May 12, 2008

Rankings are from CBI Composite Poll

Virginia 5, No. 2 North Carolina 4

Around the Bases
Navy to host Bucknell for Patriot League Championship

No. 10 Georgia wins SEC crown; No. 5 Rice secures third straight C-USA title

In Annapolis, Md., Thomas Hamilton (pictured), Michael Speciale and Kendall Bolt - Navy's three through five hitters - combined to go 10 for 14 with five runs and three RBI as second-seeded Navy got past No. 3 Holy Cross 9-5 Sunday to advance to the Patriot League championship series May 17-18. The second-seeded Midshipmen advance to meet fourth-seeded Bucknell, which upended top-seeded Army Sunday. Hamilton and Speciale each had three hits, while Bolt contributed four hits and two RBI for Navy (32-23-1). Eric Oxford went 3 for 5 with a run for the Crusaders (21-28).

Bucknell 1, Army 0

In West Point, N.Y., Eric Jarrett and Jason Buursma combined to two-hit top-seeded Army, and Drew Constable's RBI single in the eighth inning proved the game's only run as fourth-seeded Bucknell advanced to the Patriot League championship series Sunday. Mark Angelo walked and stole second to start the eighth. After two strikeouts, Constable singled through the shortstop hole for the game-winner for the Bison (24-22-2). Jarrett struck out eight in 5.2 innings, and Buursma didn't allow a hit over the final 3.1 innings. Cole White tossed eight solid innings for Army (24-25).

No. 10 Georgia 12, No. 15 Vanderbilt 10

In Nashville, Tenn., Miles Starr’s two-run double sparked a six-run second as Georgia won the series over Vanderbilt at Hawkins Field and secured the SEC regular-season crown. Dominic de la Osa’s two-run homer highlighted a four-run second for the Commodores (15-11, 37-15). The Bulldogs (19-7-1, 33-17-1) answered with a two-run homer by Matt Cerione in the third for an 8-4 advantage. Matt Olson’s three-run blast in the sixth gave Georgia an 11-4 lead.

No. 5 Rice 12, Houston 6

In Houston, Aaron Luna went 4 for 5 with a double, a home run and six RBI to lead Rice to a series sweep over Houston at Reckling Park. The Owls (18-3, 39-11) won the 2008 Conference USA regular-season title for the third straight year. Rice has won 13 consecutive conference championships. Luna had a two-run double in the first and a three-run homer in the third to give the Owls a 5-0 lead. Ryan Lormand belted a two-run homer in the sixth for the Cougars (11-10, 30-21). Diego Seastrunk had a two-run double and Luna added an RBI single in the bottom of the sixth as Rice built a 10-2 lead.

No. 3 Florida State 24, Savannah State 4

In Tallahassee, Fla., Stuart Tapley had two home runs and six RBI to lead Florida State past Savannah State at Dick Howser Stadium in a game called after seven innings. Tapley hit a two-run homer in the first and a grand slam in the second for the Seminoles (43-8). FSU scored in every inning and has scored in 17 of the 18 innings the past three games against the Tigers (20-24).

No. 3 Arizona State 11, Loyola Marymount 3

In Tempe, Ariz., Kiel Roling went 3 for 3 with three RBI as Arizona State topped Loyola Marymount in front of 2,310 fans at Winkles Field-Packard Stadium at Brock Ballpark. Brett Wallace and Raoul Torrez each had two hits and two RBI for the Sun Devils (40-9). ASU used a six-run fourth to take control against the Lions (22-28).

No. 7 Nebraska 9-13, No. 6 Texas A&M 8-10

In Lincoln, Neb., Nebraska won its Big 12 series with Texas A&M with a doubleheader sweep. Mitch Abeita’s RBI single capped a five-run ninth for the Huskers (17-6-1, 38-9-1) in the opener, snapping the 16-game conference win streak for the Aggies (19-5, 42-10). Bryce Nimmo had four hits and four RBI in the nightcap as NU scored nine in its final three at-bats.

Texas Tech 12, No. 8 Oklahoma State 10

In Stillwater, Okla., Texas Tech rebounded from an 8-0 deficit and scored three in the ninth to avoid the Big 12 sweep against Oklahoma State. Chris Hall walked with the bases loaded in the top of the ninth for the Red Raiders (7-17, 22-28) to snap a 9-9 tie. Willie Rueda and Joey Kenworthy followed with RBI singles. Neil Medchill homered in the bottom of the ninth for the Cowboys (16-8, 37-14).

