GAME ONE

GAME TWO

APPALACHIAN STATE 2, No. 23 OKLAHOMA 5

NCAA DIVISION I BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP - CHARLOTTESVILLE REGIONAL

CHAMPIONSHIOP ROUND

JUNE 4, 2012 • CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. • DAVENPORT FIELD

POSTGAME QUOTES

 

Appalachian State

Appalachian State head coach Chris Pollard

Opening statement:

"First of all, congratulations to Oklahoma. They are a tremendous club. To what they did, after losing an opening round game, to come back and win four games in two days, it speaks to the quality of their team, how well coached they are, the depth of their arms. I was amazed when they rolled out a guy in the second game who had thrown nine innings on the season. He was 92 or 93 (on the radar gun), was 6'4" and 230 pounds and had a big-time slider. That shows how deep their club really is. They played exceptionally well in this ballgame. Not only did they pitch well, but they played a tremendous game defensively. I thought they took some hits away from us. I am extremely proud of our team. Not just with how we played this weekend, but with how we played all year. They have been great representatives for Appalachian State University. We had a group of guys, who from early on, back in August, articulated their goals for the season. They set a goal for themselves to win a conference championship and make an NCAA Regional. We were picked to finish fifth or sixth in our league. Not many people, outside of our group of guys, gave us credit for being able to do what we have done. That shows the heart and character of this group of guys to band together against the odds to accomplish what we have accomplished. It has been a tremendous year and I am very, very proud of them."

On which game was more frustrating:

"They are both frustrating. Probably more so is the fact that three of their runs (in the second game) came with two outs. We were really close to getting on the field both times, and that may have been the difference in the ballgame. You credit them, they came up with those key swings with two outs. I thought in the first game, we had some chances. I will say this... sometimes when a team is struggling to throw strikes, that is sometimes the hardest time to hit. When a guy is really struggling with command, those guys are difficult to put good swings on, simply because you don't know when he is going to be in the zone. When a guy is consistently in the zone, it is easier to time up and put a good swing on. We had situations in the first game where they were out of the zone for six or seven pitches in a row, and that's a tough spot to hit. I think that played a role in it. You tip your cap to them. They have a great team. That will be a great Super Regional down in Columbia."

On Oklahoma's Drew Harrison:

"It is unbelievable. Not just to pitch, but just how good he was physically. I am blown away, just the depth of their arms. (Harrison) is 6'4", 230 pounds. Early on he was 92 or 93 (mph), with an 84 mile-per-hour slider. That guy looked like a top-ten rounder and he has nine innings pitched. That shows how deep their staff is. If we had that guy on our team, we are running him out there on weekends, every weekend."

On making sure the season isn't seen as something extraordinary:

"It is critical. This is not something where all the stars lined up. This is something we have been working to get in a position where we can do this year-in and year-out. There were special pieces about this team. I have never been around a group of guys who enjoyed playing with each other as much as these guys did. It made for a very fun experience to coach this group of guys. We feel like we have put this program in position where we should have the opportunity, if we play well and stay healthy, to have a legitimate opportunity to have a chance to compete for a Southern Conference championship and go to a regional every year. That is my expectation of the program. We fully expect to compete for a championship next year."

On being suspended for the first game:

"It was painful. I wish I could have been there for our guys. I feel like in a lot of ways I let them down today. It is a mistake that I'll learn from and make sure when we get in this situation again, I certainly won't do that to our team. I told our coaching staff when we met this morning that I have a 100-percent confidence in them. But I would have rather have been there in the dugout with them."

ASU shortstop Will Callaway

On if this is a stepping stone for the program:

"It is definitely something we want to make an attainable goal every year. It was a special group of guys that comes along maybe once in a decade. We were a team that played well together, had good chemistry, and everyone played for each other. Yeah, we want to get back here, but also know this was a special group of guys."

On not capitalizing on chances in the first game:

"We lacked a couple of big-time hits in key situations. You don't always get the two-out hit you are looking for in every situation. Runners are going to be left on. They definitely capitalized a little bit better than we did in the first game."

