Kopp Pitches #15 Clemson to 5-1 Win Over #3 Florida State Saturday

May 26, 2007

Jacksonville, FL –

Junior righthander David Kopp pitched a complete game to lead #15 Clemson to a 5-1 victory over #3 Florida State in the ACC Tournament at The Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville on Saturday. Fourth-seeded Clemson kept its ACC Tournament title hopes alive in the round-robin tourney, as it improved to 2-1 in the tournament and 38-21 overall. The top-seeded Seminoles fell to 47-11 overall and suffered their third defeat in four games against the Tigers this season, all games in the state of Florida.

The Tigers will await the result of the Miami (FL) vs. Wake Forest game on Saturday night to see if they will play in the ACC Tournament Championship Game on Sunday against North Carolina. The Hurricanes must defeat the Demon Deacons for the Tigers to play on Sunday.

Kopp (6-2) earned the win in his best performance as a Tiger. The Margate, FL native pitched the first complete game by a Tiger in 2007 and the first of his career. In 9.0 innings pitched, he allowed just six hits, one unearned run, and no walks with seven strikeouts.

Florida State starter Bryan Henry (14-1) suffered his first loss of the season after entering the tournament with the nation’s most victories. Henry allowed nine hits, four runs (two earned), and one walk with five strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched.

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Taylor Harbin led off with a line-drive single to right-center and advanced to second on a balk, Henry’s first of the season. After the next two Tigers were retired, Addison Johnson laced a single up the middle to score Harbin.

Clemson upped its lead to 2-0 in the fifth inning thanks to another two-out single. J.D. Burgess led off with a double to right-center, his second of the game and season. Brad Chalk’s sacrifice bunt moved Burgess to third. After Wilson Boyd struck out for out #2, Marquez Smith hit a single on an 0-2 pitch that second-baseman Tony Thomas, Jr. could not come up with, as Burgess scored on the play.

The Tigers added two runs to their lead in the sixth inning. Harbin reached with one out on a throwing error by shortstop Mark Hallberg and went to second when the ball when into Florida State’s dugout. Doug Hogan followed with a single to left, and Harbin just beat the throw home. The hit extended Hogan’s hitting streak to 10 games. Ben Paulsen walked and Johnson singled through the left side to load the bases and chase Henry. After Burgess struck out looking for out #2, Chalk walked on a 3-2 pitch to score Hogan, upping Clemson’s lead to 4-0.

In the eighth inning, Alex Lee led off with a walk and went to second on Johnson’s sacrifice bunt. After Burgess struck out for out #2, Chalk hit a triple into the wind and off the wall in right field to score Lee.

Florida State put a run on the scoreboard in the ninth inning to prevent its first shutout of the season. Buster Posey reached on a throwing error by Kopp and pinch-runner D’Vontrey Richardson scored on Jack Rye’s double to right-center. But Kopp retired the next two Seminoles to finish off the complete game.

Smith, Harbin, and Johnson all had two hits apiece to lead the Tigers, who had 10 hits in the game. Rye had three of Florida State’s six hits.