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Baseball Begins SEC Tournament Vs. Vanderbilt On Wednesday
May 22, 2012
Hoover, Ala. - South Carolina (39-15) begins action on Wednesday night in the 2012 SEC Baseball Tournament vs. Vanderbilt (30-25). South Carolina is the No. 2 seed for the SEC Tournament and will play the Commodores in the final game on Wednesday. The game will begin 30 minutes following the conclusion of the 5:30 p.m. ET game. It will be televised live on CSS as well as Time Warner Cable channel 519 in South Carolina, DIRECTV channel 210 and streamed online at ESPN3.com. It can also be heard on the Gamecock Radio Network from IMG College including flagship station 107.5 FM, "The Game." Freshman left-hander Jordan Montgomery will start for the Gamecocks. He is 4-1 on the year with a 4.42 ERA in 55.0 innings pitched. He has 40 strikeouts to just six walks in 12 appearances.
LIVE COVERAGE OF SEC TOURNAMENT
2012 SEC Tournament Bracket
Wednesday, May 23
Thursday, May 24
Friday, May 25
Saturday, May 26
Sunday, May 27
All Times are Eastern [ESPN2] - ESPN2 [SPSO] - Includes SportSouth, Sun Sports, FOX Sports Southwest, FOX Sports Houston and FOX Sports South in Kentucky [CSS] - Includes Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast, CST (Louisiana, Arkansas, Florida), Brighthouse Sports Network (Florida), Time Warner Cable channel 506 (Carolinas), Insight Cable (Kentucky) The second and fourth games each day will begin 30 minutes following the previous game.
NOTES:
SOUTH CAROLINA SEC HISTORY YEAR RECORD DIV. FINISH 1992 13-11 2nd 1993 15-10-1 2nd 1994 11-15 4th 1995 12-14 3rd 1996 13-17 5th UNDER COACH Ray Tanner 1997 13-17 4th 1998 19-10 2nd 1999 15-15 1st 2000 25-5 1st 2001 17-13 3rd 2002 21-8 1st 2003 19-11 1st 2004 17-13 2nd 2005 16-14 2nd 2006 15-15 4th 2007 17-13 2nd 2008 15-15 5th 2009 17-13 2nd 2010 21-9 2nd 2011 22-8 T1st 2012 18-11 1st
SOUTH CAROLINA IN THE SEC TOURNAMENT
SOUTH CAROLINA BASEBALL
WIN TOTALS OF SEC TEAMS IN CONFERENCE GAMES (2000-12)
ROTH NAMED 2011-12 SEC H. BOYD MCWHORTER MALE SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR Roth was chosen by a committee of Faculty Athletics Representatives from SEC universities and will receive a $15,000 post-graduate scholarship, provided by AT&T, an SEC Corporate Champion sponsor, and the Allstate Sugar Bowl. Roth, a native of Greer, S.C., will earn a B.S. degree in International Business and Marketing in May. He was a first-team Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-American and a recipient of the NCAA Elite 88 Award, having the highest grade point average of all student-athletes participating in the College World Series last season. A member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll, he is also a member of Carolina's Dean's List and President's List. Roth was a consensus first-team All-America in 2011 and finished the season with a 14-3 overall record and 1.06 earned run average as a starting pitcher for the Gamecocks. He was a first-team All-SEC choice and member of the College World Series All-Tournament Team. A four-year letter winner, he was a team captain of the 2011 NCAA Champions. He was the winning pitcher in the 2010 and 2011 national championship-clinching games. He was named the 2011 National Player of the Year by CollegeBaseballInsider.com and a semifinalist for USA Baseball's Golden Spikes Award. In the community, Roth has visited children at various elementary schools and hospitals and took part in the "Light the Night" Walk, helping to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. He is also a member of Carolina's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. He has also used his academic interests in the business community. He created and executed a marketing plan to maximize textbook buybacks for Better World Books and consulted with Avwatch, a system integration company, helping it create an international market entry strategy, leading it into new markets in Canada, Chile and the United States.The son of David and Deborah Roth intends to pursue a master's degree in international business and learn new languages. He studied in Alicante, Spain in 2011.
ROTH A FINALIST FOR THE LOWE'S SENIOR CLASS AWARD An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 candidates announced in February. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to determine the winner. Fans are encouraged to vote on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award website through June 11. Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I men's head coaches' votes to determine the winner. Lowe's, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the Senior CLASS Award® winner during the 2012 NCAA College World Series®, which will be held June 15-26 in Omaha. For more information on all the finalists, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.
