No. 15 Bama Hosts No. 8 South Carolina This Weekend UA Looks for First Series Win Over USC Since 2001 Thursday, April 21, 2005 Game 40: SOUTH CAROLINA GAMECOCKS (29-9) AT ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE (27-12) SEWELL-THOMAS STADIUM (6,118) - Tuscaloosa, AL 6:36 pm (CSS-TV) - APRIL 22, 2005
RADIO/TV: The Alabama-South Carolina series will be broadcast through the Crimson Tide Sports Network and will be aired locally in Tuscaloosa on THE TUSK (WACT, 1420-AM). In Birmingham, the games are aired live on WAPI 1070 AM. Chris Stewart will handle the radio call for Friday's game. The series opener will be televised by CSS throughout the Southeast, with David Crane (play-by-play) and Scott McClanahan (color). The game is available in Tuscaloosa on Comcast Channel 29.
Date Game Time Radio/TV Apr 22 vs South Carolina 6:36 PM CTSN, WACT 1420 AM, CSS Apr 26 vs South Carolina 3:06 PM CTSN, WACT 1420-AM, FSN South Apr 27 vs South Carolina 2:06 PM CTSN, WACT 1420-AM, CSS
INTERNET BROADCAST: Live audio broadcasts and live stats can be found at www.rolltide.com.
TICKETS: Tickets for all Alabama home games are available through the UA Athletic Ticket office, Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Tickets can also be purchased at Sewell-Thomas Stadium, two hours prior to each game.
SERIES PITCHING MATCHUPS (April 22-24, 2005)
Friday, April 22, 2005 (6:36 PM - CSS)
Pitcher G-GS W L SV ERA IP H R ER BB K CG T.J. Large (R) 10-10 5 3 0 2.16 66.2 48 27 16 31 70 1 Aaron Rawl (R) 10-10 7 2 0 2.90 59.0 66 27 19 13 51 0
Saturday, April 23, 2005 (4:06 PM - CSS)
Pitcher G-GS W L SV ERA IP H R ER BB K CG W. LeBlanc (L) 6-6 2 2 0 4.18 32.1 25 16 15 11 59 0 Z. McCamie (L) 11-10 7 2 0 2.18 66.0 48 19 16 23 73 1 J. Fletcher(R) 10-3 4 2 2 2.50 39.2 27 11 11 9 29 0
Sunday, April 24, 2005 (2:06 PM - CSS)
Pitcher G-GS W L SV ERA IP H R ER BB K CG B. Belcher (L) 11-6 4 0 0 4.39 41.0 39 29 20 19 34 1 Z. McCamie (L) 11-10 7 2 0 2.18 66.0 48 19 16 23 73 1 J. Fletcher(R) 10-3 4 2 2 2.50 39.2 27 11 11 9 29 0
NO. 15 BAMA HOSTS NO. 8 SOUTH CAROLINA
After playing its last two Southeastern Conference series on the road, the No. 15 Alabama Crimson Tide (27-12, 9-6 SEC) hosts the No. 8 South Carolina Gamecocks (29-9, 9-6 SEC) in the first of two straight SEC home weekends here in Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide and Gamecocks will open their three-game series on Friday, April 22 at 6:36 p.m. (CT). The game will be televised in the southeast on CSS Sports. The weekend series will feature a pair of teams tied for third place in the overall SEC race. Both teams are coming off series losses last weekend. Alabama dropped two of three at No. 5 Florida, while USC lost two of three at home to Vanderbilt. Alabama posted a 3-3 record in its six SEC road games the last two weekends at No. 9 Ole Miss (2-1) and No. 5 Florida (1-2). South Carolina marks the fifth straight ranked SEC opponent to face Alabama this season and the fourth straight opponent ranked on the Top 10. The streak of Top 10 teams includes No. 4 LSU (April 1-3), No. 9 Ole Miss (April 8-10), No. 5 Florida (April 15-17) and No. 8 South Carolina (April 22-24). Alabama has won both SEC home series this season after losing all five home series last year. The Crimson Tide will also be looking to end another lengthy SEC series losing streak when the Gamecocks visit the Joe. Alabama has lost the last three series with South Carolina, including a three-game sweep here in Tuscaloosa May 9-11, 2003 to wrap up the 2003 home schedule. Alabama last series win was March 30-April 1, 2001 when UA swept USC here at the Joe.
