A lot on the line for Tulane
May 9, 2008
Postseason position at stake in ECU series
Friday, May 09, 2008By Nakia Hogan
The college baseball postseason is still a couple of weeks away, but Tulane isn’t content on waiting that long.
With two Conference USA weekend series remaining, including one that begins tonight at East Carolina, the Green Wave is taking what’s left of the regular season as do-or-die time.
Having played its way back into contention for a shot at the regular-season title, the Green Wave, which is in second place and three games behind conference-leading Rice, is set to make one last push to secure a postseason berth, something that eluded Tulane a year ago.
“We have six games, which are the biggest of our season,” said Tulane pitcher Shooter Hunt, who’ll start tonight’s game. “To say the postseason starts with the conference tournament isn’t shared. It really starts on Friday night for us. We have to get on a roll here at the end because it all starts in Greenville, N.C.”
It won’t be easy, though.
East Carolina has won nine consecutive games and 13 in a row at home.
During the nine-game winning streak, the Pirates have dominated all facets of the game. They’ve outscored their opponents 87-28, while batting .363 with 14 home runs and 81 RBIs.
Meanwhile, their pitchers have a 2.96 ERA with two complete games, 77 strikeouts and have held opposing batters to a .187 average.
“We play in a really good conference,” Hunt said. “And East Carolina is always at the top of it, and we are playing them on the road. They have a really good and experienced ballclub. They have good hitting and good pitching. We are going to have to play our best baseball to win.”
A strong showing this weekend could wrap up an NCAA regional berth for the Green Wave.
But the Green Wave isn’t alone in its chase. Behind Rice (36-11, 15-3) there is a logjam in the conference standings. The Green Wave (33-15-1, 10-6-1) is second, but Southern Mississippi (34-15, 11-7), East Carolina (36-13, 11-7) and Houston (30-18, 11-7) are close.
In each of the past six seasons, at least four C-USA teams have qualified for an NCAA regional.
“I think we realize that we really have to take care of business,” Tulane catcher Jared Dyer said. “It is very crucial. We are looking to come out of here with a series victory. I personally think we have what it takes to sweep this team.
“But this is as crucial as it gets because if we don’t take care of business this weekend, then we are going to have to run the table at the conference tournament. I think everybody realizes what is going on. And we are all up to task. We are confident we can do it.”
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