ROTH LEADS THE WAY ON THE FIELD In SEC games, Roth went 3-1 with a 3.43 ERA. He hurled 65.2 innings in 10 league starts. Roth's victory vs. Vanderbilt was his 20th career win, making him the 20th player in school history to tally 20 or more career victories. Roth has a career record of 22-6 at South Carolina. He has 88 career appearances as a Gamecock, second only to current teammate Matt Price.
THE PRICE IS RIGHT Price is the all-time saves leader at South Carolina with 39 as well as appearances with 95 for the Garnet & Black. Price is just two saves shy of the SEC record of 41 set by Joshua Fields of Georgia (2005-08).
CLOSE GAMES
GREINER NAMED TO USA BASEBALL NATIONAL TEAM
SOUTH CAROLINA PLAYERS & USA BASEBALL COLLEGIATE NATIONAL TEAM For the season, Greiner has played in 52 games with 45 starts including 39 behind the plate. He his hitting .235 (53-for-181) with six homers and 31 RBI. Greiner owns a .258 (24-for-93) batting average in the league with 12 of his 234 hits, extra base hits (eight doubles, one triple, three homers). He has also driven in 18 runs and has a .462 slugging percentage in SEC contests. Greiner caught all 28 innings in the Gamecocks' weekend series victory at 13th ranked Arkansas. Greiner was phenomenal behind the plate as he threw out five runners over the course of the weekend trying to steal. His two-run homer on Friday night was the first homer allowed all season by Arkansas starter Ryne Stanek, a key two-run blast that helped the Gamecocks rally from six runs down to defeat the Razorbacks on the road on Friday night. Greiner also had a sacrifice fly in the contest and tallied a RBI single in the 10th inning of the 8-6 victory. In Sunday's 10-7 win, Greiner drove in two runs with a single in a six-run eighth inning with the bases loaded and one out against Arkansas closer Barrett Astin. In the Alabama series, Greiner went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and tied a season-high with four RBI in the 12-11 win over the Crimson Tide. He doubled and homered in that one-run victory. Greiner followed it up with a 2-for-5 day at the plate with two runs scored and a RBI in the 9-1 win. Greiner finished the series 5-for-11 (.455) with four runs scored, two doubles, a homer and five RBI. He reached base .538 with a .909 slugging percentage. Greiner reached base six times in the Auburn series with four hits and two walks. He also drove in three runs and scored four times. Greiner went 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI in the 12-5 win on Friday. Greiner earned SEC Freshman of the Week after the Mississippi State series. It marked the second straight week a Gamecock had earned Freshman of the Week accolades. Greiner had a key solo home run that jumpstarted a four-run rally in the bottom of the eighth as the Gamecocks came from behind to defeat MSU 7-6. Greiner collected three hits over the weekend with a pair of doubles and the home run. He also scored two runs. He also had a grand slam in the 8-0 win over The Citadel.
WALKER PROVIDES A PUNCH Walker is among the best in the SEC as he ranks third in on-base percentage (.462), tied for third in runs batted in (49), fourth in walks (38), sixth in slugging percentage (.559), seventh in home runs (10) and 12th in batting average (.335). In SEC games, Walker is also among the best as he ranks first in walks (28), second in runs scored (28), second in on-base percentage (.463), tied for second in home runs (7), tied for second in runs batted in (25), third in slugging percentage (.578) and sixth in total bases (59). Walker is up to 234 career hits for the Garnet & Black, 11 hits shy of Hank Small (1972-75) for 10th on the All-Time hits list at South Carolina. Walker was the top hitter for the Gamecocks in the Vanderbilt series as he hit .500 (6-for-12) with a .625 on-base percentage and a phenomenal 1.250 slugging percentage. Walker belted three homers in the series and drove in five runs with five runs scored as well. Walker tallied his first two-homer game of his career at South Carolina with three RBI and three runs scored in the 8-3 win on Friday vs. the Commodores. In Sunday's 6-4 win, he reached base five times including a game-winning two-run homer in the top of the 13th in the victory. Walker became the 25th player in South Carolina history to reach the 200 career hit total with his homer in the 8-3 win over Vanderbilt.