San Francisco 14, No. 9 San Diego 3

In San Francisco, Mitchell Bialosky had three hits with two doubles, a home run and two RBI as San Francisco salvaged the final game of its West Coast Conference series against San Diego. Kevin Muno homered in the top of the first for the Toreros (16-5, 39-15) before Joey Railey went deep in the bottom of the frame for the Dons (12-9, 31-23). Railey added a two-run single in a seven-run second for USF. Bialosky’s solo shot in the third followed Kyle Morgan’s two-run homer in the fourth as the Dons built an 11-2 lead.

No. 11 Stanford 8, No. 18 California 5

In Stanford, Calif., Brent Milleville’s grand slam for Stanford salvaged the final game of its Pac-10 series with California at Klein Field. Brian Guinn drove in two in a three-run second for the Golden Bears (11-10, 32-16-12). The Cardinal (11-7, 29-18-2) answered with three in the fourth. Milleville’s slam in the fifth gave Stanford a 7-3 advantage.

No. 12 Wichita State 16, Evansville 3

In Evansville, Ind., Brett Bascue had six RBI as Wichita State thumped Evansville. His two-run double keyed a nine-run first for the Shockers (16-5, 38-14). He added a grand slam in the fourth to push the lead to 15-2. Andy Smith homered in the second for the Purple Aces (4-17, 14-38).

No. 13 Cal State Fullerton 12, Cal Poly 9

In Fullerton, Calif., Dustin Garneau went 3 for 3 with three RBI as Cal State Fullerton won the rubber game of its Big West series with Cal Poly. The Titans (15-6, 32-17) led 7-2 before the Mustangs (7-11, 23-26) rallied and tied it in the sixth on a three-run homer by Josh Thomas. Fullerton responded with three in the bottom of the frame as Gary Brown’s RBI double gave the Titans the lead for good. Garneau added a sac fly in the inning. Ryan Lee went 4 for 4 for Cal Poly.

Arkansas 4, No. 14 South Carolina 2

In Fayetteville, Ark., Dallas Keuchel allowed five hits in eight innings with 10 strikeouts as Arkansas completed the SEC sweep of South Carolina at Baum Stadium. Andy Wilkins had a two-run double in the third to give the Razorbacks (13-13, 31-21) a 3-0 lead. Mike Bolsinger had a two-run homer in the ninth for the Gamecocks (13-14, 34-18).

Kansas 7-1, No. 16 Missouri 6-12

In Lawrence, Kan., Kansas and Missouri split a Big 12 doubleheader. Nick Faunce’s RBI double in the bottom of the ninth gave the Jayhawks (9-15, 30-24) the win in the opener. Kyle Gibson (8-1) went the distance in the nightcap with eight strikeouts as the Tigers (13-11, 34-17) run-ruled Kansas in seven innings. Trevor Coleman had three hits, four runs and three RBI for Missouri.

No. 17 UC Irvine 2, Pacific 1

In Irvine, Calif., Ollie Linton knocked in the game-winner in the eighth as UC Irvine nipped Pacific at Anteater Ballpark to win the Big West series. Linton’s RBI double snapped a 1-1 tie in the eighth. Eric Pettis struck out the side in the ninth for his 13^th save. Sean Madigan had an RBI single in the second for the Anteaters (10-8, 33-13). The Tigers (3-18, 11-37) tied it in the seventh on a Mike McKeever home run.

No. 19 NC State 17, Maryland 8

In College Park, Md., Matt Payne had three hits and four RBI as NC State outscored Maryland to win their ACC series. Jeremy Synan added three hits and three RBI. The Wolfpack (17-9, 35-16) scored four in the third and six in the fourth to take control. The Terps (9-21, 29-26) got six of their eight runs in the sixth.

No. 20 Michigan 11-12, Minnesota 5-8

In Minneapolis, Minn., Michigan clinched its third straight Big Ten regular-season championship with a doubleheader sweep at Minnesota. Mike Dufek had four hits, including two homers, four runs and seven RBI for Wolverines (23-4, 38-11). Dufek also pitched the final two innings of the nightcap against the Golden Gophers (8-19, 18-33) to earn his first save.