Colleges

Gators' bats fail in finale

TEXAS 6, FLORIDA 2: A pair of home runs and some stingy pitching lead the Longhorns to the College World Series title.

By ANTONYA ENGLISH
Published June 27, 2005

OMAHA, Neb. - Brian Leclerc paced in front of the Florida dugout, glaring blankly at the celebration near the pitcher's mound at Rosenblatt Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Eventually he joined the rest of his teammates, stood stoically and watched the Texas Longhorns sing their alma mater and try on their new national championship hats and shirts.

The scoreboard hovered in the background: Texas 6, Florida 2.

In the best-of-three College World Series championship series, Texas swept the Gators in two games to win its sixth national title, its first since 2002.

"It's mandatory for us to be here," Texas coach Augie Garrido said, celebrating his second national title in nine seasons at Texas. "It's mandatory and if we fall short, we fall short of the first level of expectation (at Texas). I am in a state of shock right now. It hasn't really sunk in.

"Isn't it cool that these kids get to say they are the best at what they are doing? How many times in our lives do we get to say that? We're the best at what we are doing."

In their first trip to the championship series of the CWS, the Gators' hopes of a national title were doused by a slump from its best hitters and a makeshift pitching staff due to injury and overuse that wasn't quite able to hold down Texas.

The Longhorns, who hit just 49 home runs heading into the CWS, had four against the Gators (two in each game). Florida's top four hitters - Jeff Corsaletti, Adam Davis, Matt LaPorta and Brian Jeroloman - went 4-for-28 in the championship series, a .143 average. As a team, the Gators were 10-for-61 (.164).

"We are a better offensive club than we showed the last two days," Corsaletti said. "I'm disgusted at myself not showing up for these games. Give them a lot of credit, they made some quality pitches, they threw the ball in the strike zone and we got away from our approach that we've been using all year. We got over-aggressive and it showed. We had our chances and we couldn't capitalize."

Texas (56-16) took a one-run lead in the second inning after Chance Wheeless singled and Taylor Teagarden moved him over with a sacrifice, allowing David Maroul's single to score Wheeless. Then leading 2-0, the Longhorns put together a four-run sixth inning. Wheeless hit a solo home run off starter Bryan Ball, then reliever Connor Falkenbach gave up a three-run homer to series MVP David Maroul.

"I didn't do my job," Falkenbach said. "I was supposed to keep the game close. They are a great club, you have to tip your hat to them."

Florida (48-23) scored its only two runs off Leclerc's two-run homer in the seventh inning. The Gators didn't get their first hit until the fifth inning (a single by Brandon McArthur) and had just six in the game.

"Once you get this far they've got you pretty well scouted out," said Leclerc, the former Northside Christian standout. "I think a lot of our hitters, including myself, we just didn't make adjustments in both games."

Texas reliever J. Brent Cox earned a nation's-best 19th save and said Florida just ran into the Longhorns when they were at their best.

"We just got hot at the right time and it was hard to stop us," he said. "It all came together for us.

"It definitely wasn't easy. It was tough."

Florida coach Pat McMahon and the Gators players acknowledged experience was a factor. Texas was making its second consecutive appearance in the championship series of the CWS and its third in the past four years. Ultimately, the Gators said they had no excuses.

"I'm extremely proud of our ballclub and the way we competed," McMahon said.

"We played with tremendous heart."

[Last modified June 29, 2005, 12:43:25]