Top 10 Career Hits List 303 Mac White (1991-94) 299 Michael Campbell (2003-06) 285 Drew Meyer (2000-02) 265 Landon Powell (2001-04) 265 Derick Urquhart (1995-98) 263 Whit Merrifield (2008-10) 262 Andrew Crisp (2005-09) 250 Mike Curry (1996-98) 246 Justin Smoak (2006-08) 245 Hank Small (1972-75) 234 Christian Walker (2010-present) (11th)
AT THE PLATE, ON THE FIELD & ON THE MOUND
Tyler Webb MAKES HIS MARK
MARZILLI PUTS ON A SHOW Marzilli is tied for the league lead with seven sacrifice flies, including a sac fly in the 2-1 win over Davidson. Marzilli is one short of the school's single-season record of eight held by Jim Curl (1981) and Jim Pankovits (1974) Marzilli had two sacrifice flies for the weekend series vs. the Crimson Tide as well as a sacrifice fly vs. Davidson and now leads the team with seven for the season, one short of the school single-season record of eight. Marzilli also leads the Gamecocks with eight stolen bases. He stole a base and scored two runs in the 9-1 win on Saturday vs. Alabama. Marzilli reached base in the first 31 games of the 2012 season but saw his streak snap in the 6-1 victory vs. the Volunteers. Marzilli had four hits including a three-run homer in the 8-5 win over Furman and was 3-for-4 win the 9-3 win over Florida. Marzilli had a game-winning three-run double as well as a career-high four RBI in the 6-4 win over Appalachian State. He also tied a school record with three doubles in the 2-1 win over Princeton. It is the 25th time in school history that a player has tallied three doubles in one game. Marzilli's defense was essential for the Gamecocks in the 3-2 win over Clemson in 11 innings. Marzilli had his first assist of the year with a throw to home plate to nab a Tiger runner trying to score and his diving catch with two outs in the bottom of the 11th inning sealed the Gamecock victory. Marzilli was effective in the first weekend vs. VMI as he hit .500 (6-for-12) with a .538 on-base percentage. Marzilli had a 3-for-4 day at the plate on Opening Day. He scored the game-winning run in the opener and also was keyt in the 13-1 victory as he went 2-for-4 with a triple, run scored and two RBI.
PANKAKE SHOWCASE Pankake had a two-run single in the 12-5 win over Auburn. He also scored two runs in the 11-7 win on Sunday. Pankake gave the Gamecocks some insurance in the 6-4 win over Mississippi State with a two-run single in the bottom of the eighth inning. Pankake, who moved to the leadoff role that weekend, had five hits and hit .357 vs. the Bulldogs. He had a 5-for-6 game with a pair of RBI in the 8-5 win over Furman. The last Gamecock player with five hits in a game was Christian Walker on April 5, 2011 vs. USC Upstate. He tallied his first career homer and RBI in the 2-1 win vs. Presbyterian. The game-winning hit came in the bottom of the fourth inning. In the Elon series, he was 2-for-4 with a triple and three runs scored in the 8-1 win in the opener. He had two walks in game two and a hit and a run scored in the Sunday series finale.
LB LIGHTS IT UP - #FearTheFish Dantzler had a clutch bat in the Auburn series as he went 5-for-13 (.385) with five runs scored, two homers and four RBI. His slugging percentage was .923. Dantzler belted a two-run homer in the 5-3 win on Saturday. He added three hits, three runs scored a RBI double and a homer in the 11-7 win over the Tigers on Sunday. Dantzler tallied a walk-off RBI single in the 2-1 win on Saturday night vs. Tennessee. He hit his fifth homer of the year and finished with three RBI in the 6-4 win over Vanderbilt. He was 2-for-4 with a season-high three runs scored in the 6-4 win vs. Appalachian State. Dantzler was solid in his debut vs. VMI as he tallied a game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning as South Carolina defeated VMI 2-1 in the opener. Dantzler followed that up with a three-run homer, a double and four RBI in the 13-1 win over VMI that helped Carolina sweep the Keydets. Dantzler finished the weekend 4-for-11 (.364) at the plate with five RBI and a .727 slugging percentage.
CHASE HIM ON BASE Vergason hit .245 in SEC games (13-for-53) with a .406 on-base percentage in the league as well. For the season he is batting .221 (19-for-86) with a .373 overall on-base percentage.
