Clemson eliminates Maine in title game

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ORONO – The impressive Clemson University Tigers capped an undefeated tournament with a 13-5 victory over the University of Maine in the NCAA Northeast Regional baseball championship round at Mahaney Diamond here Sunday.

The Black Bears’ valiant bid to return to the College World Series for the first time since 1986 fell short.

Top-seeded Clemson, ranked fourth in the country in both national polls entering the tournament, will take a 60-8 record and a 13-game winning streak to Omaha for the CWS, which begins Friday.

Maine, which eliminated Towson State 8-0 and Mississippi State 8-5 on Saturday, concluded its season with a school-record 48 wins to go with 18 losses.

Courageous Bear ace southpaw Larry Thomas started on two days’ rest after throwing 133 pitches in Maine’s 10-3 win over Villanova on Thursday and the Tigers reached him for seven hits and seven runs over three-plus innings.

“I felt pretty good warming up in the bullpen, but pitching on two days’ rest is tough,” admitted Thomas, who threw 66 pitches in his outing. “I have the type of slider that requires rest. I just tried to hit my spots and get ground balls and flyouts. I did the best I could. They’re a good hitting team. But if I was rested, I think I could have held them to three or four runs.”

“We lost to one of the finest teams in the country,” said Maine Coach John Winkin. “They’re as good a hitting team as I’ve seen this year. They have a real fine chance to win the national championship if their pitching holds up.

“I’m just sorry we couldn’t have made a better game of it today,” said Maine Coach John Winkin. “I’m sorry our pitching didn’t hold up better. Larry gave it his best, but a couple of bad fielding plays cost us five runs and put us in an awful hole.”

“I’m very proud and very grateful that we were able to get the job done here in four games,” said Clemson Coach Bill Wilhelm, who is in his 34th year there. “It was very important for us not to have to play another game. Some of our other pitchers aren’t all that solid.”

This is the most gratifying season I’ve ever had.”

Clemson bolted out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning, and every time the Bears cut into the lead, the Tigers answered.

“They always had momentum. We couldn’t take it away,” said Winkin.

Maine answered with two in the bottom of the first to pull within one, but the Tigers extended the lead to 8-2.

The Bears got two in the bottom of the fifth to get within 8-4 but Clemson struck back with two two-out runs in the top of the sixth.

Kevin Northrup opened the game by ripping Thomas’ 2-2 pitch into right-center for a double and Mike Spiers followed with a pop-fly single into right-center field. Right fielder Gary Taylor threw toward the plate, allowing Spiers to reach second.

Jim Crowley bounced to shortstop Brian Seguin, scoring Northrup, and Joe DeBerry slapped an opposite-field double down the left field line to score Spiers.

Eric Macrina lined a single to left, but was then picked off for the second out. However, DeBerry scored on a wild pitch.

Shanan Knox triggered Maine’s two-run first inning by lining Paxton Briley’s 0-2 pitch into left-center for a base hit. Seguin singled to right and both moved up on a one-out wild pitch.

Shawn Tobin drilled an RBI single to left and Seguin scored when left fielder Chuck Foster misplayed the ball. Gary Taylor bounced into a double play to end the inning.

The Tigers got a pair of unearned runs in the second.

Jim Anderson walked and No. 9 hitter Foster lined an 0-2 pitch into right field. The ball got past right fielder Taylor and rolled to the fence for a two-base error, allowing Anderson to score.

Foster wound up on third and scored on Northrup’s groundout.

The Tigers chased Thomas in the fourth inning when Anderson reached on an infield single and Foster roped a double to right- center, a one-hopper to the fence.

“I don’t think he was able to spot his fastball as well as he would have liked because he was pitching on just two days rest,” said Northrup.

Sophomore Ronnie Hewes came on to replace Thomas, who received a standing ovation from the 2,461 on hand.

Northrup greeted Hewes with a two-run double to right-center.

“It looked like his slider was his bread-and-butter pitch and that’s what he threw me,” said Northrup. “We practice hitting the ball to right field a lot.”

Spiers singled off Hewes’ glove and Northrup eventually scored on Macrina’s fielder’s choice.

The Bears got two fifth-inning runs on a walk to Scott, Gabe Duross’ sharp triple down the right field line, and Glen Stupienski’s RBI groundout.

Hewes retired seven in a row in the middle innings and had two strikes on Crowley with two outs in the sixth only to have Crowley work the count to 3-2 and rifle a double down the left field line.

DeBerry was given an intentional walk, and Macrina and Jeff Miller sandwiched run-scoring singles around a walk to Stefan.

Maine loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the sixth on Tobin’s double, Taylor’s base hit, and an error. But Duross grounded back to Briley to end the threat.

Northrup homered to left off reliever Lance Bogardus, his fifth of the season, to make it 11-4 in the seventh.

The Bears chased Briley in the seventh on Stupienski’s leadoff double, a one-out walk to Knox, Seguin’s sharp single to right, and a wild pitch.

With runners on second and third, reliever Tim Peele was summoned with a 1-0 count on Sweeney and got Sweeney to foul out and Tobin to ground out.

Clemson reached Chuck Nadeau for a pair of runs in the eighth on two walks, Mike Lockhart’s single, and Billy McMillon’s two-run single.

Righty Briley got the win and is now 7-3.

“The most important thing for me was to get ahead in the count and keep their first two hitters (Knox and Seguin) off the bases,” said Briley. “You know going into a game that our guys are going to score runs. They’ve been doing that all year.”

Northrup’s three hits and two apiece by Spiers, Crowley, Macrina and Foster keyed Clemson’s 16-hit attack. Clemson hit .392 and scored 44 runs in its four tourney wins. Seguin and Tobin had two hits each for Maine.

Tigers 13, Black Bears 5 (Sunday’s Championship Game)

Clemson Maine

Name ab r h bi Name ab r h bi

Northrup, cf 6 3 3 4 Knox, 3b 4 1 1 0

Spiers, rf 6 1 2 0 Seguin, ss 4 1 2 0

Crowley, 2b 6 1 2 1 Sweeney, cf 4 0 0 0

DeBerry, dh 4 2 1 1 Tobin, c 4 0 2 1

Macrina, 1b 4 1 2 2 Taylor, rf 4 0 1 0

Stefan, ss 3 1 0 0 Scott, 2b 3 1 0 0

Miller, 3b 5 0 1 1 Duross, 1b 4 1 1 1

Anderson, c 2 2 1 0 Stupienski,dh 3 1 1 1

Foster, lf 4 2 2 0 White, lf 4 0 0 0

Lockhart, c 2 0 1 0 Karlson, rf 0 0 0 0

McMillon, lf 1 0 1 2 a-King 1 0 0 0

Totals 43 13 16 11 Totals 35 5 8 3

a – grounded out for Stupienski in the ninth

Clemson 320 302 120 – 13

Maine 200 020 100 – 5

E – Foster, Anderson; Taylor, Seguin 2B – Northrup, DeBerry, Foster, Crowley 2; Tobin, Stupienski 3B – Duross HR – Northrup LOB -Clemson 11; Maine 5 DP – Macrina to Stefan to Macrina

Pitching Summary

PITCHER IP H R BB SO

Clemson

Briley (W,7-3) 6 1/3 8 5 2 3

Peele 2 2/3 0 0 0 2

Maine

Thomas (L,9-4) 3 7 7 3 1

Hewes 2 2/3 5 3 3 0

Bogardus 1 1/3 1 1 0 3

Nadeau 1 2 2 2 1

Novio 1 1 0 0 1

WP – Briley 2; Thomas TIME -3:11 ATTENDANCE – 2,461