May 23, 2007
GAME 3 QUOTES * #4 CLEMSON 5, #5 MIAMI 4 (13)
CLEMSON HEAD COACH JACK LEGGETT
Overall thoughts on the game...
"That was a great battle from the very beginning. I thought that (Daniel) Moskos pitched really well, Stephen Clyne came out did a great job on the mound for us, and Alan Farina was something else tonight. We had a lot of tough situations in the ballgame where we could have folded and had men in scoring position and just couldn't get the run to finish the game off. But Farina kept hanging in there. I think a pivotal point in the ballgame came when Miami got the one run in the top of the inning and Farina did not allow a second run. Since we have been playing lately with a lot of confidence and battle in us, we felt one run was manageable whereas two might not be. We got some big hits and did a great job of not getting discouraged early."
On J.D. Burgess and Alex Lee's performances...
These guys did a great job tonight. We are playing with a lot of freshmen. J.D. (Burgess) stepped up, got a big hit and some big defensive plays. Every time Alex Lee comes in the game for us he does something good for us. He is an intelligent player and smart kid and plays with great attention to detail. I am proud of how both played tonight in their first ACC tournament game."
On why you choose the squeeze tonight...
"I had seen a few too many double plays and they have a really good double play combination. That was the one thing that could have hurt us at the time. Alex (Lee) has very good speed and the only thing that would have caused them to double up was if he hit the ball hard right at the second baseman or short stop. He is also a good bunter and when he got behind in the count, I just wanted the game to end and go home. In order to execute a squeeze, you have to have the right people in place at the right time. I think it was the right call at the right time for us."
On Brad Chalk's contribution tonight...
"Just his presence in the lineup is big for us. He gets on base, hits a double and does some big things. We haven't seen him for 15 games now and just (Chalk) being back is a breath of fresh air. I think it is great that with the new format we got a day off, which hopefully he will be back on Friday. Just to see him out there, getting some swings and hacks in order to create some offensive opportunities for the team is a breath of fresh air."
CLEMSON OUTFIELDER ALEX LEE
On your bunt to bring in the winning run...
"He told me beforehand so I was ready for that call. It was the second pitch at bat so I was ready for it. I was just glad that I got it down. I wasn't worried about anything other than getting my nose on it and putting it down. It worked out for us."
MIAMI HEAD COACH JIM MORRIS
Overall thoughts on the game...
"I'm sure the fans enjoyed the game, but this one got away from us. Clemson has an outstanding club and we made a couple of mistakes that cost us a couple of runs. I felt like we should have won the game in nine innings. You can't let a game get away against an outstanding club like them. We have to play better if we are going to beat a team like Clemson."
MIAMI SECOND BASEMAN JEMILE WEEKS
On having Thursday off...
"I think we will benefit from it. We will be able to re-group and work on the mistakes we made today. Hopefully by practicing those mistakes, we will be able to not make those mistakes on Friday."
