Clemson Baseball Looks To Take Bite Out Of Bobcats This Weekend

March 9, 2000

CLEMSON, S.C. – Clemson, who has won 10 of its 11 games on its current 23-game homestand, plays host to Ohio (3-4-1) this weekend at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. Game times are 3:00 Friday, 2:00 Saturday, and 1:00 Sunday.

Righthander Scott Berney (4-0, 0.00 ERA) will look to extend his 30.0-inning scoreless streak Friday when he takes the mound for the Tigers (12-2). Berney has allowed just 18 hits and three walks in his four starts. He already holds the Tiger record for consecutive scoreless innings, previously held by Randy Quintrell, who threw 24.0 straight scoreless innings in 1975. Righthander Ryan Mottl (4-0, 1.13 ERA) will start game two and righthander Jarrod Schmidt (0-0, 1.56 ERA) will start game three.

Catcher Brian Ellis and outfielder Casey Stone have both had hot bats of late for the #8 Tigers. Ellis is hitting a team-best .381, while Stone is hitting .500 during his current seven-game hitting streak and has upped his overall average to .333. Stone, who set the Clemson career record for sacrifice bunts (16) earlier this season, entered the season as a career .253 hitter.

The Bobcats, led by 12th-year skipper Joe Carbone, are tentatively scheduled to start senior lefthander Tony Schiml (0-1, 12.86 ERA) in game one, freshman lefthander Walt Novosel (0-1, 4.63 ERA) in game two, and junior righthander Andrew See (0-1, 12.96 ERA) in game three. The Bobcats have a 9.27 team ERA and .389 opponent batting average.

Ohio is led at the plate by sophomore outfielder Mike Arbinger, who is hitting .462. Other Bobcat hitters include junior first baseman Chuck Lombardy (.409), junior second baseman Ryan Kyes (.400, 4 HR, 11 RBI), and sophomore outfielder Cory Keylor (.385, 3 HR, 8 RBI). Ohio has a .338 team batting average and has hit 15 homers in eight games.

Clemson holds a slim 14-13-1 advantage in the series dating back to 1937. The two teams last met in 1996, where Clemson won the first of two games 11-3, and Ohio took game two 9-3.

Clemson Offers Promotional Ticket Discounts to Fans This year, Clemson offers special promotional considerations to select fans. Clemson offers a Businessperson Special on all weekday day games at Doug Kingsmore Stadium, where any fan who presents his/her business card will receive free admission. All Sunday home games are Senior Citizens’ Day, where any fan who presents his/her AARP card will receive free admission. Also on Sundays, all youngsters are invited on the field during the national anthem to stand next to their favorite Clemson player. Ticket prices for home games are $5 for adults and $2 for students. Clemson students who present their student ID will receive free admission.

Tigers Outlast William & Mary 10-6 Jack Leggett picked up win #300 at Clemson as the Tigers rallied to down William & Mary 10-6 on March 8. Clemson lead 5-1 before the Tribe tied the score at 5-5 in the seventh inning. But Casey Stone and Patrick Boyd each had two-run singles in the eighth to preserve the win. Matt Additon pitched 2.0 scoreless innings in relief to pick up the win. Steve Reba started, but did not factor in the decision. Reba’s 10.1 hitless and 13.1 scoreless inning streaks ended in the contest. Boyd led the Tigers with three hits, two runs scored, and four RBIs. Five other Tigers had two hits apiece.

Berney Ups Scoreless Streak to 30 Innings, Sets Tiger Record Senior righthander Scott Berney has not allowed a run in 30.0 innings pitched this season (four starts) and has a 4-0 record. Randy Quintrell held the record with 24.0 consecutive scoreless innings in 1975 and Ron Musselman (1976,77) was second with a 21.1 inning streak in ’77. Kris Benson’s longest scoreless streak was 19.1 during his incredible 1996 season. Benson was drafted #1 overall in the Major League Draft in ’96. While Berney may not have the scouts drooling like Benson did, Berney gets the most out of every pitch with accuracy and ability to keep batters off balance. In three seasons at Connecticut, Berney had a 2.45 walks per nine innings pitched mark and he has kept that consistency with a 0.9 mark in 2000. He also threw just four wild pitches at Connecticut and has yet to throw one as a Tiger.

Berney Cited as Louisville Slugger National Player-of-the-Week Scott Berney was cited as one of five players to receive National Player-of-the-Week honors by Louisville Slugger and Collegiate Baseball for his efforts against UNLV on Mar. 3. Berney also received ACC Pitcher-of-the-Week honors for that performance. It was the second time in as many weeks he was recognized by the conference. Berney threw 8.0 scoreless innings, allowing just six hits and two walks while striking out five. He ran his scoreless inning streak to 30.0 innings in earning his fourth victory against the Rebels.

Berney, Mottl…Awesome One-Two Punch Clemson has a 1.46 team ERA thanks mostly to senior righthanders Scott Berney and Ryan Mottl. Mottl started the season as the #1 starter, but when Mottl was ailing and was pushed back to a Sunday start against Old Dominion on Feb. 20, Leggett started Berney in game one of the series. Since then, Berney has started game one and Mottl game two of each weekend series. The two have combined to allow just three runs, eight walks, and 28 hits along with an 8-0 record in 54.0 innings pitched (eight combined starts).

Berney, who is 4-0 and has not allowed a run and just three walks in 30.0 innings, has brought a contagious attitude of aggressiveness and competitiveness to Kevin O’Sullivan’s pitching staff. Along with Berney, Ryan Mottl has seemed to find himself again. He is also 4-0 with a 1.13 ERA in 24.0 innings. He now has 301 career strikeouts and became just the sixth Tiger to reach the 300-strikeout mark.

Clemson Career Strikeout Leaders

No Sophomore Slump for Reba Sophomore righty Steve Reba has allowed just six hits and one earned run in 15.2 innings this season. That equates to a 0.57 ERA and .115 opponent batting average. He went the first 13.1 innings of 2000 without allowing a run and had a streak of 10.1 consecutive innings where he did not allow a hit earlier this season. Reba, who has shown more consistency with his sharp-breaking slider in 2000, is expected to be a weekday starter during the season.

Stone Breaks Into Everyday Lineup, Breaks Sacrifice Bunt Record Every team should have a Casey Stone on its team. The junior outfielder stands only 5-6 and weighs 155 pounds, but no one is more aggressive on the field and more polite off the field than Stone. “Clutch” is also another word to describe the Abbeville, SC native. Stone hit his way into the everyday lineup in the postseason, where he hit .367 with nine RBIs in eight NCAA Tournament games. This season, he has started all 14 games and is hitting .333 with a team-best 15 runs scored along with three doubles and a triple. Stone had the game-winning hit with two outs and the bases loaded against William & Mary on March 8.

Stone entered the season with 11 sacrifice bunts in two seasons and laid down his fifth of 2000 against UNLV on Mar. 5, breaking the Clemson career record (held by Kurt Bultmann) with his 16th sacrifice. Ironically, teammate Brian Holstad is not far behind with 14. Stone has five of the team’s eight sacrifice bunts this season.

Ellis Leading Team in Hitting After Sub-par ’99 Catcher Brian Ellis burst onto the scene in ’98 during his sophomore season by hitting .374 with a .535 on-base percentage as the leadoff hitter. But Ellis’ numbers dropped in ’99 when he hit .265. But Ellis has responded in his fifth season with da program, as he leads Clemson with a 381 batting average. Ellis has gotten at least one hit in 10 of his 12 starts.