June 1, 2002
Recap|Box Score|Notes|Photo Gallery
STANFORD
Head Coach Mark Marquess
(Opening Statement)
"This was another great game, as last night's was - two great pitchers, two great left-handers. [Long Beach] is a solid team, obviously a quality team, and we knew that coming in. We were fortunate to control some of their better hitters. We left a lot of people on base, but that's credit to [Abe Alvarez]. This time of year there are no easy wins."
(On Tim Cunningham)
"He's been effective for the last three or four weeks. That wasn't a surprise, we thought he'd pitch well and he did. He's got a great fastball and he had a lot of movement."
(On Stanford's "mistake-free" performance)
"We have a very solid, veteran infield, so normally we do, but last night was really sloppy. Normally it is one of our strengths that we really don't beat ourselves."
Closing Pitcher Dan Rich
(On coming into the game in the 7th)
"Tim did a great job, and it was just my job to come in and keep it down to a minimum. After the one hit, I just tried to get ahead of hitters and throw strikes. In the ninth, it wasn't clean, but we got the job done. We have two wins now, with one more to go."
Second Baseman Chris O'Riordan
(On his leadoff homerun)
"I always like leading off the game because I usually know I'm going to get a pitch to hit because a pitcher doesn't want to walk anyone to lead the game off. I thought maybe the wind would take it foul, but fortunately it stayed fair."
LONG BEACH STATE
Head Coach Mike Weathers
(Opening Statement)
"Like yesterday's game, they jumped on us pretty quickly - they hit a homerun and then scored a couple and it was 3-0. Also like yesterday, determination kept us in the game. I think it's a real tribute to our staff that under these conditions, when something gets away like that, to have our starters keep us in the game says a lot of Abe [Alvarez] and our pitching coach Troy Buckley. That's part of our mental toughness that we have and why I think we're prepared for the next game."
(On mistakes costing them the game)
"I think early on it was a matter of Tim Cunningham being really good. He was really good and one of the best left-handers we've seen all year. We're a pretty good hitting team and led our conference in hitting, so getting a no-hitter for five innings is a tribute to him. We did a good job of staying in it like we always do, and errors are just part of the game. All in all, I think our comeback is what we're all about."
(On using Steve Velazco as a pinch-hitter in the ninth)
"We don't have anyone on our 25-man roster that is not here for a reason and he's done that a few times this year. He's tough as nails."
Starting Pitcher Abe Alvarez
(On his turnaround after giving up three runs in the first two innings)
"The turnaround for me was about determination. We're prepared for that."