3/10/2011 12:00:13 AM
After what was a wild night in college baseball on Tuesday, normalcy, for the most part, was the story on Wednesday.
Here are a few thoughts on results that stood out:
* After a disappointing setback to Georgia Southern on Tuesday, top-ranked Florida returned to normal on Wednesday with a solid 8-1 road win over South Florida. UF starting pitcher Alex Panteliodis struck out four and allowed just a run on five hits in five innings in the winning cause. The Gators also got solid relief work from Tommy Toledo, Matt Campbell and Austin Maddox, while Daniel Pigott led the way at the plate with three hits and two RBIs. Florida showed us something by responding from adversity with a dominant win.
* Kennesaw State slugger Ronnie Freeman broke the school's all-time hitting streak record with a hit in his 42nd consecutive game in a 9-5 setback against Vanderbilt. Perhaps in a year when Florida International's Garrett Wittels was unable to beat Robin Ventura's hit streak, Freeman will rise to the occasion.
* North Carolina continues to put together extremely impressive results. Against a tough St. John's club, UNC sophomore right-handed pitcher Cody Stiles struck out four and allowed just a run on four hits in seven innings. The Tar Heels defeated the Johnnies 8-1 to improve to 13-1. UNC leadoff hitter Ben Bunting led the way with three RBIs. It'll be interesting to see how the Tar Heels fair in ACC play after such an impressive showing in non-conference weekend sets.
* What an amazing day it was for UNLV, which desperately needed a win over Arizona on Wednesday to keep the momentum going. The Rebels were down 7-0 to the Wildcats after six innings, but erupted for nine runs in the seventh inning and defeated the Wildcats 9-7. Sluggers Rance Roundy and Remington Pullin led the way at the plate. UNLV would've liked to win both games of the midweek series, but splitting the two-game midweek set is worth settling for. Arizona, meanwhile, has to be disappointed with its squandered opportunity.
* Just a week after throwing a no-hitter, Florida International starting pitcher Kyle Fitzpatrick allowed four runs in just 2 2/3 innings against Rice in a 10-2 setback. FIU actually out-hit the Owls, but stranded 13 runners. Rice starting pitcher Matthew Reckling threw six shutout innings in the winning cause, while third baseman Anthony Rendon had a triple and three RBIs.
* Central Florida was in need of a solid win and got exactly what it needed in a 18-0 demolition of Boston College. UCF starting pitcher Brian Adkins struck out five and allowed just two hits in seven shutout innings, while the offense was fantastic with Beau Taylor and Jonathan Griffin leading the charge. The Knights showed us something by bouncing back with a dominant performance. Still, they need to avoid horrible losses the rest of the way.
* We said earlier this week to not be surprised if Illinois State and Miami split their midweek series. Well, our plan came through as the Redbirds defeated the Hurricanes 9-2 to split the midweek set. ISU starting pitcher Dan Savas struck out six and allowed just two runs in six innings while reliever Matt Werderitch was masterful with just one hit allowed in three shutout innings. The Redbirds should be a force to deal with in the Missouri Valley title race.
* It was a night of interesting results in the SEC. Georgia won yet again, this time a 6-3 decision over Alabama in a game that won't count in the SEC standings. Kentucky and Mississippi, meanwhile, dropped contests to Middle Tennessee State and Western Kentucky, respectively, at home. Tennessee, meanwhile, quietly improved to 9-2 with a dominant win over New Orleans.
* It's a big week for Pepperdine with a home series against Louisville coming up this weekend. The Waves earned a solid midweek win over UC Riverside, 4-1. Starting pitcher Matt Maurer struck out five and allowed just a run on six hits in seven innings in the winning cause. Tyler Brubaker led the Waves at the plate with three hits and two RBIs.
* Southeastern Louisiana earned yet another win that should help them in the future. The Lions defeated in-state Louisiana-Lafayette 7-5 behind solid offensive performances from Justin Boudreaux and Jeff Harkensee, who hit a home run in the game. Lions closer Stefan Lopez also was fantastic, striking out two in the final frame to earn his third save.