TEAM OF THE DAY
TCU
We said earlier this week the Horned Frogs had quietly been playing much better the past few weeks. Well, they're quiet no more, as the Frogs captured a road series win over Texas with a 2-0 win Friday night. TCU righthanded pitcher Preston Morrison, who's all about command, struck out seven, walked three and allowed just four hits in seven shutout innings, while righthanded pitcher Riley Ferrell, who was up to 98 on Thursday, was stellar once again with two strikeouts in 1 1/3 innings.
Though Texas came up short against TCU, check out this play made by UT third baseman Zane Gurwitz.
PLAYER OF THE DAY
Jon Perrin, rhp, Oklahoma State
The Cowboys are in the thick of the Big 12 race, and captured a nice 7-0 win over Kansas to begin a crucial home series. Veteran righthanded pitcher Jon Perrin struck out nine, walked one and allowed six hits in a complete game shutout performance. He threw 130 pitches, 83 for strikes.
UPSET OF THE DAY
Utah over UCLA
The Bruins have been inconsistent this spring, and that trend continued Friday night in a tough loss to the Utes, who earned their third conference victory of the season. Utah's Max Schuman had two hits and two RBIs to lead that offense, while for the Bruins, lefthanded pitcher Grant Watson had an uncharacteristically bad performance, allowing six runs on 11 hits in four innings. With the setback, UCLA is 20-16 overall, 8-6 in the Pac-12.
More upsets
Long Beach State 1, UC Santa Barbara 0 (P Josh Frye: 9 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K)
South Florida 4, Houston 3 (P Lawrence Pardo: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K)
San Francisco 3, Pepperdine 2 (P Abe Bobb: 9 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5K)
Air Force 14, UNLV 4 (1B Seth Kline: 3-for-4, HR, 3 R, 2 RBIs)
Canisius 3, Indiana State 1 (P Alex Godzak: 7 IP< 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K)
Northwestern 2, Nebraska 1 (P Reed Mason: 8.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K)
DID YOU KNOW?
With Oregon's 6-3 win over Washington State on Friday, UO head coach George Horton earned his 700th win at the Division I level. Horton is in his seventh season in charge of the Ducks' program.
THE GOOD
Cal Poly: Well, it's official, everyone is chasing the Mustangs in the Big West Conference. Cal Poly outfielder Nick Torres hit a walk-off RBI double in the 13th inning to propel the Mustangs to not only a 4-3 win over the Titans, but also the series triumph. Torres finished the contest 2-for-7, while leadoff hitter Mark Mathias went 4-for-7 to lead the offensive cause. On the mound, Cal Poly righthanded pitcher Reed Reilly struck out nine in 4 2/3 shutout innings of relief work.
Jake Jenkins, rhp, Pacific: Jenkins put together an absolute gem in a 1-0 win over St. Mary's. He struck out eight, walked one and allowed seven hits in a complete game shutout.
Caleb Adams, of, Louisiana-Lafayette: The powerful veteran outfielder smacked two homers and went 3-for-4 with three RBIs in a 9-5 road win over Texas-Arlington. For the season, Adams is now hitting .381 with 11 doubles, six triples, nine homers and 26 RBIs.
Jonathan Holder, rhp, Mississippi State: The Bulldogs captured a 3-2 11-inning road win over Missouri with Holder coming up in the clutch. The hard-nosed righthanded pitcher struck out six, walked two and allowed just three hits in 5 1/3 innings out of the bullpen.
Ole Miss: The Rebels dropped a tough contest to the Tigers in extra frames on Thursday, but bounced back nicely Friday with a 5-1 triumph over the Bayou Bengals. Ole Miss lefthanded pitcher Christian Trent struck out five, walked two and allowed just a run on seven hits in seven innings, while reliever Scott Weathersby took care out of business out of the pen with four strikeouts in two shutout frames.
Washington: If you love great turnarounds, it's hard to get too much of the Huskies. The Huskies just continue to roll, beating California 6-2 to clinch another Pac-12 series, and to improve to 14-3 in league play. Washington's Tyler Davis struck out three and allowed just two runs in six innings, while reliever Trevor Dunlap tossed three shutout frames to end the contest.
Kevin Hughes, rhp, Buffalo: Hughes put together a gem in a 6-0 road win over Kent State. The talented righty struck out three, walked three and allowed just two hits in a complete game shutout performance.
Cody Peterson, rhp, Milwaukee: What a performance Peterson had in a 3-0 home win over Valparaiso. He struck out eight, walked one and allowed just a hit in a complete game shutout performance.
Joey DeNato, lhp, Indiana: Another week, another stellar start from the veteran lefty. DeNato struck out five, walked three and allowed just five hits in eight shutout frames in a 7-0 home win over a solid Michigan State club. IU improved to 23-11 overall, 9-1 in the Big Ten.
Maryland: The Terrapins are in a situation where they need to accumulate some really nice wins throughout the second half of the season. Well, a 7-2 win over Georgia Tech was a good place to start. Maryland senior righthanded pitcher Jake Stinnett struck out 10, walked four and allowed just two runs on five hits in a complete game performance.
Florida State: The Seminoles got back to business in ACC play Friday night with a 7-1 road win over Wake Forest. FSU righthanded pitcher Luke Weaver struck out seven, walked one and allowed a run on three hits in a complete game performance, touching 93 and 94 on the radar gun, while outfielder DJ Stewart broke the FSU record for reaching base with 58-straight games, passing the mark previously set by outfielder Shane Robinson.
Conor Fisk, rhp, Southern Mississippi: The veteran righthanded pitcher struck out six, walked one and allowed just three hits in a complete game shutout performance in a 2-0 win over Louisiana Tech.
Kevin McCanna, rhp, Rice: The Owls have been dealt a tough hand this season, first losing righthanded pitcher Jordan Stephens to an injury for the season. Now, with righty Zech Lemond still on the shelf, they've needed some guys to rise to the occasion. McCanna did that Friday in a 2-0 win over UAB. McCanna struck out five, didn't walk anyone and allowed just seven hits in a complete game shutout.
THE BAD
San Diego: Toreros starting pitcher Lucas Long struck out nine, walked three and allowed two runs on seven hits in eight innings, but was outdone by Peter Hendron of Santa Clara, who allowed just five hits in seven shutout innings in another upset win, this time 2-1. With the loss, the Toreros shockingly dropped the home series to the Broncos.
Sam Houston State: Bearkats righthanded pitcher Tyler Eppler allowed eight runs on 11 hits in just five innings as his club dropped a 13-3 decision to Lamar on the road. For the Cardinals, shortstop Sam Bumpers hit a pair of doubles and knocked in four runs.
Vanderbilt: The Commodores desperately need to find a way to bounce back the rest of the weekend. Vandy has dropped back-to-back series to Tennessee and Texas A&M, and now find itself in a hole after losing 6-2 to Arkansas on Friday. Vandy righthanded pitcher Tyler Beede had yet another tough performance, striking out six and walking one, but also allowing six runs on 10 hits in seven innings.
Tulane: The Green Wave just can't seem to keep their heads above water. Tulane starting pitcher Randy LeBlanc allowed just two runs on three hits in eight innings, but that wasn't enough as the offense didn't do much at all against Charlotte's Ryan Butler in a 2-1 loss. Butler struck out five, walked two and allowed just a run on four hits in a complete game.