Bomer finds solace from
Title IX with Longhorns

Bonesville.net contributed to this report

OMAHA, NE (AP) — Alan Bomer didn't get many chances to pitch in the postseason when he was at Iowa State.

Thanks to an administrative cut, he's in the College World Series pitching for Texas.

"I knew I'd have the opportunity to play somewhere, but I wasn't planning on it being a powerhouse like this," said Bomer, a right-hander who has been the Longhorns' No. 3 starter this season.

Bomer (10-3) caught the eye of the Texas coaching staff when he shut out the Longhorns 2-0 while pitching for Iowa State last April. It was a few weeks after Iowa State announced it was dropping baseball and men's swimming to help cover a $1.4 million budget shortfall.

In the move, (which was related to Title IX pressures,) Iowa State freed the affected athletes of scholarship ties — opening the door for recruiting. After seeing what Bomer did to the Longhorns, Texas pitching coach Frank Anderson quickly got on the phone.

"We were fortunate enough to be up there about the time that thing all took place. He shuts us out and next thing you know, we're trying to get him to come over to our side," Anderson said. "It's kind of like summer league -- 'Hey, you beat us, so come over and play for us now.'"

Bomer, a fourth-round pick of the New York Yankees in last week's draft, elected to stay close to his native Altoona, Iowa, when he chose Iowa State. During his second round of recruiting he was willing to go a little farther away from home.

"There were quite a few schools that called me. It was kind of like being recruited all over again out of high school," he said. "I wanted to stay in the Big 12, so what better place to come than Texas?"

The baseball traditions of Texas and Iowa State are notably different. The Longhorns are in the College World Series for a record 29th time, while the Cyclones went just twice in their 109-year baseball history.

Bomer struggled early in his new environment but has recovered nicely. He came out of the bullpen early in the year before securing a starting spot in the middle of the season and has held it since.

"It's been unbelievable the transition he's made from Iowa State to our place. The change in expectations and stuff he's had to deal with, he's handled it real well," Anderson said. "He's been a big boost, especially down the stretch. He's been outstanding."

Bomer is not expected to start Saturday night when Texas (53-15) opens against Rice (52-12). He will likely pitch later in the week if the Longhorns advance or could come out of the bullpen.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound junior has made 19 appearances, including 15 starts and has 78 strikeouts in 85 innings. He is 3-0 in the postseason with an ERA of 2.38. Bomer was the winning pitcher when the Longhorns clinched the super regional against Houston last weekend and the week before in a regional against Baylor, when he threw a 2-0 shutout.

Bomer's only other postseason experience came last year after the Cyclones rallied to make the Big 12 tournament, which only takes eight teams. Iowa State won two out of three games against regular-season champion Nebraska in the Cyclones' last home series just to qualify.

Bomer said the Cyclones wanted to keep playing at least a little while longer.

"It was a real shock. No one saw it coming, really. After that, we knew we had one goal in mind, and that was to make the Big 12 tournament," he said. "We showed them why we should still have a program. Obviously, it wasn't enough."

Now, if anybody back in Ames is watching, Bomer wants them to know he's still pitching in mid-June.

"It's a great feeling. We're all glad to be here. It's every Little Leaguer's dream to make the College World Series," he said. "Now that we're here, we still have a job to do and that's to win a few ball games and get ourselves in contention to win the whole thing."

Copyright 2002 Associated Press.  All rights reserved.  This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Bonesville.net contributed to this report.

02/23/2007 10:45 AM

-----

©2001-2002-2003-2004-2005-2006-2007-2008-2009-2010-2011-2012-2013 Bonesville.net. All rights reserved.
Articles, logos, graphics, photos, audio files, video files and other content originated on this site are the proprietary property of Bonesville.net.
None of the articles, logos, graphics, photos, audio files, video files or other content originated on this site may be reproduced without written permission.
This site is not affiliated with East Carolina University. View Bonesville.net's Privacy Policy. Advertising contact: 252-349-3280; Editorial contact: editor@bonesville.net; 252-444-1905.