June 17, 2003
Recap|Box Score|Quotes|Photo Gallery
COLLEGE WORLD SERIES (at Omaha, NE)
Game 9 - Stanford 13, South Carolina 6
TEAM
Stanford will next play at the 2003 College World Series in the Bracket One Final (Game 11) versus Cal State Fullerton on Wednesday, June 18 (1 pm, CT/11 am, PT). The game will be broadcast live by ESPN2. Should Stanford defeat Cal State Fullerton on Wednesday, the Cardinal would force a second Bracket One Final versus the Titans on Thursday, June 18. If there is a second Bracket Two Final game, Stanford and Cal State Fullerton would play at 1 pm, CT/11 am, PT. If there is not a second Bracket Two Final game, Stanford and Cal State Fullerton would play at 6 pm, CT/4 pm, PT.Stanford needs to defeat Cal State Fullerton twice to win Bracket One and advance to the inaugural best two-of-three championship series versus the winner of Bracket Two next Saturday-Monday, June 21-23. Stanford has been to the College World Series one-game championship four times, winning national titles in 1987 and 1988, while finishing as CWS runners-up in 2000 and 2001.Stanford has reached at least a College World Series bracket final for the fifth straight year (1999-2003) and its sixth straight CWS appearance (1997, '99-2003). Stanford did not reach the CWS in 1998.Cal State Fullerton has won all four meetings with Stanford this season, most recently with a 6-5 in a CWS winners' bracket game last Sunday. The Titans also swept the Cardinal in a three-game non-conference series in Fullerton (January 31 - February 2; W, 7-3; W, 10-2; W, 8-2). USC is the last team to have swept Stanford in a season series, winning all six meetings between the clubs in 1997.Stanford had won four straight postseason games over Cal State Fullerton before last Sunday's loss, most recently defeating the Titans 3-2 in 13 innings in a Regional opener at Stanford on May 31, 2002. Stanford had also won the last three meetings between the teams at the College World Series, claiming a pair of victories on June 10 and 13, 2001 (W, 5-2, 10 inn; W, 4-1), as well as a 9-2 victory in the CWS on June 12, 1999. Stanford leads the all-time series, 39-33.Stanford won its second straight game in the 2003 CWS over South Carolina on Tuesday and holds a 5-1 lead over South Carolina in the all-time series, including four postseason victories in five meetings over the last two years.Stanford has won 20 of its last 22 games overall.Stanford has won seven of its last eight games versus ranked teams.Stanford improved to 110-52 (.679) all-time in NCAA postseason play and 35-25 (.583) in CWS action.Stanford has posted a 7-1 postseason record while outscoring its opponents 76-29 in postseason action this year. The Cardinal is outhitting opponents .344 to .240 and has a 3.19 ERA, while opponents have put up an 8.74 ERA.Stanford is just two victories shy of recording its fourth 50-win season in the last five years.Stanford did commit its first error in three 2003 CWS games on Tuesday on a throwing error by second baseman Jed Lowrie in the bottom of the ninth inning but still has a .991 fielding percentage in three CWS games.
INDIVIDUAL
Stanford has announced RHP John Hudgins (12-3, 3.01) as its probable starter versus Cal State Fullerton on Wednesday, while the Titans have announced LHP Ryan Schreppel (5-3, 2.45). Hudgins pitched 8.0 scoreless innings to pick up the win in an 8-0 victory over South Carolina in Stanford's CWS opener last Friday, while Schreppel has yet to pitch in the 2003 CWS. Hudgins has a 5-0 career postseason record with a 2.91 ERA and is 3-0 with a 2.43 in 2003 postseason action.Danny Putnam (4-5, 2B, HR, 5 RBI) had the first four-hit game of his career and a postseason career high of five RBI. Putnam leads the club in the postseason in doubles (4), homers (4), RBI (18) and slugging percentage (.906). He is also the team's CWS leader with six RBI.Ryan McCally (7.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 2 SO) continued his postseason success. McCally is now 2-0 with a 1.14 ERA in 13 career postseason appearances (two starts) and 31.2 innings. This season, McCally is 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA in two appearances (both starts). He put together 13.0 consecutive scoreless innings before finally surrendering a run in the bottom of the seventh.Sam Fuld (2-5) picked up his 20th and 21st career College World Series hits to move into a tie for third-place on the all-time CWS hit list and is just two shy of the CWS career record of 23 set by Keith Moreland of Texas from 1973-75. Fuld, the only Stanford player to have been named twice to an All-CWS team (2001, '02), now has a career .447 CWS batting average (21-47).Ryan Garko's updated season average stands at .412 after going 2-for-4 with his 21st double of the season (tied for ninth on Stanford's single-season list). Garko is attempting to become just the sixth Stanford player in school history to hit over .400 in a season and the first since David McCarty batted .420 in 1991. Garko was hit by a pitch in the College World Series on Tuesday for the seventh time in his career, extending his own CWS all-time record. He has an updated career CWS batting average of .457 (16-35) and an updated career postseason batting average of .400 (42-105).Jonny Ash (3-5, 3B, 3 RBI) continued his postseason and CWS success with his fourth three-hit game of the 2003 postseason and second of the CWS. Ash also tied a career-high with the third three-RBI contest of his career. Ash leads the Cardinal with a .571 batting average (8-14) in the first three games of the 2003 CWS and has a team-high 16 hits (16-35, .457) during eight postseason games in 2003. Ash is a career .481 (13-27) hitter in CWS action and has a .421 (32-76) career postseason batting average. He also has a current career-high-tying seven-game hit streak (5/31 - 6/17) in which he is hitting .500, going 16-for-32 with two doubles, one triple and 10 RBI.Carlos Quentin (3-3, 2 RBI, 2 SF) posted his first career three-hit CWS game and leads the Cardinal with a .500 (15-30) postseason batting average in 2003.Chris Carter (1-4, 2 RBI) tied a career-high with the eighth two-RBI game of his career.