University of Louisville
South Florida &
Cardinal Nine Season Ends
May 18, 2001 | Baseball
May 18, 2001
Third-seeded South Florida used a four-run tenth to end sixth-seeded Louisville's baseball season with a 7-3 loss in an elimination game on the third day of the 2001 FedEx C-USA Baseball Tournament in Louisiana. The loss marks the fourth time this season the Bulls have scored the winning runs in the eighth inning or later in four wins over U of L, including the Cards two losses in the tournament.
The Bulls opened the scoring in the third with three runs on four consecutive singles and a sacrifice fly. Right fielder Daniel Boyd and first baseman Mike Eylward each singled home runs, while DH Kris Courier drove a ball to center for the sac fly, making it 3-0 Bulls.
The Cardinals got on the board in the bottom of the fourth when first baseman Morgan Bojorquez lead off with a double and scored on a single to right by catcher Fernando Isa, cutting the lead to 3-1.
Center fielder Mike Hook drew a lead off walk in the bottom of the fifth, and after shortstop Adam Haley moved him over to second on a sacrifice, and Mike Budak moved him to third on a groundout, Bojorquez singled him home making it 3-2 USF.
The Cards tied things up 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh. With runners at first and second and one out, Bojorquez blasted a fly ball to deep center where it was caught on the warning track for the second out, and Haley tagged and scored all the way from second on the sacrifice fly.
Cardinal reliever Josh Ring (4-6) took the loss, surrendering four runs on six hits and two walks to go with a strikeout in three innings of work.
Despite the notch in the loss column, Ring now has tied the all-time record for appearances in a single season with his 28th outing, equalling Brian Hommel's effort in 1995, and had the 10th most strikeouts in a single season in Louisville history, fanning his 74th victim Friday.
Ring tallied 10 saves this season, also tying the single season record in Cardinal history, set by Todd Raithel in 1998. He is alone in third in career saves with ten.
Starter Mike Tisdale tossed seven innings, and gave up three runs on nine hits and a walk while striking out six. Tisdale placed himself in a tie for third all-time with his 15th start of the season, and he is tied for sixth in innings pitched in a single year with 94.2.
Bulls reliever David Richtberg(3-3) was the winner, allowing one hit and a walk in two innings of work. Jon Uhl gave up three runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out five in eight innings.
Six Bulls had two hits in the 15 hit attack, while Bojorquez and Isa each had a pair of knocks. Budak and Haley will carry nine-game hitting streaks into the opener next season, while Isa has hit in eight straight.
Defensively, the Cardinals end the season as the greatest in Louisville history with a school record 63 double plays, breaking the record of 60 set in 1993, an all-time best .972 fielding percentage, surpassing the .966 mark in 1999 and only 63 errors, nine fewer than the team committed in 1999.
Louisville's 32-28 record is the 5th highest win total in school history. Haley set a new school mark for a single season in hit-by-pitches with 14, two more than Hook's 12 in 2000. Haley and Bojorquez both got plunked three times in a single game setting another record, while the six times Hook was hit this year established a new career mark of 23, held previously by Troy Hilpp(20 from '97-'00).
Senior Denny Williams will depart tied for the single season record with 16 starts in 2001. His 93.0 innings ties him for eighth, his five complete games ties him for tenth and his seven wins is tied for the 10th best season in U of L history along with Tisdale. Williams started 32 games in his career, tied for seventh.
The pitching staff equalled the record for shutouts in a season with six, matching the 1974 squad and the 14 complete games produced a new C-USA single season record.
Hook graduates as the only Cardinal with three seasons of 20 or more steals, notching the second and third highest totals in school history(29 in 200 and 25 in '99 and '01), and is second all-time with 79 bags.
Budak smacked 21 doubles this season, tying him for the fourth-highest total at Louisville, and senior Bill Gatti Jr. belted six triples in 2001, the eighth best single season, and his eight career three-baggers has only been surpassed by nine other Cardinals.
Hook, Gatti and Williams are joined by second baseman Matt Jarboe, and relief pitchers Andy Lopez-Cao and Antonio Castellvi as the graduating seniors on the 2001 Cardinal Nine roster.
