CLEMSON -- Given the opportunity for redemption, Kyle Frank ran.
Not away, but rather into his own little slice of Clemson-South Carolina
rivalry lore.
Frank scored all the way from first base on a base hit by Khalil Greene with
two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning Sunday, giving No. 2 Clemson a wild
11-10 victory over No. 4 South Carolina at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The win
capped off a weekend two-game sweep of the Gamecocks, which began with an
equally-thrilling 9-7 win Saturday at Sarge Frye Field in Columbia.
"It was a great game, lot of ups and downs to that ball game," said Clemson
head coach Jack Leggett. "Our kids did a lot of battling in that game."
Frank, who misplayed a fly ball near the wall into a game-tying two-run
double in the top of the ninth inning, got the chance to make up for his
mistake when he was hit on the shoulder by a pitch from losing pitcher Matt
Campbell (0-1) with two outs in the bottom of the 10th.
Khalil Greene followed with his hit, a line drive double into left-center
field that centerfielder John Coutlangus reached with no apparent problems.
But Coutlangus misplayed the ball, and his momentary bobble was enough to
persuade Leggett to gamble.
Leggett waved Frank around third and Frank, never breaking stride, dove
headfirst into the plate at the precise time shortstop Drew Meyer's relay
throw made it to catcher Landon Powell. But Frank got his hand in ahead of
Powell's tag, according to the homeplate umpire, touching off a wild
celebration behind home plate for the Tigers and a brief, but futile,
argument for the Gamecocks.
"At first I thought it was going to be a regular gapper and coach was going
to hold me up at third," Frank said after being rescued from the bottom of
Clemson's celebratory pile. "But when he sent me I just figured 'all right,
it's on.' And it was close at the plate.
"I slid and got my hand in to the right side as he tagged me. I was
definitely safe, but it was close."
 |
|
Tiger celebrate the 2 game sweep. |
|
|
South Carolina (9-2) head coach Ray Tanner wasn't so sure.
"Landon said he tagged him. The umpire said he didn't. I guess you have to go
with the umpire in that situation," Tanner said.
Frank's mad dash to glory was a fitting finale to a strange, frigid day at
Doug Kingsmore.
For the second time in as many days, Clemson (6-0) jumped out to a big lead
only to see the Gamecocks battle back. The Tigers let leads of 5-0, 7-5, and
10-8 slip away before finally winning it in the bottom of the 10th.
Clemson appeared to have things well in hand in the ninth, even though Jarrod
Schmidt (2-0) opened the inning by walking a pair of hitters. He retired the
next two batters to bring up Powell, who launched a fly ball deep into the
wind toward the wall in left.
Frank, who moved to left from center two innings earlier, appeared to have
the ball tracked when he suddenly made a lunge and came up empty. The ball
hit off his glove, allowing both runners to score to tie the game at 10-10.
"On a clear day, that's no problem," Frank said. "But I still should have had
it."
Still, Leggett said the early tests his team has experienced through six
games can only help as the season wears on.
"Our kids are playing well right now...playing with a lot of enthusiasm," he
said. "We've passed the (early) tests and we've played some good teams. The
early tests hopefully will help us at the end and make our kids believe we
can win at any time."
The game also featured:
- A pair of two-run home runs by Clemson first baseman Michael Johnson;
- Homers by South Carolina's Yaron Peters (three-run shot), Garris Gonce and
Justin Harris (solo shots);
- Four-hit days for Greene and USC's Drew Meyer.
BOX SCORE
South Carolina 10 (9-2)
Upgrade Your Account
