Baseball Closes Out Regular Season vs. Southern Miss
May 15, 2002 | Baseball
May 15, 2002
NEW ORLEANS, La. - The schedule has change slightly, but the importance of the contests have not as the Tulane University baseball team will take on Conference USA rival Southern Miss this week at Turchin Stadium in the final regular season contests of the 2002 season.
Rather than playing a Friday-Sunday series as the league has done throughout the year, the final three-game series is slated for Thursday-Saturday, May 16-18, as the Green Wave look to gain momentum heading into the C-USA Tournament beginning on Tuesday, May 21 in Kinston, N.C. Thursday and Friday's games will begin at 6:30 p.m., and the Saturday contest is slated for 2 p.m.
"I still think we have a chance for the postseason," head coach Rick Jones said. "We need to have a great weekend and really play well in the conference tournament to get to that 35-36 win plateau. If we can do that, I still think our chances are good to get into the NCAA Tournament.
"But we've got to get healthy, and we've got to continue to get our pitching going. We need to have some really good performances and go out there and be at the top of our game here down the stretch. That's imperative if we're going to entertain any ideas of making the NCAA Tournament. This is the time we've got to play our best baseball."
The Green Wave comes into this weekend's series against Southern Miss 30-23 and 14-13 in C-USA play, and looking to ride the momentum of a 2-1 series victory at South Florida last weekend.
As a team, Tulane is hitting .307 and has tallied a .466 slugging percentage with 110 doubles, 13 triples and 56 home runs. Senior infielder James Jurries leads the team in several categories with a .411 batting average, an .802 slugging percentage, 19 home runs, four triples and 64 RBI. Junior infielder/outfielder Aaron Feldman is second on the club in hitting with a .359 batting average, and sophomore first baseman/left-handed pitcher Michael Aubrey is next with a .335 clip.
As a staff, Tulane pitchers have brought the team ERA from 11.88 in the opening weekend to a respectable 5.13 mark. Junior lefty Nick Bourgeois paces the Green Wave with a 3.30 ERA and 99 strikeouts. Bourgeois also leads the team in wins with eighth, and sophomore reliever Joey Charron heads the club with nine saves in 49.2 innings out of the bullpen.
Southern Miss, meanwhile, comes into this weekend's contests 35-17 on the year, including an 18-8 record in Conference USA play that currently ranks them fourth in the league race but just one game behind current leader Houston.
As a team, the Golden Eagles are hitting .311 and have a .464 slugging percentage courtesy of 121 doubles, eight triples and 48 home runs. Allen Winningham paces the team with a .366 batting average, and Griff Israel is next with a .353 mark. Jeff Cook paces the club with 14 home runs, and Brad Willcutt is second with eight round-trippers.
The Golden Eagles have been solid on the mound, sporting a 3.93 team ERA. Bob McCrory leads USM with a 2.31 ERA while Shea Douglas paces the squad with 10 wins in 88.2 innings of work. Cliff Russum and Brian Hurley are the Eagles' relief aces with four and three saves, respectively.
The weekend will mark the final home games for Tulane's three-member senior class of Jurries and pitchers Beau Richardson and Andrew Corona. The trio will be honored with a special ceremony prior to the start of Saturday's contest.
After this weekend's series, the Green Wave will head to Kinston, N.C., to participate in the 2002 Conference USA Tournament hosted by East Carolina at Grainger Stadium which is home of the Cleveland Indians' Single-A affiliate. Seeding has not yet been determined.
PARKING NOTE
* Ben Weiner from Aron Apartments to Willow Street will be closed from 2:00 p.m. until about 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 16, in connection with the senior crawfish boil. Entrance to the parking garage will be way of McAlister Extension to Ben Weiner Drive.
* Also on Thursday, May 16 Willow Street will be closed from Calhoun Street to Ben Weiner Drive beginning at 5:30 p.m. Willow Street will be reopened to traffic about 8:30 p.m. that evening.
MEDIA NOTES
* On Saturday, May 18th Tulane Athletics will be celebrating Armed Forces Day in conjunction with the Tulane/Southern Miss baseball game at Turchin Stadium. This patriotic event will feature a pre-game military flyover by Navy VFA 204 stationed at the Naval Reserve Air Station in Belle Chasse, Louisiana as well as a first pitch ceremony featuring former Tulane student-athlete and employee Neal Jones, who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam for 7 years. Tulane will be offering a special military discount to the game - general admission tickets will be available for $4 with a military ID.
* Saturday will also be Fan Appreciation Day and will feature prizes and giveaways throughout the game. Fans will also have the opportunity to meet the team after the game, get autographs and take pictures with the players.