ASU designated hitter Daniel Kassouf

On the season:

"It was a great season and a lot of fun. This (loss) stings a lot, but it was a great ride getting here and I wouldn't trade it for the world."

On the pressure of the second game after losing the first:

"I don't think it put pressure on us. Whenever we came back out there, I thought we were going to play a great game. They ran out a great pitcher. It happens. That's baseball."

 

Oklahoma

Oklahoma coach Sunny Golloway

Opening statement:

"Again we want to compliment our worthy opponent today, Appalachian State, an outstanding baseball team. After the first game through the disappointment they went through, they came back and played hard fought ballgame and that was pretty special on their part. They had to put it together with their pitching and we had to put it together with our pitching. You probably, watching the first game wouldn't of thought it would be a close fought ballgame, but that is a tribute to the young man who stepped out there on the mound and competed. I think Appalachian State, with their coach and the job he's doing there, will be back to a lot of NCAA tournaments. I surely remember my first as a head coach and how special it was just getting that win. As for our guys, I can't say enough. The team we brought in here two years ago was much different than this team. That team had a pretty good year the whole year, a close bonding team the whole year and they just rolled. But this team was a roller coaster ride. It was a very, very difficult season. There were moments during this season where we were hoping this season would probably hurry up and end. We knew once we defeated Baylor and assured ourselves of a winning record and potentially an NCAA at-large bid that we were on to something special. We just jumped from a team that was from the outside of the bubble to a team that was a team to be reckoned with. Our pitching was there and we moved guys around. I'm looking forward to seeing Ray Tanner. He's a friend and he's a peer and we're also the last team to beat the South Carolina Gamecocks in NCAA tournament play. I think that streak is outstanding. I think it is long. And I think we need to have something to say about it. It doesn't matter what I say because their fans are going to be all over us anyhow. We're looking forward to going to South Carolina and seeing Coach Tanner and the great job that they're doing and the magnificent facility that they have and we're going to see if we can't put a button on that streak because its gone a long time-we were the last team to beat them in NCAA play at the College World Series."

On pitching Drew Harrison:

"We see him in his bullpens and he through earlier even though he didn't have many innings. He through earlier in the year and his numbers are strong and I think if you see our pitching staff and the talent we have in that group, he's not going to get a lot of innings because of the guys in front of him. We are going to lose some arms and Big Drew is going to be a guy that is going to come back and move to the front of the bus and absorb a bunch of innings. That is a power arm. The best thing about him is his power slider. It's 80-plus.

On Oklahoma's confidence after winning four games in a row:

"It's fact that we were able to win two games and have a .125 batting average with a .307 on base percentage and we had thrown so many base on balls. One of the problems when we were in the College World Series two years ago is that we were afraid to lay the bat down. We had the courage to lay the bat down and take base on balls today and we didn't do that two years ago when we were really, really talented because the guys felt they could hit everything. So maybe we will be more balanced now by wearing a pitch and giving it to the next guy."

Oklahoma pitcher Drew Harrison

On previously pitching only nine innings:

"It was a great feeling to pitch the game and take us to a super regional. I just went out there and tried to throw strikes and let my defense play behind me. I pitched a little bit in high school but I came to Oklahoma as a pitcher."

Oklahoma designated hitter Matt Oberste

On his home run:

"I suppose he missed a spot and he left the ball up a little bit and I put a good swing on it. I felt like it got us going a little bit"

Oklahoma shortstop Caleb Bushyhead

On his team finally getting hits in the past two games:

 "We were due. That is all you can really say about that. We've struggled this whole regional and you can pull out the stats and they're nothing short of awful. But I think today we really showed what we're capable of doing and that is coming out and banging the baseball around and making moves in the base path. Small ball, long ball, all sorts of stuff, things really went our way. Hopefully that momentum carries over into Columbia this weekend and our sticks will be hot there as well.