May 14, 2003

Columbia, SC - South Carolina hopes to play host to an NCAA baseball regional. The Citadel hopes to play in one.

Those goals will be in conflict tonight when South Carolina battles The Citadel at 7 p.m. at Sarge Frye Field in the latest regular-season meeting between the two instate rivals.

"It is always a good atmosphere when we play them," said South Carolina coach Ray Tanner, "but this game is a little bit more significant because it's important to us and important to them as far as what happens at the end of the year."

The Citadel (29-22) is expected to start sophomore right-hander Griff Beckham (2-1, 1.67 ERA). South Carolina (35-17) is expected to start freshman right-hander Conor Lalor (5-0, 3.18 ERA).

While South Carolina has a decided edge (106-42-1) in a series that began in 1900, The Citadel has had its moments, including a 5-1 victory over the Gamecocks last season.

South Carolina beat The Citadel 7-5 in this season's only other meeting between the two schools, Feb. 19 in Charleston.

"The Citadel is always a tough game for us," said Tanner. "It has been since I've been here, and I don't expect this game to play out any differently."

That tonight's encounter occurs unusually late in the season simply adds a little more resonance to an already significant game.

"Some games early in the year, you don't think about NCAA Tournament ramifications, but this game to us is that way, and I think it is to The Citadel," Tanner said. "They just won their last series, they're second in the Southern Conference and they're trying to be a good enough team that if they don't win the Southern Conference then they can be an NCAA at-large team.

"We want to host a regional, and I don't know what it's going to take, but I hope we can do well with what we've got left."

South Carolina closes out the regular season this weekend at home in a three-game Southeastern Conference series with Georgia, while The Citadel closes out its regular season at home with a three-game Southern Conference series with VMI.

The Citadel will play in the SoCon Tournament next week while the Gamecocks travel to Hoover, Ala., for the SEC Tournament.