot Titans are 19-2 since their 0-4 road trip to LSU and Texas A&M.
• (9) Oregon State at (17) Stanford: The Beavers topped the Cardinal, 6-4, to complete their first-ever sweep at Stanford, a week after sweeping Arizona State for the first time since 1966. Kavin Keyes (2-for-5, 3 RBI) led the offense, and Ben Wetzler (4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER) picked up the win in relief. Oregon State remains atop the Pac-10 at 8-1.
• Washington State at (10) Arizona State: Joey DeMichele (3-for-5, 2B, R, RBI) led ASU's 14-hit attack in support of Jake Barrett (5.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K), as ASU completed a sweep of Washington State with a 10-4 win.
• (11) Florida State at Virginia Tech: The Seminoles came from behind for the second straight day, this time erasing a 10-3 deficit after four innings to win the rubber game at Virginia Tech, 18-12. Jayce Boyd (5-for-5, 4 R, 2 RBI) paced FSU's 15-hit attack, and Taiwan Easterling hit a grand slam to highlight FSU's decisive six-run eighth inning.
• (12) Texas Christian at San Diego State: The Horned Frogs completed a sweep with a 7-4 win in 10 innings. Steven Maxwell (6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER) was solid in a no-decision, and Joe Weik's two-run double capped TCU's four-run 10th.
• Nevada at (13) Fresno State: The finale of the Nevada-Fresno series was cancelled due to the sudden death of Nevada president Milton Glick. Fresno won the first three games of the series.
• (14) Oklahoma at (19) Oklahoma State: The Cowboys won a wild Bedlam rubber game, 11-10, in 10 innings. OSU erased a 7-3 deficit with seven runs in the eighth, but Oklahoma answered with three in the ninth to force extra innings. Davis Duren delivered a walk-off RBI single in the 10th to win it. Tyler Ogle (4-for-4, 3 R, 3 RBI) had another big day for OU, while Zach Johnson (3-for-5, 2 R, 4 RBI) and Duren (4-for-6, 2 RBI) led OSU's 19-hit onslaught. Interestingly, none of the 36 hits in the game were home runs.
• (15) Georgia Tech at Wake Forest: Buck Farmer (7 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 8 K) was solid in a no-decision, and Jake Davies' 12th-inning sacrifice fly gave Georgia Tech a series-clinching 6-5 win at Wake Forest. Mott Hyde (3-for-5, HR, 4 RBI) had a big day to lead the Tech offense. Carlos Lopez homered twice—including a game-tying shot off Luke Bard (5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K) in the eighth—for gritty Wake Forest.
• (16) California at Washington: Dixon Anderson (7 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) led Cal to a road series sweep at Washington. Chadd Krist (3-for-4, 2 2B, RBI) led the offense.
• (18) Troy at Middle Tennessee State: The Trojans were shut out for the second straight day to lose a series against an MTSU team that entered the weekend with a 10-22 record. Jimmy Hodgskin (6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER) was solid in Troy's 4-0 loss Sunday, but the Trojans mustered just six hits against Eric Gilley (7.1 IP, 5 H, 0 R) and Paul Mittura (1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R).
• (20) Arizona at (23) UCLA: Beau Amaral delivered a game-tying two-run homer in the seventh and a game-winning, three-run double in the eighth to propel the Bruins to an 8-5 win. The Bruins made five errors behind Adam Plutko (6 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K) but still managed to win the rubber game. Matt Chaffee took the loss for Arizona, which has sought answers in the bullpen all season.
• Savannah State at (21) Stetson: Mark Jones (2-for-4, HR, 4 RBI) led Stetson's 15-hit attack in a 10-5 win against Savannah State, completing the sweep. The Hatters have won nine straight games.
• New Orleans at (22) Southern Mississippi: Jonathan Thompson (8 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K) was brilliant in the Golden Eagles' 1-0 win, completing the sweep against UNO, which is just 3-32.
• Mississippi State at (25) Arkansas: Ryne Stanek (3 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 3 ER) got the start and took his first collegiate loss for Arkansas, as Mississippi State avoided a sweep with a 5-3 win. Jarrod Parks (2-for-3, 2 R), the SEC's leading hitter, led the MSU offense.
Around The Nation
• Gonzaga solidifed itself as the team to beat in the WCC with a 7-1 win over Loyola Marymount, clinching the road series. Marco Gonzales (7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K) improved to 6-2 for the Zags.
• Texas State beat Southeastern Louisiana, 7-5, to win a pivotal Southland Conference series. The Bobcats are tied with Stephen F. Austin State for first place.
• A few conference favorites were upset. In the A-10, Charlotte dropped a series at Saint Louis with a 5-2 loss Sunday. In the Ivy League, Yale completed a four-game sweep of Dartmouth with a doubleheader sweep, 3-0 and 5-1. The Big Green had been 18-6 entering the weekend. Yale, meanwhile, improved to 20-12 and took control of the Red Rolfe Division.
• Michigan State also lost a road series, as Ohio State toppled the Spartans, 10-5 in Sunday's rubber game. How's this for wide open: Michigan State and Indiana (6-3) are tied atop the Big Ten standings, but five teams are within a game of first place, and eight teams are within two games of first after three weekends. Even last-place Minnesota and Iowa (3-6) are just three games back.
• In the Big 12, Kansas and Kansas State won rubber games in road series against Missouri and Nebraska, respectively. Kansas climbed to 8-7 in the Big 12, good enough for fourth place.
• St. John's completed a huge sweep of Louisville with a 7-2 win. Joe Panik (3-for-4, 2B, HR, 4 RBI) led the way for the Johnnies, who are tied with West Virginia and Pittsburgh for second place in the Big East, two games behind Connecticut.
• Rice drilled Tulane, 11-1, to win its third straight conference series. Michael Ratterree (3-for-4, HR, 6 RBI) hit a three-run double in the seventh to end the run-rule-shortened affair.
• Austin Peay State topped Jacksonville State, 7-2, to clinch a big Ohio Valley Conference series, allowing Southeast Missouri State to sneak by both teams into first place.
• Oregon's dreadful season continued with a 3-1 loss at Southern California. For the second straight weekend, the Trojans lost their series opener at home but bounced back to win the series (last week they did it against Stanford). USC has climbed to 6-6 in the Pac-10, while the Ducks are 2-7.
• Mississippi finished off a sweep of Kentucky with a 6-5 win, pulling the Rebels into a three-way tie atop the SEC West with Alabama and Arkansas. Kentucky fell to 2-13 in conference play.
• College of Charleston avoided a sweep with a 4-1 win at Elon, which nonetheless has control of the SoCon at 14-4.
• Florida Atlantic ran its winning streak to six games with a 3-1 win over Louisiana-Monroe. FAU is tied with Western Kentucky for second place in the Sun Belt, just a game behind Troy.
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Had several people point that one out — thanks for the correction. It has been fixed.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | April 18, 2011 at 2:47 pm | Shortcut