BAMA BASEBALL DIAMOND NOTES
Alabama is coming off a 12-6 win over Mississippi Valley State on Wednesday night ... The Crimson Tide brings a two-game winning streak into Friday night's series opener with the Gamecocks ... Gabe Scott (2-for-2, HR, 2 RBI) extended his hitting streak to 26 consecutive games with a solo home run in the first inning on Wednesday night ... Scott's 26-game hitting streak is the fourth longest in Alabama history ... David Magadan holds the third-longest streak at 27 games as a freshman in 1981 -- the first 27 games of his UA baseball career ... Scott's streak is also the second-longest in the SEC this season behind Ole Miss' Brian Pettway's 27-game hitting streak ... Alabama pounded out a season-high 19 hits in the win over MVSU on Wednesday, including tying it season high with three home runs ... In the last nine games, Alabama is batting .320 (117-for-344) with 15 home runs and 70 RBI ... In its last three SEC series, Alabama is batting .324 (110-for-339), with 10 home runs and 67 RBI ... Bama has homered in 10 of 11 games this month and has 35 home runs this season ... UA hit only 38 home runs all of last season ... Junior 1B/3B Evan Bush leads the way with 11 home runs, while Scott is second with eight, all since April 1st ... Alabama is 21-3 (.875) at home and has won both SEC series with Kentucky and then-No. 4 LSU ... Senior DH Allen Rice has a nine-game hitting streak and is two hits shy of 200 career hits at Alabama ... Alabama is 6-6 (.500) against Top 25 clubs this year, including a 4-5 mark on the road ...
ALABAMA-SOUTH CAROLINA SERIES
*South Carolina holds a slim 18-17 (.514) series lead over Alabama.
*The two teams first met at the Joe Sewell Classic in 1973, with both teams swapping a pair of shutouts.
*Alabama won the very first meeting 1-0, only to see Carolina bounce back with a 6-0 win the next day.
*Alabama and South Carolina only met six times prior to the Gamecocks joining the SEC in 1992. Alabama posted a 4-2 record in those games, including a 1-1 mark in a pair of NCAA Atlantic Regional appearances in Coral Gables, Fla., in 1986.
*Since joining the SEC, South Carolina owns a 16-12 (.571) lead over Alabama.
*South Carolina has won the last three series with Alabama and four of the last five, dating back to 2000.
*South Carolina has also won seven of the last eight regular-season meetings between the two schools.
*Alabama owns a 9-6 (.600) record against South Carolina in Tuscaloosa and has won three of the four series between the two schools here at the Joe.
*Alabama head coach Jim Wells is 12-14 (.462) in his career against the Gamecocks.
*In game played in Tuscaloosa, Wells is 7-5 (.583) against USC.
*Wells is 3-9 (.250) against the Gamecocks in games played in Columbia. He is 2-0 (1.000) in both neutral site games against USC, including the 2002 SEC Tournament championship game.
*South Carolina picked up its first series win against Alabama in its last visit here to the Joe.
*After losing its first three series in Tuscaloosa, USC ended that streak with a three-game sweep over Bama to close out the Tide's 2003 home schedule.
*USC head coach Ray Tanner is 13-9 (.619) in his career against Alabama.
*South Carolina holds a 11-4 (.733) series lead over Alabama in Columbia.
*Alabama has never won a series in Columbia, losing all five thus far to South Carolina.
*Alabama owns a 3-1 (.750) lead in neutral site games.
*Alabama has won the last two post-season meetings, including a 7-2 win over the SEC Champions to claim the 2002 SEC Tournament championship.
Alabama-South Carolina Series File
At Tuscaloosa: UA leads, 9-6 At Columbia: USC leads, 11-4 Neutral Sites: UA leads, 4-1
Wells vs. USC: 12-14 (.462) Tanner vs. UA: 13-9 (.619)
UA Longest Win Streak: 4 (1986-94, 2001-02) SC Longest Win Streak: 4 (1999-2000)
Last Series Sweep
Tuscaloosa Columbia UA 2001 NA USC 2003 2000
SCOUTING REPORT: South Carolina
*The South Carolina Gamecocks (29-9, 9-6 SEC) are tied with Alabama for third place in the overall SEC standings and are ranked as high as eighth nationally in the four major baseball polls this week.
*The Gamecocks have lost four of their last five games entering the Alabama series. The 1-4 record in the last five games followed a nine-game winning streak.
*USC opened the season (Feb. 11-Mar. 2) by winning its first 10 games. The Gamecocks also won six straight games (Mar. 5-15) and started the year with a glistening 16-1 record.
