Postgame Quotes
June 08, 2007 | Baseball
June 8, 2007
Oklahoma State Quotes
Head Coach Frank Anderson: Nine to nothing pretty much speaks for itself. The way Andrew Oliver had a hard time, our bats looked a little bit slow and we left some balls up (in the zone). They did a good job of getting the ball in the air and we left some stuff up and they hit the ball all over the park. They did a good job of swinging the bats. I think Pitts did a good job of pitching, throws strikes, gets ahead and moves the ball around in the zone. He did a good job. I was trying to get the guys (pitchers) some experience in this atmosphere. Remember the first time you had to do any public speaking it was hard but it keeps getting easier. That was basically what I was trying to do. Yes, we have a pitching plan for the rest of the series, but you guys don't get to know. Joe Kent will pitch at some point in the series.
Jordan Mercer:
What was Zack Pitts doing to keep you off balanced?
He was working his fast ball really well in and out. We had trouble with it. We still have confidence no matter what is going on. They came out swinging the bat real well, but we hit some balls hard. They just seemed to be right at somebody. We know how good we can be. We just have to come out tomorrow and play. If we lose we go home.
Rebel Ridling:
Are you worried being down One game to nothing in the series?
It's not what we came out here and expected but it happened. The guy (Pitts) went out there and threw a good game and they played good defense behind him. Now we gotta come out tomorrow and do the same thing they did. They beat us 9-0 but it is the same as if they had beat us 1-0. We just gotta come out and turn it around. Tomorrow is it. Right now it is just try to play another day. We will just come out and see what happens.
Head Coach Dan McDonnell: There is pressure about being in a situation like this. Our guys have decided to enjoy it. We threw strikes, made routine plays and had some big hits at the right time. Pitts was so effective because he was getting the breaking ball over for strikes. This sure feels different than where we were a week ago.
(About being surprised about success in season): I wasn't surprised in the sense of the ten seniors that we have handled everything well this year for the most part. We wouldn't be sitting here right now if it wasn't for the ten seniors. Baseball is such a tough mental game that there is a lot of talent across the country but you have to be mentally tough. I think the ten seniors set the tone for handling any adversity. So it doesn't shock me how well they are taking everything.
(About a possible turning point in season to get to Super Regional): Really, there was no real turning point. We thought there was talent and we challenged them and set the bar high. The expectations were very high when you don't lose three consecutive games in a row in a 66 game season. We were very consistent this year. There wasn't a point where we hit rock bottom, even though during the last month it was a bit bumpy. I realized there was a lot of pressure on these guys. They really wanted to be in the post-season. They really wanted to win a BIG EAST championship and we came up one game short. Going into the tournament, you could just see there was a lot of pressure on those guys which is partly my fault for as much as we talked about winning. So when we got to the NCAAs, we kind of sat back and the weight of the world needed to come off their shoulders. Really that was our goal was to get into the post-season and now that we are here we will just enjoy it. You can see how relaxed they are and how much fun they are having.
(About atmosphere): It is as good as it gets really. It is exciting for the future. Maybe next January when we go into Freedom Hall in our baseball uniforms I think more people will recognize us and get excited. I think it is really nice for these guys, because they see how great the fans are for football and basketball and now for our sport too. I heard one of the guys say in the dugout that when he heard the C-A-R-D-S cheer it sounded as loud as it did in Freedom Hall.
Isaiah Howes: Our offensive power in unbelievable. Batters one through nine are as dangerous as any team in college baseball right now. Boomer leads the team off every game with a hit the lineup is dangerous bottom to top. Really that's all you can ask for. As a coach or as a player, just to go out there and get it done. (About being drafted) Coach Lemonis came down to the locker room right before the game and congratulated me and that is how I found out. I tried not to even think about playing pro ball and I think I speak for all of us when I say we try not to think about scouts and pro ball because we have a chance to do something really, really special and we are not going to let this slip by. We are taking full advantage of our opportunities. Coach McDonnell challenges us every game to play hard and play well and that is what we do.
On Pitts' performance: From left field it was really hard for me to get a good angle but Zack was keeping them off balance. They are a good offensive club. To make them look like they did was impressive. They got a few good swings on him (Pitts) but for the most part, he had them off balanced. Obviously he pitched well.
Zack Pitts: It was awesome playing at home in front of our own fans. You know they are rooting for you. At Missouri they were rooting against us, so this was a little different. I loved it.
