TEAM OF THE DAY
Mississippi State
The Bulldogs dropped the weekend series to the Rebels at home two weekends ago, but got at least some redemption Tuesday night with an 8-3 win in the annual Governor's Cup game. MSU first baseman Wes Rea went 2-for-4 with two RBIs, while freshman catcher Gavin Collins put together an impressive performance, going 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Meanwhile, on the mound, reliever Vance Tatum was the star the final few innings, striking out three, not walking anyone and allowing just one hit in 3 2/3 innings of work.
PLAYER OF THE DAY
Matt Reida, ss, Kentucky
The Wildcats had a wild slugfest with Tennessee Tech at home, winning the contest 15-13 despite TTU hitting seven homers in the game. Reida led the offensive charge for the Wildcats, going a perfect 4-for-4 with a double, home run, four runs scored and four RBIs.
UPSET OF THE DAY
Seattle over Washington
Seattle University is only a couple of years into Division I and already is rather competitive. Well, the Redhawks added a marquee win to their season win total Tuesday night with a 1-0 triumph over red-hot Washington. Seattle starting pitcher Skyler Genger was terrific, striking out five, walking just one and allowing three hits in 7 1/3 innings, while reliever Mac Acker struck out two in 1 2/3 shutout frames.
More upsets:
Texas-Arlington 6, Oklahoma 5 (John Michael Twichell: 2-for-2, HR, RBI)
Sam Houston State 5, Houston 4 (Carter Burgess: 2-for-4, 2 RBIs)
Oral Roberts 15, Oklahoma State (Jose Trevino: 3-for-4, double, 2 R, 1 RBI)
Kennesaw State 3, Georgia 1 (Max Pentecost: 2-for-3, 2 RBIs)
Southern Mississippi 6, Alabama 3 (Mason Robbins: 4-for-4, 1 R, 4 RBIs)
Texas A&M 6, Rice 5 (Cole Lankford: 4-for-5, 1 R, 1 RBI)
Jacksonville 3, Florida 1 (Justin Russell: 7 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K)
East Tennessee State 9, Tennessee 7 (Tyler Roach: 3-for-5, double, HR, two RBIs)
THE GOOD
Liberty: Jim Toman's club is having a fantastic spring, is on the cusp of the Perfect Game College Top 25, and interestingly enough, is in the mix to host an NCAA Regional with an impressive RPI and overall record. Liberty hit the road and captured a 4-3 win over Clemson with the bullpen performing well after starting pitcher Parker Bean struck out six and allowed three runs in four innings. As for the bullpen, Shawn Clowers struck out two in 2 2/3 shutout frames, while Matt Marsh threw 1 1/3 scoreless frames and Ashton Perritt earned his ninth save by tossing a scoreless frame to close things out. Offensively, catcher Danny Grauer had a huge day at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a double, home run and two RBIs.
Dylan Davis, of, Oregon State: The Beavers hit the road and captured a nice 8-1 win over Sacramento State with Davis leading the charge at the plate. Davis went 2-for-5 with a home run, two runs scored and four RBIs in the victory.
Grant Dyer, rhp, UCLA: The Bruins might be struggling this season, but Dyer has been a consistent force in midweek action. Dyer shined again Tuesday in a 3-0 home win over Loyola Marymount. He struck out two batters and allowed just four hits in six shutout innings.
South Carolina: Though the Gamecocks have had to fight through several injuries over the past couple of weeks, they continue to rack up some nice wins, this time, beating rising Davidson 8-0. Gamecocks righthanded pitcher Reed Scott allowed just five hits in four shutout innings, while another young arm, Taylor Widener, struck out four in three shutout innings.
Walker Buehler, rhp, Vanderbilt: After losing their third-straight SEC series over the weekend, the Commodores responded in solid fashion Tuesday with a 2-1 road win over Memphis. Vandy righthanded pitcher Walker Buehler was terrific in the contest, striking out 10, walking one and allowing just a run on six hits in a complete game performance.
Jordan Kipper, rhp, Texas Christian: The Frogs continued their impressive ways Tuesday night with a 4-0 win over Texas Tech. TCU's talented righty struck out four, didn't walk anyone and allowed just four hits in 6 2/3 innings of work to capture the victory.
West Virginia: The Mountaineers absolutely kept their postseason hopes alive over the weekend with a road series win over Oklahoma. Tuesday, the Mountaineers continued their surge with a 14-2 win over Maryland. WVU outfielder Bobby Boyd led the way at the plate, going 2-for-5 with a triple, home run and four RBIs, while Brad Johnson had two hits and three RBIs. On the mound, lefthanded pitcher Ross Vance struck out six, walked one and allowed just a run on three hits in six innings.
Derek Fisher, of, Virginia: Fisher returned to the Virginia lineup after missing the past few weeks because of a hamate bone injury. He impressed in his return, going 2-for-4 with a home run and an RBI in a thrilling 5-4 road win over Virginia Commonwealth in 10 innings.
THE BAD
Virginia Tech: It has been a tough campaign for the Hokies, who dropped to 15-23 overall with an 11-0 home loss to Appalachian State. VT starting pitcher Alex Perez allowed three runs and five hits in three innings, while the bullpen did a poor job of keeping the Mountaineers down. Appalachian State's Sean Mason actually tossed a complete game shutout in the contest.
Tulane: It has been a nightmarish spring for the Green Wave, and things got worse Tuesday night with a 6-0 loss to in-state rival LSU. Tulane starting pitcher Tyler Mapes allowed six runs on 12 hits in just 5 1/3 innings of work, while LSU lefthanded pitcher Kyle Bouman put together a quality start, allowing just three hits in 4 2/3 shutout innings.
North Carolina: The Tar Heels really need to take care of business down the stretch to reach the NCAA postseason, and didn't impress in a midweek, 3-2 loss to East Carolina. The Heels couldn't muster much offensively against the ECU duo of Reid Love and Ryan Williams. Love allowed just a run in 4 2/3 innings, while reliever Ryan Williams allowed just two hits in 4 1/3 innings.