Tigers Tame College of Charleston 12-6 Tuesday

May 13, 2008

Box Score | Mary Louise Pawlowski Presentation Gallery (courtesy of Mark Crammer)

Clemson, SC –

Stan Widmann hit two homers with five RBIs, and Clemson scored seven runs in the second inning on its way to a 12-6 win over College of Charleston in front of 4,308 fans at Doug Kingsmore Stadium on Tuesday night. Clemson improved to 27-25-1, while the Cougars fell to 34-18. The Tigers improved to 20-0 all-time against College of Charleston as well.

Tiger reliever Casey Harman (1-5) pitched 2.0 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and one walk with three strikeouts to earn the win. Cougar starter Clay Caulfield (4-3), a former Clemson signee, gave up four runs on four hits with one walk and two strikeouts in 1.0 innings pitched to take the loss. Both teams sent out seven pitchers apiece to the mound. A total of 43 players combined played in the game as well.

The Tigers tallied 10 hits in their regular-season home finale. Widmann had a big night at the plate for Clemson with two multi-run homers and five RBIs. Jeff Schaus added a two-run homer.

The Tigers jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first inning. Mike Freeman drew a leadoff walk before Schaus crushed his first career homer over the fence in left-center.

The Cougars responded with one run in the top of the second inning. Joey Bergman led off with a single, moved to second on a groundout, and scored on Stuart Haywood’s two-out single through the right side.

Clemson erupted for seven runs in the bottom of the second inning. John Hinson led off the frame with an infield single before stealing second and moving to third on a line-drive single by Sanders that bounced off Caulfield. After righthander Danny Meszaros entered the game in relief, Widmann blasted a three-run homer to left. Freeman and Schaus then drew back-to-back walks before both runners moved into scoring position on a stolen base. Kyle Parker then drove in a run with a single to center. Ben Paulsen followed with a walk to load the bases. Wilson Boyd then plated a run with a sacrifice fly to right field. With two outs, Hinson drew a walk to load the bases before Sanders drove in two runs with a single to left field to put the Tigers ahead 9-1.

College of Charleston added a run in the sixth inning. With one out, pinch-hitter Michael Kohn drew a walk and Gabe Marchant singled through the right side. Mike Hentz then plated a run with a double to right-center.

Freeman led off the bottom of the sixth inning with a single to left, advanced to second on a fielding error by left-fielder Clay McCord, and moved to third on a groundout. He then scored on an RBI groundout by Parker to put the Tigers up 10-2.

The Tigers extended their lead to 12-2 in the seventh inning thanks to Widmann’s second homer of the game and season, a two-out, two-run shot to left field.

In the eighth inning, Michael Harrington led off with a single through the right side. Jeremie Tice followed with a two-run homer to right. The Cougars threatened to do more. With two outs and the bases loaded, Ryan Hinson entered the game and struck out McCord to end the inning.

The Cougars scored two more runs in the ninth inning thanks to Tice’s second homer of the night, a two-run shot to center. It was his 17th long ball of the season. The Cougars proceeded to load the bases, but a groundout to second by pinch-hitter Joash Brodin ended the game.

Tice paced the Cougars with two homers and four RBIs, as they amassed nine hits in all. Harrington extended his hitting streak to 11 games as well.

It was a special night for Mary Louise Pawlowski, daughter of College of Charleston Head Coach John Pawlowski, who played (1983-85) and coached (1994-98) at Clemson. The 13-year-old was stricken with cancer last year and recently underwent surgery. She was on hand for a special pregame ceremony in which the Clemson Baseball Office presented Mary Louise and her family with a check for $15,000, money raised since a fund was established in February. An additional $1,600 was raised during Tuesday night’s game as well.

During pregame batting practice, both teams wore purple t-shirts, as purple is Mary Louise’s favorite color. Fans purchased the same t-shirts during the past few months, as proceeds from the sales went to the Mary Louise Pawlowski Fund.

Clemson will conclude the regular season when it travels to Orlando, FL to play Central Florida in a three-game series beginning Thursday at 6:30 PM.