HOLMES WITH THE ANSWER
MATTHEWS FINDS HIS WAY HOME He was stellar in the outfield in the Arkansas series with two key assists in Sunday's 10-7 victory over the Razorbacks. Matthews threw out a runner attempting to score on a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning and threw out a runner trying to score off a base hit from second base in the seventh inning. He also drove in the first run of the game for the Gamecocks with a two-out RBI single on Sunday in the seventh inning in the Gamecock victory. Matthews has four assists from the outfield this year. Matthews hit a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to help lift South Carolina to a 1-0 win over the Crimson Tide. Matthews followed that up with a solo home run in the 12-11 win. Three of Matthews' four home runs have come in SEC play. Matthews hit .271 in league games (26-for-96).
ENGLISH HAS A KNACK English led the Gamecocks in hitting in the MSU series with a .455 average (5-for-11). English scored four runs over the weekend with a triple and also a RBI. He tallied two hits in the 9-3 win over Florida. He was 2-for-5 with a run scored in the 8-5 win over Furman He had a season-high three hits and a run scored in the 5-2 win over Charleston Southern. English went 2-for-4 with two runs in the 8-1 win over UNC Asheville. He scored a run in all three games of the Elon series and hit safely in all three games as well. English drove in three runs for the weekend with a key two-run triple to left-center in 6-0 win over Elon in the second inning.
BEAL BRINGS IT Beal pitched two scoreless innings in the 2-1 win over Davidson and followed that up with three scoreless innings of relief in the 8-6 win over Arkansas to earn the win. Beal earned his first career win in the 9-6 victory vs. Clemson. Beal entered the game in the bottom of the fifth and retired nine in a row and lasted four innings allowing just two runs on three hits while striking out five and walking one.
BELCHER KEEPS CONTRIBUTING Belcher hurled 5.2 scoreless innings in his first start of the year as Carolina defeated The Citadel 8-0. Belcher combined with relievers Tyler Webb and Hunter Privette for a five-hit shutout vs. the Citadel. Belcher had a productive week with a win and two saves in all three victories over Presbyterian and Clemson in late February/early March. Belcher earned his first win since May 11, 2010 with 2.1 scoreless innings of relief in the 2-1 win over Presbyterian. He allowed just one hit and struck out three batters. He followed that up with saves in both the 3-2 and 9-6 wins over Clemson.
A WIN IN FAYETTEVILLE
MORE ON THE AUBURN SERIES
MONTGOMERY CONTINUES TO SHINE Montgomery won his first SEC road start with his third victory in league play in the 5-3 win vs. Auburn. He allowed two runs on six hits in 5.1 innings with one walk and one strikeout. Montgomery earned SEC Freshman of the Week after his first career SEC start. He worked a career-high eight innings and limited Tennessee to just one run on three hits on the way to a 2-1 South Carolina victory over the Volunteers. Against a Tennessee team that was on an eight-game winning streak, Montgomery kept UT at bay with 12 batters retired at one point in the game. Montgomery did not walk a batter and tallied seven strikeouts.
IN A PINCH WITH SULLIVAN Sullivan also tied the Mississippi State Friday night game with a pinch-hit two-out triple and scoring the winning run on a wild pitch on the way to a 7-6 victory over Mississippi State in the series opener.
BRING THE PAYNE He was 6-for-11 (.545) in the Kentucky series as well as 3-for-7 in midweek contests vs. CSU and ASU. Payne had two hits apiece in all three games at Kentucky as well as a solo home run in Friday's 4-3 loss.
A BRIGHT SPOT
K-MART Martin had a big pinch-hit two-run single in the 9-3 win over Florida. Martin is hitting .317 (19-for-60) with 11 RBI and nine runs scored. Martin was the starting designated hitter the entire weekend of the Princeton series. He hit .556 (5-for-9) with a pair of runs scored and a RBI in the weekend sweep. Martin tied a season-high with three hits including a solo home run in the 2-1 win over Princeton on Friday night.
MILESTONES
IF YOU BUILD IT - THEY WILL COME All three games of the Florida series were sellouts, only the second time in Carolina Stadium history that the Gamecocks have had an entire series sold out. The total of 24,726 was duplicated in 2011 in the Vanderbilt series. Opening Day was sold out with a crowd of 8,242 in attendance. Carolina's second sellout came on March 3 vs. Clemson. South Carolina has sold out Carolina Stadium with capacity crowds 17 times in school history. South Carolina set a record for season tickets sold this year with a total of 5,580 sold in the preseason, surpassing the previous record of 5,414 set last year. South Carolina's total attendance of 297,279 for 40 games last year at Carolina Stadium was second highest in the country.
The Gamecocks own a 119-26 (.821) record since opening the facility on Feb. 21, 2009.
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