May 15, 2003

TECH STOPS N.C. STATE 8-3 IN ACC SERIES OPENER

Micah Owings

ATLANTA - Freshman Micah Owings pitched six strong innings and Matt Murton drove in two runs to lead No. 10 Georgia Tech (38-14, 16-6 ACC) to an 8-3 win over visiting N.C. State (38-13, 14-8) on Thursday night at Russ Chandler Stadium in the opener of a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series. The Yellow Jackets moved within a half game of first place Florida State (16-5) in the league standings as the Seminoles' game at Duke on Friday night was rained out.

Owings (8-2) earned the win with six solid innings before being removed following a one hour and 27 minute rain delay prior to the top of the seventh inning. Owings held the Wolfpack to one run on four hits and one walk while striking out five batters.

N.C. State starter Michael Rogers (10-3) took the loss, allowing seven runs on 11 hits in six innings.

Georgia Tech out hit N.C. State, 12-8, including two hits apiece from Eric Patterson, Steven Blackwood, Mike Nickeas and Tyler Greene. Matt Camp went 3-for-4 in the game for the Wolfpack.

The Yellow Jackets took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Matt Murton grounded into a double play following consecutive singles from Eric Patterson and Steven Blackwood. Tech added two more runs in the third inning to extend the lead to 3-0. Consecutive singles from Tyler Greene and Jake Hall opened the inning and began the rally before Patterson followed with an RBI single and Murton added an RBI groundout.

A solo home run from David Hicks, his third of the season, pulled the Wolfpack within 3-1 in the top of the fourth inning.

Tech scored three runs in the fifth inning, all coming with two outs, to open up a 6-1 lead. Jake Hall was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, but Rogers quickly retired the next two batters. After Hall moved up two bases on a passed ball and wild pitch, four consecutive Tech batters singled - Murton, Remole, Mike Nickeas and Jerey Slayden - to do the damage. Murton, Nickeas and Slayden each had RBI in the inning. The Yellow Jackets made the score 7-1 in the sixth inning after Greene reached on a bunt single and scored on Steven Blackwood's RBI single up the middle past a drawn in infield.

Following the rain delay, the Yellow Jackets added an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh when Greene was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make the score 8-1.

N.C. State mounted a rally in the top of the eighth inning, scoring two runs to make the score 8-3. The inning started with back to back walks to Marc Maynor and Jeremy Dutton before Colt Morton and Matt Camp each delivered RBI singles. The Wolfpack had a chance to close the gap even more when they loaded the bases with two outs, but Tech reliever Jeff Watchko struck out Chad Orvella to work out of the jam.

Georgia Tech and N.C. State will continue the three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series on Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 1:30 p.m.



                               2003 GEORGIA TECH BASEBALL
                               N.C. STATE at GEORGIA TECH
                  May 15, 2003 at Atlanta, Ga. (Russ Chandler Stadium)

  N.C. State 3 (38-13,14-8 ACC)                 GEORGIA TECH 8 (38-14,16-6 ACC)
  Player                      AB  R  H BI       Player                      AB  R  H BI
  ---------------------------------------       ---------------------------------------
  Marc Maynor cf.............  3  1  0  0       Eric Patterson 2b..........  4  1  2  1
  Jeremy Dutton 3b...........  4  1  1  0       Steven Blackwood cf........  4  0  2  1
  Justin Riley c.............  4  0  0  0       Matt Murton lf.............  5  1  1  2
  Colt Morton dh.............  4  0  1  1       Clifton Remole 1b..........  4  2  1  0
  Joe Gaetti rf..............  4  0  2  0       Mike Nickeas c.............  5  0  2  1
  David Hicks 1b.............  4  1  1  1       Jeremy Slayden rf..........  4  0  1  1
  Matt Camp lf/2b............  4  0  3  1       Micah Owings p/dh..........  2  0  0  0
  Chad Orvella ss............  4  0  0  0       Tyler Greene ss............  3  2  2  1
  Adam Hargrave 2b...........  2  0  0  0       Jake Hall 3b...............  3  2  1  0
   Lee Mezistrano ph/lf......  2  0  0  0        Davis Myers 3b............  0  0  0  0
  Michael Rogers p...........  0  0  0  0        Jeff Watchko p............  0  0  0  0
   Brandon Shipwash p........  0  0  0  0        Andrew Kown p.............  0  0  0  0
  Totals..................... 35  3  8  3       Totals..................... 34  8 12  7

  Score by Innings                    R  H  E
  -------------------------------------------
  N.C. State.......... 000 100 020 -  3  8  1
  GEORGIA TECH........ 102 031 10X -  8 12  0
  -------------------------------------------

  E - Dutton(10). DP - N.C. State 2. LOB - N.C. State 8; GEORGIA TECH 9. 2B - Dutton(9);
  Gaetti(10); Nickeas, M.(12). HR - Hicks(3). HBP - Owings, M.; Greene, T.; Hall, J..
  SH - Patterson, E(2). SB - Murton, M. 2(16); Greene, T.(15).

  N.C. State                     IP  H  R ER BB SO  WP BK HP IBB  AB BF  FO GO  NP
  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Michael Rogers  L,10-3.....   6.0 11  7  7  0  4   1  0  2  0   27 30   6  6  95
  Brandon Shipwash ..........   2.0  1  1  1  3  2   1  0  1  1    7 11   3  1  44

  GEORGIA TECH                   IP  H  R ER BB SO  WP BK HP IBB  AB BF  FO GO  NP
  --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Micah Owings  W,8-2........   6.0  4  1  1  1  5   0  0  0  0   22 23   6  7  90
  Jeff Watchko ..............   2.0  4  2  2  2  2   0  0  0  0   10 12   4  0  40
  Andrew Kown ...............   1.0  0  0  0  0  2   0  0  0  0    3  3   1  0  13

  WP - Rogers(3); Shipwash(5). HBP - by Rogers 2 (Owings, Hall); by Shipwash (Greene)
  PB - Riley(1). Inherited runners/scored: None. Pitches/strikes:
  Rogers 95/56; Shipwash 44/23; Owings, M. 90/57; Watchko, J. 40/25; Kown, A. 13/8.

  Strikeouts - Dutton 2; Riley; Morton; Gaetti 2; Hicks; Orvella; Mezistrano;
  Blackwood, S; Nickeas, M.; Slayden, J. 3; Hall, J.. Walks - Maynor 2; Dutton;
  Blackwood, S; Remole, C.; Owings, M..

  Umpires - HP: Al Davis  1B: Jack Cox  3B: Jeff Head

  Start: 7:03 pm   Time: 2:38   Attendance: 1699

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