University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Post Game Quotes
5/26/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 26, 2011
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On what pitch was working for Todd McInnis today...
"He was locating that fastball away and I think that was the key. The wind was blowing out to left and we played weak side with him and he really did a great job. Coach (Michael) Federico did an excellent job calling the game for him too, so those two worked real well tonight. I'm very proud of the way Todd battled that last inning."
On playing to the USM crowd early and taking a 5-0 lead in the first...
"I think we came out with tremendous energy in that first inning. But also hats off to (Drew) Zizinia who gave Tulane a chance to get back in it. He had us. Todd never gave them that chance though to cut into the lead."
On McInnis becoming the school's career innings pitched leader...
"That's a credit I think to coach (Corky) Palmer and to my staff of not overworking and pushing people too far. That's probably why he's continued to pitch this well for so long."
On who will get the nod on the mound vs. Houston Thursday...
"We will go with Boomer Scarborough tomorrow. He'll be pumped to get out there, so we'll just have to control him a little bit."
Senior Pitcher Todd McInnis
On the pitching situation for the rest of the weekend with two guys suspended...
"We've got to have people step up, and I feel we have the guys in place on this team to do just that."
On playing in front of his hometown crowd and family...
"It was huge motivation for me and I got the chills when I was out there. My family and friends were all here and the crowd made it that much better for us. I just wanted to go out there and compete."
On breaking the career innings pitched record...
"First of all, it means I've been here forever. When a starting pitcher goes out there and throws a bunch of innings, it gives his team a chance to win. That's what I try to do everytime I go out on the mound. Tonight, I think I did a pretty good job but the team played great behind me, which they've done my whole career."
Tulane Head Coach Rick Jones
Opening Statement...
"Conrad's (Flynn) velocity was as good as it ever has been, and I thought he had great depth to his breaking ball, but we give up a bunt single and five balls through the infield. You have to give credit to Southern Miss. We just couldn't get one ball hit at somebody for a double play to change things. You know when you get to that point you have to make a move. You don't want to make a move in the first inning of a conference tournament, but I thought Drew Zizinia did a wonderful job in giving us a chance to catch up."
On the effort of USM's Todd McInnis...
"When you're facing a pitcher as good as McInnis, it's tough to come back from that deficit. He threw a four-hitter, and it was legitimate. He hit his spots and the couple times we had opportunities, we just couldn't get the big hit because we were facing a really good one."
On coming back after the five-run first inning...
"Everyone knows we have eight more at-bats, so we just try to have as many quality at-bats as we can, and I thought we did have some. We were just facing one of the premiere pitchers in the country and his numbers show that is one of the best. We just couldn't get the big hit to close the gap to do the little things to come back. We just couldn't get to that point."
On the effort of Tulane's Drew Zizinia in relief...
"Well, that's the furthest he's ever been. He told us he was out of gas after the eighth, and he should have been. He's never gone that far even in a starting role. Tonight, he went right after them and really managed his fastball. He had enough of a breaking ball to keep them off balance. He pitched really well."
Senior pitcher Drew Zizinia
On keeping the team within striking distance...
"I wasn't expecting to come into the game that early, but when Conrad (Flynn) struggled, I tried to come in and just throw strikes. It was a great atmosphere, and I loved to pitch in this stadium. I made some good pitches, and the defense really helped me out."
