Associated Press
CLEMSON, S.C. ó Kyle Parker didn’t get angry or pout when he was sent to the bench for the two most important games of Clemson’s season.
Mired in a slump, the former cleanup hitter tried to stay focused and prepared.
“I knew I wasn’t performing as well as we needed,” said the sophomore outfielder, one of two contenders to be the Tiger football team’s starting quarterback this fall. “It’s kind of been biting at me not the clutch hit.”
Parker laced a two-run single into left field in the eighth inning to lift the Tigers to a 6-5 win over Oklahoma State on Monday in the deciding game of the Clemson Regional.
The Tigers (44-20) will play at Arizona State this weekend in the super regionals. The Cowboys (34-24) had to be content with silencing critics that said they didn’t belong in the 64-team NCAA field after finishing ninth in the Big 12 Conference regular season.
Senior Matt Vaughn (4-1) pitched the final 32/3 innings for the Tigers, who rallied from a 5-1 deficit going into the bottom of the seventh.Atlanta Regional
Southern Miss 12, Georgia Tech 8
ATLANTA ó B.A. Vollmuth hit two second-inning homers off Georgia Tech ace Deck McGuire to send the Eagles to their first NCAA super regional.
Vollmuth hit a two-run homer high off the scoreboard in left field to open the scoring. His three-run homer capped the nine-run inning.
Oxford Regional
Mississippi 4, W. Kentucky 1
OXFORD, Miss. ó Drew Pomeranz took a no-hitter into the seventh inning and tied a school record with 16 strikeouts.
Pomeranz, 2-0 in the regionals with 26 strikeouts in 17 innings, allowed two infield hits.Louisville Regional
Louisville 5, Vanderbilt 3
LOUISVILLE, Ky. ó Ryan Wright hit a go-ahead three-run homer and Tony Zych threw six solid innings to lift Louisville.
Houston Regional
Rice 13, Kansas State 4
HOUSTON ó Diego Seastrunk hit a three-run homer.