Baseball Looks To Rebound Against South Carolina
3/22/2011 3:28:00 AM | Baseball
Game 22 - March 22, 2011
College of Charleston (15-6, 2-1 SoCon)RHP #35 Robert Jeroszko (2-1, 3.13 ERA)
vs.
University of South Carolina (14-4, 2-1 SEC)
RHP #44 Colby Holmes (1-0, 5.00 ERA)
TV: SportSouth (PxP: Andy Demetra; Color: Larry Conley)
BATTING PRACTICE
• First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. with the game televised on SportSouth. Andy Demetra and Larry Conley will call the action.
• The Cougars' 8-0 start this season equaled the mark set in 2002 for the best start to a season in program history.
• Charleston has won at least 30 games in nine straight seasons and at least 35 games in seven straight.
• The 44 wins last season marked the fourth time that the Cougars have tallied at least 40 victories.
RANKINGS UPDATE
After a 1-3 week, the Cougars fell out of three of the four polls they were ranked in last week. Charleston is still ranked #28 in the National College Baseball Writers Association, falling seven spots from their #21 ranking last week.
LAST WEEK
Rhode Island's Tom Coulombe hit a sacrifice fly to right field in the top of the ninth that scored Evan Laude from third, breaking a 2-2 tie and giving the Rams a 3-2 victory over #19 College of Charleston Sunday afternoon in the Cougar Invitational at Patriots Point.
University of Connecticut starter Matt Barnes struck out eight over seven innings to lead the #19 Huskies to a 3-1 victory over #20 College of Charleston Saturday afternoon at Patriots Point in the Cougar Invitational.
Southern Miss LF Kameron Brunty went 3-for-4 with six RBIs to lead the Golden Eagles to a 7-2 victory over #20 College of Charleston Friday evening at Patriots Point in the Cougar Invitational. Brunty had two triples and a three-run homer as Southern Miss out-hit the Cougars 13-8.
Redshirt-junior 3B Matt Leeds had two home runs and five RBIs, including a three-run home run in the second inning and senior RHP Robert Jeroszko struck out a career-high nine batters over eight innings as #20 College of Charleston defeated visiting Jacksonville University 8-4 Wednesday evening at Patriots Point.
ALL-TIME VS. SOUTH CAROLINA
South Carolina leads the all-time series history 42-5 vs. the Cougars. This will be the first of two contests this season between Charleston and the reigning College World Series National Champions. The two schools will also meet at Patriots Point on April 19. Last season, Nick Ebert went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI as South Carolina scored six early runs and held on for a 6-3 victory over the College of Charleston at Carolina Stadium.
COACHING CONNECTIONS
Head coach Monte Lee served as an assistant for South Carolina head coach Ray Tanner from 2003-2008 and was on staff when the Gamecocks made a pair of CWS appearances in 2003 and 2004.
LEEDS NAMED SOCON PLAYER OF THE MONTH FOR FEBRUARY
Redshirt-junior Matt Leeds, the reigning Southern Conference Player of the Year, was honored by the league today as he received February Athlete of the Month honors. Leeds batted .417 with a pair of home runs and 16 RBIs as the nationally-ranked Cougars started the season with a perfect 7-0 record in February. A preseason All-SoCon First Team honoree, Leeds led Charleston to an 11-6, season-opening win against Kentucky with six RBIs, including a three-run home run in the third inning. He followed that performance with four more runs driven in during a win over Miami (Ohio) the following afternoon. Leeds recorded a hit in all but one contest while reaching base at a .568 clip and slugging .708.
WE'RE GOING STREAKING!!!
Redshirt-freshman LF Daniel Aldrich is in the midst of a season-high 16-game hitting streak for the Cougars. The Mount Pleasant, S.C. native has collected 22 hits during the streak, starting with a 2-for-4 performance against Youngstown State on February 25.
HOME COOKING
The Cougars started the 2011 season with 13 of the first 14 games played at the familiar confines of Patriots Point. CofC hosts three weekend tournaments this season, two of them accounting for six of the 13 home contests before the Southern Conference begins on the road at Davidson on March 11.
RAKAR NAMED 2011 SOCON PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Senior Cole Rakar has been selected as the 2011 Southern Conference Preseason Player of the Year as chosen by the league's baseball coaches. Rakar headlines a conference-high six Cougars chosen to the Preseason All-Conference teams. As a junior, Rakar led the Southern Conference in runs (76), hits (102) and doubles (26) while finishing in the top 20 nationally in each category. His .378 batting average was third-highest in the league. The center fielder had a team-high 31 multi-hit games, including six three-hit and six four-hit efforts. He ended the season on a nine-game hitting streak and was honored in 2010 as a first team All-SoCon selection, as well as earning NCAA Myrtle Beach Regional All-Tournament Team honors.
SIX COUGARS NAMED TO PRESEASON ALL-SOCON TEAMS
Joining senior Cole Rakar on the first team are senior Casey Lucchese and redshirt-juniors Rob Kral, Jose Rodriguez and Matt Leeds. Junior David Peterson was named to the second team.
COUGARS TABBED AS SOCON PRESEASON POLL FAVORITES
The College of Charleston was chosen as the preseason favorite to win the Southern Conference baseball championship in 2011 as selected by the league's coaches and media. The Cougars received all 10 possible first-place votes and 100 points in the coaches' balloting, as coaches were not permitted to vote for their own teams. CofC also grabbed 19 of 22 first-place votes and 239 points in the media poll. The Maroon and Gold return six of eight starters in the field, as well as a pair of weekend starting pitchers from the 2010 team that was 44-19 overall and finished second in the NCAA Myrtle Beach Regional.
LEEDS SELECTED AS A DAVE HART SCHOLARSHIP WINNER
Redshirt-junior Matt Leeds has been selected by the Southern Conference as a Dave Hart Scholarship award winner. The postgraduate-studies award is chosen by a five=person committee based on accomplishments in academics, athletics and community service.
LEEDS EARNS COLLEGIATE BASEBALL PRESEASON HONOR
Redshirt-junior Matt Leeds was selected to the Louisville Slugger 2011 Pre-Season All-American team, it was announced today by Collegiate Baseball. Leeds was named to the third team. The 2010 ABCA All-American led the Cougars in slugging percentage (.690), RBI (88) and was fifth in batting average (.326) and third in hits (79). His 21 home runs led the team and the Southern Conference and put him 35th in the country, while his 88 RBI ranked him first in the league and second nationally.
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