June 1, 2008

Recap |  Final Stats

TULANE QUOTES

HEAD COACH Rick Jones

Overall thoughts on the game
"Offensively, Florida State just kept coming at us tonight and we didn't have enough answer for them as I would have liked to. I thought we had a lot of energy. I thought we played really hard. I thought we had some really good at-bats. But at the end of the day, they just swung it really well and had a lot of timely hits. Their starter did a good job of getting them deep enough in the game. I think that is pretty typical of Florida State. They're hitting what they're hitting as a team this time of year because they do it often. We just didn't have enough answers for them on the mound tonight."

On Florida State catcher Buster Posey's three-run homer in the fifth
"We didn't have a base open tonight. There was a situation where we brought in a submariner trying to get a ground ball and give ourselves the best chance to maybe roll a double-play with an at-'em ball. With a lefty in the four-hole, without a base open - in this ballpark, especially going to right - the percentage move, even if it is Buster. He's not hitting .700 - maybe he is, I don't know - we've got a better than 50-50 chance of getting the out. With a submariner, you're looking for a double-play ball. It was a percentage move. But we elevated the ball a little more than we wanted to and he certainly put a good swing on it. He was a guy tonight that we really didn't get an opportunity to pitch around. Had we been able to, we would have done that. We're not very left-handed in the bullpen, so again, the situation for us was if we're going to have to get to him in an RBI situation with the game tight at that time, let's try and get a double-play ball if we can. Let's try and get something on the ground. That was the match-up we were looking for. It just didn't work out."

On who will take the mound to start tomorrow
"We're going to send out a right-hander. I'm not going to make that decision yet. I've got a couple of pretty good arms down there. In Regional play, you go with your best available guy tomorrow. I know weather can be an issue. We're going to send out a right-hander, but I'll wait until tomorrow to make that decision in the morning. I just want to talk to some guys at breakfast and see how they're feeling."

On if Shooter Hunt is available to pitch or even to start
"Yes. But I'm not going to say that he's going to do that yet. We're going to go with a right-hander and I'll make that decision tomorrow. But he feels good. He felt good today. Our bullpen,that we've been utilizing a lot with Nick Pepitone and Rob Segedin having two days rest now too. That gives us a little more depth in the bullpen of guys who we wanted to use in the postseason. We didn't want to use either of those guys today unless we had a lead late. We wanted to make sure that when you fire that bullet, you fire it in a situation where you feel like you can close it out or have a better chance to."

JUNIOR CATCHER Jared Dyer

On if Florida State seems to be the best hitting team Tulane has faced in 2008
"I believe so. Top to bottom, they hit the ball really well tonight. You have to tip your hat to them, come out tomorrow and give them hell. We have to play the best we've got. I like our chances tomorrow. We're still three wins from Omaha and one win from a Super Regional. It's still the same situation."

FLORIDA STATE QUOTES

HEAD COACH MIKE MARTIN

Overall thoughts on the game
"Well, that was obviously a game that we're just very pleased with the way we played. (I was) just so impressed with Ryan Strauss and Jimmy Marshall for the way they went out there and battled, and of course Buster's big hits were huge. We just played a game that we needed to play. I'm just really pleased with the way we went out there and got after it. Tulane's an outstanding team and it should be an interesting evening tomorrow night."

CATCHER BUSTER POSEY

On showing more emotion than usual following his second home run of the game
"I don't know ... it's this time of the year you get excited and I didn't know if it was going out and I was pumped when it went over. It just felt good to put the team up. I guess it put us up 10-4 at that point."

CENTERFIELDER TYLER HOLT

On how important it was for him to get on base hitting leadoff
"That's the main goal. The objective is to get on base every time. If I don't, I know the next guy will so that's what I tried to do - stay short, put the ball on the ground, line drives. I get on and I know I'm going to score so there's really no question. I don't doubt any guys behind me so, pretty much, I know I'm going to score."