and Furman have met 189 times on the diamond, with the Tigers holding

a 130-55-4 advantage dating back to 1896.  Clemson's first two

games in school history were against the Paladins, both losses in

1896, which were the Tigers' only games that season.  The two

teams have played at least one game every year since 1983.

The two teams last played in 2003, as the Paladins

broke a 29-game losing streak by winning both games.  The first

was a 10-8 come-from-behind victory in Greenville on May 8.  Five

days later, Furman pulled off another come-from-behind win by a score

of 12-9 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

Tigers lead 72-24-1 in games played at Clemson and 22-2 in games

played at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.  Jack Leggett is 10-2 against

Furman as Clemson's head coach.  He was also 29-7 against the

Bulldogs as Western Carolina's head coach from 1983-91, therefore is

39-9 all-time against the Paladins.

Furman Overview

led by 11th-year Head Coach Ron Smith, enters the game Tuesday on a

seven-game losing streak, including three losses at The Citadel last

weekend.  Prior to the losing streak, it had won six games in a

row.  The Paladins are 17-29 overall nad 8-16 in Southern

Conference play.  They are also 8-12 on opponents' home fields

in 2004.  Of their 46 games played, 25 of have been against

common Clemson opponents.

The team, which is 6-2 in one-run games, is hitting

.275, led by Case Cassedy's .368 average.  Derek Norman has hit

six homers and and a team-high 35 RBIs.  Nick Mershon has hit a

team-best seven homers in just 89 at-bats.  The Paladin pitching

staff has a 5.04 ERA and .291 opponents' batting average. 

Senior closer Calvin Hurst has a 2.61 ERA and nine saves in 27 relief

appearances.

Clemson Overview

enters the game against Furman after losing two of three games #24

Central Florida over the weekend.  The Tigers are 30-18 overall

and 8-4 on their current 14-game homestand.  Clemson is also 21-9

at home this year.  Clemson has won 16 of its last 17 games when

it hits at least one home run and is 21-3 on weekdays as well.

    Brad McCann leads the team in

hitting with a .367 batting average, as the team is hitting .296

overall.  Kris Harvey is hitting .331 and freshman Andy

D'Alessio is hitting .325 with a .425 on-base percentage. 

Clemson has also stolen 63 bases after swiping just 35 in 2003.

       The Tiger pitching

staff has a 4.08 ERA and .256 opponents' batting average.  The

team has an 8.07 strikeouts per nine innings pitched mark as well. 

The Tigers' fielding percentage stands at .964.

Central Florida Takes Two From Tigers

Florida, ranked #24, won two of three games against #13 Clemson from

May 7-9 at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.  The despite the series loss,

Clemson outhit UCF .277 to .235 and had a 3.33 ERA compared to its

3.81 ERA.  The Tigers also stole seven bases to UCF's one. 

But Clemson left 27 runners on base, against only 16 by the Golden

Knights.  Kris Harvey was 6-for-11 and Travis Storrer was

5-for-14 in the series to lead the Tigers.

    In game one, Clemson scored five

runs in the first inning and held on for an 8-5 win on Friday. 

Travis Storrer had a career-high three hits and Russell Triplett added

two hits in three at-bats the same day he graduated.  Robert

Rohrbaugh pitched 7.1 innings, allowing nine hits, four runs, and no

walks to earn the victory.  Matt Fox allowed a season-high seven

runs in 5.0 innings pitched and fell to 10-2 on the season. 

Patrick Hogan, who also received his degree just hours before the

game, became just the third Tiger in history to record double-digit

saves in a single season, as he struck out four batters in 1.2 innings

pitched.  The Tigers stole three bases and neither team committed

an error in the game as well.

two, Kyle Bono pitched a complete game to lead UCF over the Tigers

7-4.  Bono allowed one earned runs on eight hits while striking

out 10 and throwing 138 pitches.  Tyler Lumsden allowed just

three hits, one earned run, and one walk while striking out 10, and

did not factor in the decision.  Kris Harvey had a game-high

three hits.  Clemson outhit UCF 8-7, but left eight men on base

compared to just three by the Golden Knights.  Central Florida

took a 5-4 lead in the eighth inning on a suicide squeeze bunt by Ryan

Bono.  Drake Wade and Jon Cooper added solo homers with two outs

in the ninth inning as well.  Collin Mahoney suffered the loss,

while he along with Lumsden and Tony Sipp combined to strike out 13

batters against only one walk.  The Golden Knights overcame four

errors and four stolen bases by the Tiger offense on the evening as

well.

three, Clemson squandered countless opportunities in a 3-2 defeat to

UCF on May 9.  The Tigers had 13 baserunners, including five to

leadoff innings, but could only score twice.  The Golden Knights

capitalized on the swift breeze blowing straight in, as several deep

balls off the Tiger bats were held up in the wind for outs. 

Central Florida took a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning thanks to two

costly Tiger errors.  Clemson scored single runs in the fifth and

eighth, but could only manage one run in the eighth after putting

runners on first and second with no outs.  Sipp had three hits,

while Harvey and Andy D'Alessio had two apiece.  Clemson outhit

UCF 9-6 and struck out only once.  Josh Cribb pitched 4.2 hitless

and scoreless innings in relief with seven strikeouts.  Steven

Jackson suffered the loss despite allowing just one earned run in 4.1

innings pitched.

Hogan Shutting the Door

Hogan              2001-04 18

Berken, Clemson's top pitcher for the first two months of the 2004

season, could return to the mound this year.  The sophomore

righthander from De Pere, WI had announced last week that he intended

to have season-ending elbow surgery some time in the near future. 

But over the weekend, Berken threw in the bullpen and his elbow felt

good.

further review, Dr. (James) Andrews, our team doctors, and Jason felt

like surgery was not needed at this time and may not be needed at

all," said Clemson Head Coach Jack Leggett.  "But after

throwing over the weekend, he has decided to see how his arm feels in

the coming days and see if he can return to the mound this year. 

It will be Jason's decision whether or not he will pitch and be

based on how he feels."

leads Clemson in ERA with a 2.09 figure and has a 5-1 record in his

eight starts.  He has 37 strikeouts in 38.2 innings and opponents

have hit just .156 against him.  He has gone 23 consecutive

innings without giving up an earned run, but has not had a decision

since April 2 when he beat Maryland by a score of 3-2.

Upgrade Your Account

Unlock premium boards and exclusive features (e.g. ad-free) by upgrading your account today.