*Since Mar. 15, Carolina is 13-8 in its last 25 games.
*Coach Ray Tanner (401-160, .715) notched his 400th win at Carolina on April 10 at LSU. Overall, Tanner is 796-333-3 (.705) in 18 seasons. He is four wins shy of 800 career wins. He compiled a 395-173-3 (.694) record in nine years at NC State.
*As a team, Carolina is batting .293 (385-for-1314) with 46 home runs and 252 RBI.
*For the third straight year, the Gamecocks are among the SEC leaders in home runs (t2nd) and sac bunts (23, t3rd). Last year, Carolina led the SEC in both categories.
*USC averages 7.2 runs and 10.1 hits per game this season.
*Sophomore OF Jon Willard (Morrisville, NC) leads the team in hitting in 35 games. Willard is batting .345 (45-for-126) with six home runs and 25 RBI.
*Junior OF Davey Gregg (Florence, SC) is second on the team with a .344 (43-for-125) average in 37 games, with one home run and 16 RBI. Gregg is 8-for-9 in stolen bases.
*Gregg (0-for-4) had his season-high eight-game hitting streak snapped against Clemson on Wednesday night. He also leads USC with 16 multi hit games.
*Junior OF Michael Campbell (Winchester, Vir.), who has had success against the Crimson Tide the last two seasons, is hitting .340 (50-for-147) on the season with six home runs and 28 RBI.
*Campbell leads the teams in hits (50), runs scored (35), doubles (11), on-base percentage (.406) this season and multi hit games (16).
*Campbell and junior shortstop Steven Tolleson (Spartanburg, SC) are the only two USC players to start all 38 games this year.
*Tolleson is hitting .304 (45-for-148) with three home runs and 30 RBI. He is 18-for-19 in stolen bases.
*Senior 1B Steven Pearce (Lakeland, Fla.) and senior OF Brendan Winn (Indian Harbour, Fla.) have combined for 18 home runs and 59 RBI this season.
*Pearce is batting .336 (42-for-125) with nine home runs and 32 RBI.
*Pearce is the 18th player in school history to iht 30 career home runs.
*Winn is hitting .228 (23-for-101) with nine home runs and 27 RBI.
*Winn returned to the lineup last weekend against Vanderbilt and hit a home run. He had missed the last two weeks with an injury.
*In SEC play, Carolina is batting .258 (128-for-497) with 14 home runs and 69 RBI.
*Gregg (.362, HR, 11 RBI) and Pearce (.345, 4 HR, 11 RBI) are the only regulars above .300 in league play.
*The South Carolina pitching staff is among the best in the nation and sports a 3.16 ERA, third in the SEC.
*Carolina pitchers have allowed 136 runs and 300 hits in 339 innings this season. The 136 runs are the fewest allowed in the SEC.
*Senior RHP Aaron Rawl (Lexington, SC) will open the series on the mound. Rawl is 7-2 in 10 starts with a 2.90 ERA.
*The senior has worked 59 innings and allowed 66 hits, 27 runs and 19 earned runs, with 13 walks and 51 strikeouts.
*He is 33-11 (.750) in his career in Columbia and is eighth all-time at USC with 313 2/3 innings. Rawl is fifth on the all-time list with 79 career appearances.
*Senior RHP Jason Fletcher (Cape Coral, Fla.) will pitch either Saturday or Sunday. Fletcher is 4-2 in 10 appearances this season with 2.50 ERA. He has made just three starts, all in SEC play.
*Fletcher has worked 39 2/3 innings and allowed 27 hits, 11 runs and 11 earned runs, with nine walks and 29 strikeouts. He also has a pair of saves.
*Another senior RHP Zac McCamie (Orlando, Fla.) is also scheduled to throw Saturday or Sunday. McCamie is 7-2 with a 2.18 ERA in 10 starts this season. He has the staff's only complete game.
*McCamie has logged a team-best 66 innings and has yielded 48 hits, 19 runs and 16 earned runs, with 23 walks and 73 strikeouts.
*Junior RHP Brent Marsh (Tallahassee, Fla.) has been the ace out of the pen, despite his loss and blown save against Clemson on Wednesday.
*Marsh is 1-1 with a team-leading eight saves in 17 appearances this season. He has not allowed a run 14 of his 17 appearances this season.
*For the year, Marsh has worked 18 innings and allowed 13 hits, eight runs and four earned runs, with seven walks and 20 strikeouts.
