Clemson Baseball Weekly Wrapup

April 27, 2008

Clemson University Overall Season Record: 24-20-1 ACC Regular-Season Record: 10-13-1

Last Week: 5-0 Tue. W away vs. Western Carolina, 6-0 Wed. W neutral (Greenville, SC) vs. Presbyterian, 12-7 Fri. W home vs. Virginia Tech, 13-5 Sat. W home vs. Virginia Tech, 8-7 Sun. W home vs. Virginia Tech, 10-2

Next Week Fri. Home vs. Florida State, 7:00 PM Sat. Home vs. Florida State, 7:00 PM Sun. Home vs. Florida State, 4:00 PM

Notes Clemson went a perfect 5-0 in five games this past week, including midweek wins over Western Carolina and Presbyterian before the Tigers swept Virginia Tech over the weekend. Clemson was the only ACC team without a loss this past week.

Trey Delk pitched 7.0 scoreless innings of two-hit ball with seven strikeouts to lead Clemson to a 6-0 win over Western Carolina at Hennon Stadium on April 22. Delk earned his first win as a Tiger in his first career start, as he walked just two batters. He teamed with Justin Sarratt and Matt Vaughn to shut out a team who entered the game hitting .314. Clemson scored three runs in the second inning after the first two batters were retired. Clemson later hit three doubles in the ninth inning to score two runs. Jeff Schaus had a game-high three hits, Mike Freeman went 2-for-4 with three runs scored, and Wilson Boyd added two of Clemson’s five doubles in the game.

Clemson scored 11 runs in the first three innings and totaled 15 hits in the game en route to a 12-7 victory over Presbyterian at Fluor Field in Greenville, SC on April 23. The Tigers, who were facing the Blue Hose for the first time since 1950, scored six runs in the first inning, two runs in the second inning, and three runs in the third inning. Schaus and Ben Paulsen each totaled three hits apiece, while Paulsen added a double, three runs scored, and four RBIs. Chris Epps went 2-for-4 with three RBIs as well. Every Presbyterian starter had at least one hit, as the team totaled 17 hits in the contest. Craig Gullickson pitched 3.1 scoreless innings in relief to earn the win.

Clemson swept Virginia Tech by a combined score of 31-14 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium from April 25-27. The Tigers, who hit six doubles and seven homers, outhit the Hokies .313 to .290 in the series, while the Clemson pitching staff had a 1.67 ERA and 27 strikeouts. Kyle Parker went 5-for-10 with five runs scored, two doubles, three homers, 11 RBIs, and three walks in the series. Boyd added five hits, two homers, and seven RBIs, while Schaus totaled five hits with six runs scored.

In game-one on April 25, Boyd, Paulsen, and Parker all hit home runs to lead Clemson to a 13-5 win over Virginia Tech. The Tigers took a 4-0 lead in the first inning, highlighted by Boyd’s three-run homer. A three-run fifth inning gave Clemson an 8-0 lead before the Hokies cut the Tigers’ lead to 8-5 in the seventh inning. But Parker’s three-run home run in the eighth inning helped Clemson secure the victory. Boyd totaled four RBIs, while Schaus and Paulsen scored three runs apiece. Clemson also capitalized on four Virginia Tech errors and nine walks. Starter Graham Stoneburner allowed one earned run on five hits in 5.0 innings pitched to earn the win.

In game-two on April 26, Parker’s three-run homer run in the eighth inning lifted Clemson to an 8-7 win over Virginia Tech. The Hokies took a 5-1 lead in the third inning on Michael Seaborn’s solo homer. But after a 41-minute rain delay, the Tigers clawed back and tied the score on Doug Hogan’s two-out, three-run homer in the sixth inning. Then in the eighth inning, Parker hit a three-run homer to give Clemson an 8-5 lead. The Hokies scored two runs in the ninth inning and had the bases loaded before the Tigers pulled out the win. Parker went 3-for-4 with two homers, a double, and five RBIs. The Hokies outhit Clemson 15-8, but they left 14 runners on base to the Tigers’ two.

In game-three on April 27, D.J. Mitchell pitched 7.1 innings of three-hit ball with a career-high 10 strikeouts to lead Clemson to a 10-2 win over Virginia Tech. Mitchell earned the win by allowing just three hits, no earned runs, and four walks with 10 strikeouts. The Tigers scored four runs in the third inning, capped by Boyd’s two-run homer. Parker’s double in the fifth inning drove in two of Clemson’s six two-out runs in the contest. Freeman went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and two RBIs, while Matt Sanders went 3-for-3 with two runs scored. Boyd and Parker added three RBIs apiece as well for the Tigers, who outhit Virginia Tech 13-6.

During the week, the Tigers hit .324 with a .526 slugging percentage and .417 on-base percentage along with 49 runs, 14 doubles, seven homers, 25 walks, and seven stolen bases. The pitching staff had a 2.20 ERA and .285 opponents’ batting average, while Clemson fielded at a .959 clip.

Schaus kept up his hot streak by going 11-for-21 (.524) with nine runs, two doubles, and three RBIs in five games. Boyd went 9-for-19 (.474) with seven runs, three doubles, two homers, eight RBIs, and four walks, while Parker went 6-for-16 (.375) with six runs, two doubles, three homers, 12 RBIs, and six walks against just one strikeout.

In two appearances this past week, Delk pitched 9.1 innings, allowing just five hits, one run, and two walks with 10 strikeouts.

With its five-game winning streak, the Tigers have a 24-20-1 overall record and 10-13-1 ACC mark on the season, good for seventh place in the overall league standings. The team is hitting .281 with a .368 on-base percentage. Clemson is fielding at a .963 clip as well.

Freeman leads the team with a .326 batting average and .400 on-base percentage as Clemson’s leadoff batter. Schaus, who had at least two hits in seven straight games prior to Sunday’s game, is hitting .318 with a .426 on-base percentage. Boyd is batting .315 with seven homers and 36 RBIs, Paulsen is hitting .309 with 12 homers and 36 RBIs, and Parker is up to .297 with nine homers and 33 RBIs.

The pitching staff has a 4.45 ERA and .277 opponents’ batting average in 2008. Vaughn has nine saves and 35 strikeouts in 31.0 innings pitched, while Delk’s ERA is down to 3.38 along with a team-best .220 opponents’ batting average.

The Tigers will have five days off for final exams before they play host to Florida State in a three-game series starting Saturday at 7:00 PM.