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East
Carolina lines up on the third-base line before
Friday's opening game of the NCAA Lubbock Super
Regional. Effective performances on the mound and at
the plate enabled the Pirates to move within a win
of the College World Series by defeating host and
No. 5 national seed Texas Tech. (Photo by Al Myatt) |
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ECU
coach Cliff Godwin and a number of
his players spoke with the press
after their final practice in
Greenville before heading to the
Lubbock Super Regional (recorded by
W.A. Myatt).
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Select clips... |
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BASEBALL |
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Mission to Omaha on course |
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 It
was the 'shot heard 'round the Pirate Nation.' More than that, it was a
shot heard 'round the entire nation! Travis Watkins' three-run, walk-off
home run in the bottom of the ninth Saturday night set the stage for an
NCAA regional championship and a super regional berth.
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More from
Brian Bailey...
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BASEBALL |
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Pirates welcomed home as champs |
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GREENVILLE — An enthusiastic
contingent of East Carolina fans
made the trek to Clark-LeClair
Stadium on Monday to extend
congratulations and a hearty welcome
to the Pirates upon their return to
Clark-LeClair Stadium after
capturing the NCAA regional title in
Charlottesville over the weekend.
Bonesville's W.A.
Myatt captured a few pictures of the
occasion and recorded interviews
with ECU head coach Cliff Godwin and
Regional MVP Travis Watkins.
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Play audio and view
photos... |
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BASEBALL |
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Pirates power up, go Super |
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — Two-run homers
by Charlie Yorgen, Travis Watkins
and Eric Tyler keyed East Carolina's
8-4 win over William & Mary on
Sunday, clinching the NCAA regional
championship. The Tribe (31-31) had
edged 2015 College World Series
champion Virginia 5-4 in an
elimination game earlier in the day
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More... |
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BASEBALL |
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Walkoff wallop whips Wahoos |
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — A three-run
homer by Travis Watkins capped a
five-run ninth inning for East
Carolina and provided an 8-6 walkoff
win over Virginia in the winners'
bracket matchup Saturday at
Davenport Field.
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BASEBALL |
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Pirates pull away in eighth |
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CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — East Carolina
broke open a pitching duel with
seven runs in the eighth inning to
defeat Bryant 9-1 in the Pirates'
NCAA Tournament opener on Friday.
Third-seeded ECU (35-21-1) advances
to play top-seeded Virginia (38-20)
at 6 p.m. today.
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More... |
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BASEBALL |
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Regional represents redemption |
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 The
Bryant Bulldogs have momentum
going into the Charlottesville
regional. East Carolina's first
round opponent at 4 p.m. today
has won 10 in a row. Momentum is
not a factor in the Pirates'
favor as ECU is coming off an
0-2 showing in defense of its
2015 championship in the
American Athletic Conference
tournament
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More from Al Myatt...
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FOOTBALL RECRUITING |
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Dual-threat QB plans to
enroll early |
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 One
play was all it took for
Kingsley Ifedi to start
turning heads in his varsity
debut as Vance High School's
starting quarterback last
August. Ifedi had served as
the backup to senior Omar
Baker, Jr., the year before
as a sophomore after
transferring to Vance from
Phillip O'Berry Academy
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More from Sammy Batten... |
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By
Al Myatt
©2016 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
VIEW MOBILE VERSION OF THIS PAGE
Postgame audio: Godwin, Watkins, Bridges...
View box score on ecupirates.com (PDF)
LUBBOCK, TX — Travis
Watkins has become Mr. June for East Carolina in the way that Reggie
Jackson was once Mr. October for the New York Yankees — by hitting
big home runs in big games.
Watkins continued his
torrid power pace with two home runs and six RBIs at Texas Tech
Friday night in an 8-6 Pirates win in the first game of a
best-of-three Super Regional.
Watkins hit a grand slam
down the left field line in a five-run fifth inning for ECU
(38-21-1) as the Pirates moved within a win of advancing to the
College World Series.
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continues after the following picture... |
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Scott
Higgins leads the umpiring crew onto Dan Law Field at
Rip Griffin Park for the start of the NCAA Lubbock Super
Regional. Higgins gained some infamy in last weekend's
Raleigh Regional by ejecting N.C. State coach Elliott
Avent. (Photo by Al Myatt) |
It was the first Super
Regional win ever for ECU after going 0-2 in 2001,
2004 and
2009.
Watkins belted a two-run
homer to left in the sixth for the runs that eventually made the
difference against the Red Raiders (44-18).
A three-run walk-off
homer by Watkins provided
an 8-6 win over Virginia last Saturday,
the deciding moment in the Charlottesville regional.
"I've worked really hard
with Coach (Cliff) Godwin over the past few weeks," Watkins said.
"I've kind of shortened up my swing a little bit, went to my
two-strike approach. That's what we've worked on is just something
that we're comfortable with."
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Story
continues after the following picture... |
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ECU's
Parker Lamm prepares to lead off the game with head
coach Cliff Godwin in the third base coaching box.
(Photo by Al Myatt) |
Like Godwin, Watkins is
a catcher. He got a first hand view as Evan Kruczynski and Matt
Bridges combined for a successful night on the mound.
"I wouldn't say this was
one of Kruz's best outings," Watkins said. "One thing you know
you're going to get from Kruz is you know he's going to go out there
and compete. That was evident today. He was able to get deep in the
game for us, eat up some innings. ... He was able to throw his
change-up all day. He was keeping guys off balance and I think that
really helped him out. He was able to command the zone. That's what
you need out of your Friday night starter."
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Story
continues after the following picture... |
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ECU's
Charlie Yorgen is running on the pitch on the synthetic
surface of Texas Tech's home field. (Photo by Al Myatt) |
Kruczynski (8-1) went
five and two-thirds innings before Sam Lanier came in to finish the
sixth with a strikeout. Kruczynski, a junior left-hander, allowed
six hits and three runs (all earned). He walked five and struck out
six.
Lanier ran into trouble
in the seventh, yielding a three-run homer to Tyler Neslony that
brought the Red Raiders within 8-6.
That's where the score
remained as Godwin summoned Bridges. Although closer Joe Ingle was
ready, the Pirates stayed with Bridges, a freshman right-hander.
Bridges fashioned two and two-thirds innings of no-hit ball and
recorded six strikeouts in earning his second save.
ECU pitchers combined
for 14 strikeouts.
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continues after the following picture... |
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ECU
freshman Dwanya Williams-Sutton, the 2016 American
Athletic Conference hitting leader, tosses between
innings in left field. (Photo by Al Myatt) |
The Pirates held a 13-8
lead in hits as Watkins and Parker Lamm each had three hits. Dwanya
Williams-Sutton was 2-for-5.
ECU looks to close out
the series and make the dream of going to Omaha a reality with a 3
p.m. game today (ESPNU).