*In SEC play, the Gamecocks have a 3.56 ERA and have allowed 62 runs and 114 hits in 133 innings.
*Rawl (3-1, 3.38 ERA), McCamie (3-2, 2.06 ERA) and Fletcher (2-2, 3.21 ERA) have combined to win eight of the nine games.
*Marsh (5 G, 0-0, 3.56 ERA) has three saves in five SEC games.
*The Carolina defense has been superb this season. USC has the best fielding percentage in the SEC (.973) and ranks 10th nationally.
OFFENSE SHOWS IMPROVEMENT
*The Alabama offense has shown much improvement in the month of April and particularly in the last nine games.
*Since April 3, Alabama is batting .339 (117-for-345) with 15 home runs and 70 RBI.
*The Crimson Tide is averaging 8.1 runs and 13 hits per game over its last nine games.
*Alabama has two every day players hitting better than .400 in the last eight games.
*Scott is the leading hitter with a .459 (17-for-37) with six home runs and 14 RBI since April 3.
*Rice is hitting .424 (14-for-33) in the last nine games, with 10 RBI.
*Alabama is coming off a season-high 19 hits in a 12-6 win over Miss. Valley State on Wednesday, April 21.
*In its last three SEC series, Alabama is batting .324 (110-for-339) with 10 home runs and 67 RBI.
*Alabama has averaged 6.4 runs and 12.2 hits the last three weekends.
*Against Ole Miss and Florida, Alabama batted .327 (74-for-226) with seven home runs and 47 RBI.
*Bama averaged 8.0 runs and 12.3 hits per game against the Gators and Rebels.
*Against Florida, Alabama batted .319 (36-for-112) with two home runs and 20 RBI. Bama scored 21 runs in the three-game series.
*The Crimson Tide had its best series of the year at Ole Miss (April 8-10) as they batted .333 (38-for-114) with six home runs and 27 RBI. Alabama scored 27 runs in the three-games at Ole Miss.
*Alabama hit .319 (36-for-113) against LSU (April 1-3), with two home runs and 20 RBI.
*In the month of April, Alabama is batting .313 (127-for-406) with 18 home runs and 76 RBI in 11 games.
BAMA BENCH PRODUCES KEY HITS
*Alabama has adopted the team concept this season and has shown to have some quality depth throughout the lineup and off the bench this season.
*Alabama's starters are batting .293 (368-for-1254) with 34 home runs and 206 RBI this season.
*The UA bench has been equally impressive with a .326 (31-for-95) batting average with one home run and 22 RBI.
*Opponents starters are hitting just .238 (290-for-1221) with 23 home runs and 138 RBI.
*UA opponents are getting almost nothing off the bench this season. As a group, opponents are hitting onnly .117 (9-for-77) off the bench with one home run and four RBI.
*MVSU Derrick Keeton smacked a three-run home run in a 12-6 loss to Bama on April 20 for the lone home run by opposing bench player this season.
*Junior OF Spencer Pennington and senior OF Matt Grooms have had the most production off the Tide bench this season.
*Pennington is 4-for-8 (.500) in nine games with three RBI.
*Grooms is 7-for-15 (.467) in 14 games of the bench with two RBI.
*The Crimson Tide's pinch-hitters, which consist mainly of left-hand bats, have been even more impressive this year.
*UA pinch-hitters are 18-for-48 (.375) in 39 games with one home run and 13 RBI. They have also tallied 13 doubles, three triples and scored 13 runs.
*Pennington is 4-for-7 (.571) with three RBI as a pinch-hitter.
*Grooms is 6-for-12 (.500) with two RBI in a pinch-hit role.
TWO-HITTING THE KEY
*Almost one-half of the Crimson Tide's RBI this season have come with two outs.
*As a team, Alabama is batting .313 (143-for-457) with two-outs this season.
*Alabama has recorded 102, two-out RBI, which accounts for 44.7 percent of the total RBI.
*Bama opponents are hitting only .231 (100-for-433) this year with two outs and have just 52 RBI.
*Senior OF Gabe Scott is the team's leading hitter with two outs. Scott is batting .438 (21-for-48) with 14 RBI this year with two outs.
*Junior 1B/3B Evan Bush leads the team with 17, 2-out RBI. Bush is hitting .300 (15-for-50) with two outs in an inning.
*Freshman SS Cale Iorg has also been a two-out run producer for Alabama this season. He is batting .341 (15-for-44) with 10 RBI.
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