March 3, 2009

Rankings are from CBI Composite Poll

Around the Bases
Smith, Demko combine on URI shutout at Miami (Fla.)

Furman outlasts Clemson in 14; Sam Houston State stops Rice

In Coral Gables, Fla., Eric Smith pitched eight shutout innings as Rhode Island surprised No. 9 Miami (Fla.) 3-0 Tuesday evening in front of 1,317 fans at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field. Smith (1-0) limited the Hurricanes (6-2) to three hits. He walked two and struck out five. Luke Demko came on in the ninth to earn his first save. The Rams (5-2) scored two in the second on a sac fly by Zoey Angulo and a run-scoring single by Mike LeBel. Rob DeVeney added a sac fly in the third. Dan Rhault and Jeff Cammans both finished with two hits and a run for URI. Nathan Melendres, Chris Herrmann and Dave DiNatale each had a hit for Miami.

Furman 4, No. 19 Clemson 2 (14)

In Clemson, S.C., Marcus Rose walked and scored in the top of the 14th to snap a 2-2 tie and lead Furman to the win over Clemson in front of 3,255 fans at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. Rose drew a leadoff walk, stole second and advanced to third as Connor Lind struck out and reached on a wild pitch. Lind moved to second on a groundout while Rose remained at third. Following an intentional walk, Reese Wade had an RBI fielder’s choice to bring home Rose and give the Paladins (4-2) the lead. Campbell Lewis had an RBI single to plate Lind with an insurance run. The Tigers (4-2) put two on in the bottom of the frame on walks, but could not score. Clemson got a two-run single by Brad Miller in the fourth to take the lead. Brian Harrison hit a two-out, two-run homer in the ninth for Furman to extend the game. Lewis finished with two hits for the Paladins. Ben Paulsen had three hits and a run for the Tigers.

Sam Houston State 8, No. 7 Rice 6

In Huntsville, Texas, Tyler Knight’s three-run triple in the seventh snapped a 4-4 tie and carried Sam Houston State past Rice at Don Sanders Stadium. Brock Holt had a leadoff homer in the first for the Owls (5-3) before Knight’s sacrifice fly capped a four-run rally in the bottom of the frame for the Bearkats (7-3). Rice added a run in the sixth and two in the seventh to even it at 4-4 before Knight’s triple in the seventh put SHSU on top for good. Mark Wyatt had three hits, two runs and an RBI for the Bearkats. Rick Hague was 4 for 4 for the Owls with a run and two RBI.

No. 1 LSU 19, New Orleans 3

In New Orleans, Sean Ochinko had a grand slam and drove in seven as LSU overwhelmed New Orleans in front of 2,190 fans at Maestri Field. The Tigers (8-0) scored six in each of the first two innings to build a 12-1 lead. Ochinko had a two-run single and Derek Helenihi added a two-run triple in the first. Ochinko’s slam highlighted the second-inning rally. Buzzy Haydel, D.J. LeMahieu and Chris McGhee each knocked in two for LSU. Rodarrick Jones had two hits and one RBI for the Privateers (4-5).

No. 3 Texas 6, Texas State 5

In San Marcos, Texas, Travis Tucker’s RBI single snapped a 5-5 tie in the eighth as Texas rallied past Texas State at Bobcat Field. The Bobcats (6-3) led 5-3 after six before Brandon Belt’s homer in the seventh pulled the Longhorns (10-0) to within one. Russell Moldenhauer had a pinch-hit RBI single in the eighth that knotted the score at 5-5. Bret Atwood and Spenser Dennis both had run-scoring singles in the sixth that gave Texas State the 5-3 advantage. David Hernandez had two hits and two RBI for Texas. Atwood and Laurn Randell both had two hits for the Bobcats.

No. 6 Texas A&M 2, Stephen F. Austin 1

In College Station, Texas, Clayton Ehlert struck out nine in seven innings as Texas A&M nipped Stephen F. Austin in front of 3,530 fans at Olsen Field. Ehlert (1-0) allowed five hits, one walk and one run, a homer by Sean Meyers in the fourth. The Aggies (8-2) answered in the sixth as Brodie Greene led off with a home run and Brett Parsons added an RBI double later in the frame to give the home team the lead. The Lumberjacks (3-5) loaded the bases in the eighth and ninth, but could not plate the tying run. Dylan Petrich had three hits for the Aggies. Meyers and Zach Gardner both had two hits for the Lumberjacks.

No. 8 Cal State Fullerton 7, San Diego State 2

In San Diego, Noe Ramirez allowed three hits in seven innings in his first collegiate start as Cal State Fullerton defeated San Diego State at Tony Gwynn Stadium. Ramirez (1-0) did not walk a batter and struck out four. The Aztecs (4-5) scored a pair in the third and Brandon Decker and Mitch Blackburn had RBI singles. Jared Clark had a run-scoring single in the fourth for the Titans (6-2) to pull to within one. Khris Davis had an RBI single that sparked a three-run sixth as Fullerton took the lead. Nick Ramirez added a two-run double in the seventh and finished with three hits.

