USC
Florida State
Trojans Fall To Florida State
June 14, 2000 | Baseball
June 14, 2000
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - Southern California coach Mike Gillespie blamed major league baseball. If that's the case, Florida State coach Mike Martin ought to send out a few thank you cards.
Marshall McDougall homered twice, tying the College World Series career record, and Mike Futrell singled in the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning as the Seminoles staved off elimination again with a 3-2 victory over Southern California on Wednesday night.
"I'm really, really, really bitter at pro baseball for being so stupid and not taking McDougall last year," Gillespie said. "He was a star."
McDougall, drafted in the 26th round last year by the Boston Red Sox, produced all of Florida State's offense until the ninth inning. He had two of the team's three hits, both solo home runs, before the final frame.
Futrell, 0-for-3 with two strikeouts as he stepped to the plate in the ninth, lifted Ronald Flores' 1-2 pitch into right field to score Ryan Barthelemy from third.
"My first three at-bats were pretty gross," Futrell said. "I just didn't want to strikeout three times."
Flores (6-2) gave up three hits in 1 1-3 innings.
"It's a tough pill to swallow," Flores said. "I thought it was a good pitch, but it wasn't unhittable."
Seminoles starter Jon McDonald almost was, though.
McDonald (12-5) pitched a four-hitter. He struck out seven, walked four and hit three batters. The only two runs he allowed were unearned.
"If there's such a thing as justice in baseball, Jon McDonald got it tonight," Martin said. "He pitched so well and deserved to win. We were very fortunate in the ninth inning to get a run across for him."
The Seminoles (53-18) need to beat LSU twice to advance to the championship game. Florida State and the Tigers play Thursday night.
Southern California (44-20), meanwhile, exits the tournament having stranded 29 runners on base, 17 in scoring position, in three games.
McDougall's two home runs, his 14th and 15th of the season, gave him five at Rosenblatt Stadium and tied him with Barthelemy and former Seminoles star J.D. Drew atop the career list.
McDougall did it despite a strong wind blowing out to right field.
"I didn't think anyone would hit one out to left and 'Dougie hit two," Martin said. "He turned the wind around."
And the game.
The Trojans scored an unearned run in the fourth when Justin Gemoll reached on Pichi Balet's throwing error and came home on Beau Craig's single up the middle.
McDougall tied it at 1 in the fourth with a two-out solo home run to left field. He tied it again in the seventh with his second of the game.
"I just left two balls up and they got hit," USC starter Anthony Reyes said. "There's not much you can do about that. I threw him an inside fastball and left it up and he just nailed it. I did it twice."
Reyes gave up three hits and two runs in 7 1-3 innings. He struck out a career-high 10.
USC took a 2-1 lead in the sixth with the help of more sloppy play by the Seminoles.
McDonald hit Craig with a pitch. Craig moved to second with a stolen base, but he should have been out. Blair McCaleb's throw had him beaten by so much that Craig stopped in the basepath. But neither Brett Groves nor McDougall could come up with the ball.
Craig moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on Balet's second throwing error of the game.
The Trojans had plenty of opportunities to extend their early lead. They left seven runners on base, including six in scoring position, through six innings.
The Seminoles don't expect to get similar breaks against LSU.
"When you face LSU, you better have a loaded bullpen, because those boys have a way to make you go down there and find somebody," Martin said. "They have a way of making you use all of them."
By MARK LONG
AP Sports Writer
