Feb. 22, 2012

Rankings are from CBI Composite Poll

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Around the Bases
Strong Crawford start leads Florida past UCF

Georgia Tech outscores Georgia Southern, Arkansas tops Northwestern State

In Gainesville, Fla., Jonathan Crawford tossed five scoreless innings in his first collegiate start as top-ranked Florida blanked UCF 8-0 Wednesday evening at McKethan Stadium. Crawford (1-0) did not allow a hit until there was one out in the fifth. He surrendered two hits and three walks while striking out four. The Gators (4-1) scored in four of the first five innings. Daniel Pigott (2 for 3, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI) and Preston Tucker (2 for 4, 2 R) both homered for UF. Tucker (pictured above) has 214 career RBI, matching the school record of Brad Wilkerson. James Vasquez had two of the six hits for the Knights (3-1).

No. 10 Georgia Tech 11, Georgia Southern 9

In Statesboro, Ga., catcher Zane Evans hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the top of the eighth and pitched the bottom of the frame as Georgia Tech outscored Georgia Southern in from a record crowd of 3,258 at J.I. Clements Stadium. Evans (2 for 5) and Brandon Thomas (3 for 4, HR, 3 R) both drove in four for the Yellow Jackets (4-1). Tech scored three in the third and five in the fourth to take an 8-5 advantage. The Eagles (3-1) tied it with three in the sixth before the blast by Evans put the Jackets on top to stay. Eric Phillips went 2 for 4 with a double and four RBI for GSU. Josh Heddinger (1-0) worked a perfect seventh to earn the victory. Evans allowed two hits and one run in the eighth before Luke Bard tossed a scoreless ninth for his first save.

No. 5 Arkansas 6, Northwestern State 2

In Fayetteville, Ark., Matt Reynolds went 2 for 4 with a double, a homer and two RBI as Arkansas completed a two-game sweep of Northwestern State at Baum Stadium. Nick Doughty tripled and scored on a base hit by Nick Hinojos in the top of the fourth to give the Demons (1-2) the early lead. Bo Bigham homered to lead off the bottom of the frame and Reynolds capped a four-run burst with a two-run homer as the Razorbacks (5-0) led 4-1. Todd Wallace went deep in the sixth as Northwestern State pulled to within two, but Arkansas added single runs in the seventh and eighth for the final margin.

No. 6 Rice 12, New Mexico State 4

In Houston, Andrew Benak fanned a career-high 10 in 5.1 innings as Rice swept a two-game set from New Mexico State. Benak (1-0) allowed two hits and did not walk a batter. After a scoreless first, the Owls (5-0) scored in each of the next six innings. Rice put up four in the second and three in the third to take control early. Shane Hoelscher (4 for 4, 4 R), Ryan Lewis (3 for 3, 2B, 1 R, 3 RBI), Christian Stringer (4 for 6, 1 R) and Chase McDowell (1 for 4, HR, 3 RBI) led the offense for the Owls. Zac Fisher (2 for 4, 1 R, 1 RBI) led the offense for the Aggies (3-3), which scored their four runs in the ninth.

No. 8 LSU 11, McNeese State 4

In Baton Rouge, La., Austin Nola went 2 for 4 with a double and three RBI as LSU downed McNeese State at Alex Box Stadium. The Tigers (4-0) scored in five of the first seven innings, with a five-run sixth giving LSU a 10-3 advantage. Tyler Hanover doubled and scored twice, while Grant Dozar homered for the Tigers. Nick Eubanks went 2 for 4 with a double and three RBI, while Collin Todd went 3 for 4 for the Cowboys (1-2).

No. 12 Miami (Fla.) 3, FGCU 0

In Fort Myers, Fla., Steven Ewing and three relievers combined on a three-hit shutout as Miami blanked FGCU in front of 2,254 fans at Hammond Stadium. Ewing (1-0) allowed one hit in seven innings with two walks and seven strikeouts. A.J. Salcines recorded the final two outs for his first save. Peter O’Brien went 4 for 4 with a double and one run, while Brad Fieger drove in a pair for the Hurricanes (4-0). Miami scored single runs in the fourth, sixth and seventh. Dane Wisneski had two of the three hits for the Eagles (1-3).

No. 13 Georgia 4, Georgia State 1

In Athens, Ga., Levi Hyams had a two-run homer to cap a three-run seventh as Georgia got past Georgia State at Foley Field. Bryan Benzor (1-0, 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 K) earned the win in relief, while Blake Dieterich fanned two in the ninth to earn his first save. Hunter Cole had two hits for the Bulldogs (4-0). Caden Bailey went 2 for 3 with one run for the Panthers (3-2).

No. 19 Vanderbilt 11, Oakland 4

In Nashville, Tenn., Mike Yastrzemski capped a five-run third with a three-run homer as Vanderbilt stopped Oakland. Yastrzemski had two hits and two runs for the Commodores (1-3). Vanderbilt added four in the fifth to put the game away. Anthony Gomez went 3 for 3 with two walks, one run and two RBI for the Commodores. Robby Enslen had two hits and two RBI for the Golden Grizzlies (0-1).

Baylor 5, Texas State 1

In Round Rock, Texas, five Baylor hurlers held Texas State to four hits and one run in a victory at The Dell Diamond. Tyler Bremer (1-0) started and allowed three hits in four scoreless innings with one walk and three strikeouts to claim the victory. Josh Ludy (2 for 3) had a RBI double in the first and a sacrifice fly to cap a four-run fifth as the Bears (5-0) took a 5-0 lead. Casey Kalenkosky had a run-scoring double in the eighth for the Bobcats (2-2). Baylor has held all five opponents to two runs or less this season.

Virginia 6, William and Mary 5 (11)

In Charlottesville, Va., Mike Papi had a two-run single in the bottom of the 11th to lift Virginia over William and Mary in front of 2,598 fans at Davenport Field. The Tribe (2-2) led 4-0 before the Cavaliers (2-1-1) plated four in the bottom of the eighth to tie the game at 4. Josh Smith (2 for 6, 2B, 2 R, 1 RBI) scored on an error in the top of the 11th to give W&M a one-run lead. Jared King went 3 for 5 with two doubles and three RBI for UVa. Justin Thompson (1-0, 3 IP, 3 H, 1 UE, 4 BB, 2 K) earned the victory. Chris Forsten had two doubles and two runs for the Tribe, a team that stranded 19..

Louisville 7, Eastern Kentucky 2

In Louisville, Ky., Ty Young went 3 for 3 with two doubles, a triple, two runs and one RBI as Louisville topped Eastern Kentucky at Patterson Stadium. Michael Garcia (2 for 3) hit a two-run homer in the top of the sixth as the Colonels (2-2) pulled to within one at 3-2. The Cardinals (3-1) tallied one in the sixth and Stewart Ijames launched a two-run dinger in a three-run seventh to extend the lead. Adam Engel had three hits, one run and one RBI for UL. Nick Burdi (1-0, 2 H, 3 BB, 4 K) started and pitched four scoreless innings to pick up the win for the Cards.

(photo by Jimmy Jones)