Jacksonville 9, No. 10 Florida State 4

In Jacksonville, Brad Simmons was 2 for 2 with a home run and three RBI as Jacksonville knocked off Florida State in front of 2,097 fans at John Sessions Stadium. Simmons’ two-run homer keyed a three-run second for the Dolphins (4-4). The Seminoles (6-2) got a sac fly from Stuart Tapley in the fourth, and Tyler Holt stole third and scored on a throwing error in the sixth to pull to within one. JU put the game away with a five-run sixth, ignited by an RBI single by Simmons. James Ramsey had a homer in the seventh for FSU. Jonathan Murphy and Kyle Fleming both had two hits and an RBI for the Dolphins. Jason Stidham had a pair of hits for the Seminoles.

Loyola Marymount 11, No. 11 UC Irvine 3

In Irvine, Calif., Angelo Songco went 4 for 5 with three runs and three RBI as Loyola Marymount beat UC Irvine at Anteater Ballpark. Shon Roe had three hits and two runs for the Lions (8-2). After the Anteaters (5-3) took a 3-1 lead in the third, LMU scored three in the sixth, five in the seventh and two in the eighth. Songco had a two-run double in the sixth and an RBI single in the seventh. Brad Bauer added a two-run single in the seventh and T.J. Bernardy added a two-run single in the eighth. Ryan Wheeler scored three for the Lions. Francis Larson had two hits and an RBI for UCI.

No. 15 TCU 11, Texas-Arlington 3

In Arlington, Texas, Bryan Holaday had two hits and three RBI to lead TCU past UTA at Clay Gould Ballpark. Holaday’s RBI single capped a five-run first for the Horned Frogs (6-1). Ben Carruthers had three hits, two runs and an RBI for TCU. Michael Choice went 4 for 5 with a run for the Mavericks (4-5).

No. 17 Pepperdine 5, UCLA 4

In Los Angeles, Colin Rooney’s home run in the ninth lifted Pepperdine past UCLA at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Rooney had a two-run single in the fifth that tied the score at 3-3. Brian Humphries followed with an RBI base hit to give the Waves (6-2) a 4-3 lead. The Bruins (2-7) tied it in the seventh on Niko Gallego’s RBI single. Ryan Heroy had three hits, one run and one RBI for Pepperdine. Gallego finished with two hits for UCLA.

No. 18 San Diego 14, Western Carolina 7

In San Diego, a grand slam by Victor Sanchez highlighted a six-run first as San Diego outscored Western Carolina at Cunningham Stadium. USD (7-3) added one in the third and four and three in the fifth for an 11-0 lead. Tyler Kirkpatrick’s two-run double sparked a three-run sixth for the Catamounts (5-2). WCU scored four in the seventh to pull to within four, but Steven Chatwood hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh and the Toreros added one in the eighth for the final margin. Chatwood had four hits and Sean Nicol went 3 for 4 with three runs and three steals for USD. Ross Heffley had three hits and two runs for WCU.

No. 20 Ole Miss 11, Arkansas State 5

In Oxford, Miss., Jeremy Travis drove in four as Ole Miss outscored Arkansas State at Oxford-University Stadium. His three-run homer in the third gave the Rebels (4-3) a 6-2 advantage. Matt Smith’s two-run triple keyed a four-run sixth for Ole Miss. Logan Power had two hits, two runs and three RBI for the Rebels. Murray Watts and Brandon Eller both had two hits and an RBI for the Red Wolves (2-4).

No. 21 Florida 5, Stetson 2

In DeLand, Fla., Preston Tucker homered and drove in two as Florida got past Stetson at Melching Field. Jeff Barfield (2-0) worked 6.2 innings with five hits, one unearned run, one walk and four strikeouts to earn the win for the Gators (6-3). Tucker went deep in the fourth to start the scoring. His sacrifice fly sparked a three-run sixth as UF built a 5-0 lead. The Hatters (2-7) plated single runs in the sixth and ninth. Mark Jones had two hits for Stetson.

No. 22 Oklahoma 11-16, UALR 7-6

In Norman, Okla., Casey Johnson had five hits, including two home runs, and seven RBI as Oklahoma swept a doubleheader from UALR at L. Dale Mitchell Park. In the opener, Johnson had a two-run homer in the eighth for the Sooners (9-3). He went 3 for 5 with two runs and four RBI in Game 1. J.T. Wise had two hits, including a homer, two runs and two RBI for OU. Eric Hanlon went 3 for 5 with a homer, two runs and three RBI for the Trojans (4-6). In the nightcap, Johnson had two hits, including a homer, two runs and three RBI. OU built a 10-0 lead after four before UALR scored six in the fifth to narrow the lead. The Sooners scored four in the sixth and two in the eighth to complete the scoring. Chris Ellison had three hits and three RBI for OU. Matt Apfel had a three-run homer in the fifth for UALR.