Friday, April 24, 1998
Bruins face showdown against USC
BASEBALL: Team pride only thing left at stake in matchup with
arch rivals
By Kristina Wilcox
Daily Bruin Staff
With no remaining postseason hopes, the only thing driving the
UCLA baseball team this weekend is the long-standing rivalry
against USC.
The Bruins (18-28, 10-17 Six-Pac) host the two sandwich games
against the No. 5 Trojans (33-12, 17-7) at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
Saturday’s contest will be at USC’s Dedeaux Field.
"It’s not hard to get up for the USC series," third baseman
Garrett Atkins said. "Everyone will be ready to play."
The Bruins have not translated that confident attitude on the
field this season during other important series. Can they do it for
these three games?
UCLA faces a huge challenge right off the bat on Friday night
when USC head coach Mike Gillespie sends Seth Etherton to the
mound. The senior right-hander (9-2, 2.39 ERA) has been named
Six-Pac Pitcher of the Week 13 times in his career, more than any
other player in Pac-10 history. He is first in the Six-Pac in wins
and second in ERA.
Etherton is bound to set the Pac-10 career records for
strikeouts when he faces the Bruins on Friday. The record currently
stands at 363 strikeouts. Etherton leads the Six-Pac with 361 going
into the game.
Another talented pitcher will face UCLA on Saturday.
Right-hander Rik Currier (4-1, 4.86) is having an impressive
freshman campaign this season. Sunday’s pitcher for Troy is yet to
be announced.
Meanwhile, the Bruins will counter with unproven freshmen.
Right-hander Paul Diaz (1-3, 6.50) pitches on Friday, and southpaw
Ryan Carter (2-1, 6.55) will be on the mound Saturday. Head coach
Gary Adams has not announced Sunday’s starter.
The USC baseball team won the 2000th game in school history
earlier this season. They are in third place in the Six-Pac, but
only half a game out of first place behind Stanford and Arizona
State.
The Trojans are gunning for their second College World Series
trip in four years.