Tigers Down #18 UC Irvine 5-4 Thanks to Ninth-Inning Run

Feb. 26, 2005

Clemson, SC —

Clemson scored a run on a fielder’s choice in the ninth inning to defeat #18 UC Irvine 5-4 Saturday afternoon in front of 4,508 fans at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The Tigers improved to 3-2, while the Anteaters dropped to 6-4. The one-run win was the second in a row in the series for the Tigers.

Drew Fiorenza (1-0) picked up his first win as a Tiger, as he struck out the only batter he faced. Steve Schroer (0-1) suffered the loss. Clemson was aided by two unearned runs, as UC Irvine committed four errors after committing four in game one Friday. The Anteaters had committed only four errors in their first eight games entering the series.

UC Irvine scored one run in the top of the first to take a 1-0 lead. Matt Anderson scored from second base on a single by Jaime Martinez. Tim Stewart struck out looking, leaving men on first and second to end the first inning.

Clemson scored two runs in the bottom of the second inning on no hits. Tyler Colvin advanced to second on second baseman Brett Dalton’s first error of the year. Colvin scored from third base on a wild pitch, as Andy D’Alessio advanced to third. D’Alessio scored from third base on a ground ball by Kris Harvey.

Freshman Taylor Harbin doubled to lead off the third inning for the Tigers. He has had at least one extra base hit in each of first five games as a Tiger. Harbin advanced to third on a fielder’s choice, and then scored on an RBI groundout by Harvey, giving the Tigers a 3-1 lead.

Johnson had a leadoff single for the Anteaters in the fifth inning. He advanced to third base on Mark Wagner’s single to left field. Jeff Hahn replaced Robert Rohrbaugh in the sixth inning, and Johnson scored on a sacrifice fly by Gregg Wallis. The Anteaters closed the Tiger lead to 3-2.

In the top of the ninth, the Anteaters’ first two batters were retired by Hahn. Chad Lundahl drew a full-count walk, and Dalton doubled to right field to put the tying run at second base. Lundahl scored on a balk by Daniel Moskos, and Dalton advanced to third. After Cody Cipriano walked, Matt Anderson tied the score with a single to right field. The rally ended when Fiorenza struck out Erik Johnson looking.

With one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, Harbin blooped his second double of the game to left field, as he narrowly beat the throw to second base. After Tyler Colvin. With a drawn-in infield, Colvin hit a ground ball to Dalton at second. He tried to turn a double play, but Lundahl was also playing in and could not get to the second-base bag in time for the throw. The throw was errant, and Harbin scored the game-winning run on the fielder’s choice.

Clemson and UC Irvine will play the series finale Sunday at 12:00 PM at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.