Let's start with what else ... more followup from yesterday afternoon's dramatic win against the Trojans at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Ryan already posted the video of the game winning HR (which is headed towards rec. list fast). Here is more with interview of hero Cody Keefer and John Savage:
While Keefer was the man yesterday at JRS we cannot forget the strong pitching performance of Rob Rasmussen who was in control most of the game pinning the Trojans to 1 run through 8 innings. We can't also forget about junior OF Brett Krill who kept things alive for the Bruins in the 9th with two out single. From the Daily Bruin:
"You've got to give Brett Krill a lot of credit for getting on base with two outs and using the opposite field," coach John Savage said. "And then (Keefer), we haven't seen him hit the ball like that in a long time, and I think he's a player that has a little dramatic in him and he proved that today.
Don't forget Krill had a massive Saturday with a monster home run and 2 doubles (3 RBIs) during Bruins' 15-2 pounding of the Trogans. Bruins swept the Trogans for the second time in four seasons. The Bruins won all three games in the Pac-10 series at Dedeaux Field in 2007. Per the LA Times, the Trojans' head coach will most likely get canned at the end of this season (unless they are distracted by ... uhm .. . other issues):
USC has won 12 national championships in baseball, but the school is focused on dealing with coming news regarding the NCAA investigation into the football and basketball teams, which could be the distraction Kreuter needs to keep his job. More likely, not even agent Scott Boras, whose son, Shane, is an infielder for the Trojans, will be able to bail out Kreuter.
Well here is to Kreuter sticking around for few more seasons. As for the Bruins they still have huge games left during regular season. They will be hosting UCSB on Tuesday night at JRS before heading up to Strawberry Canyon for a big weekend series against the Cal Bears. Then next week they will be traveling to Fullerton (for a game which I am assuming will have implications in terms of who will be hosting regionals) before closing off the season against a solid Washington State team (which is making its own post-season run). Hopefully the Bruins can keep riding the momentum from Sunday's emotional win. More after the jump.
While the baseball team is looking to finish the season on a strong note to boosts its tournament positioning, the softball team is getting ready (and excited) to host first round of NCAA regionals in Westwood:
Good luck to KI's team. It was good to see them finish on a strong note by taking the season ending series against Arizona.
Speaking of post-season both tennis programs advanced through their respective tourneys this past weekend. The women's team advanced to Sweet-16 (where they will take on Duke) as the Bruins cruised through regional play with a 4-0 victory over ASU. Meanwhile the men's team blanked Cal 4-0 in the second round of NCAA tournament. They are going to take on Stanford this coming Friday in round of 16 in Athens, Georgia. Good luck to both our ladies and men in the Sweet-16.
Lastly, we will end with a programming note. This coming Saturday - May 22nd - UCLA athletics will hosting its "signature" fundraising event: True Blue Celebration at John R. Wooden Center. The event is going to feature auction of number of cool items which include "dinner and theater tickets (South Pacific) with offensive coordinator Norm Chow; and dinner with UCLA and NBA greats Bill Walton and Jamaal Wilkes." You can get full details here and RSVP here.
Last year's celebration featured with a sweet panel in which James Washington (now part of Morgan Center) led discussion with Wayne Cook, Cade McNown and Rick Neuehisel:
Yeah, David Norrie was there. If he is there this year you should let him know gently not to sound like a Bruin hating wanker during broadcasts of UCLA games on ABC (when he tries to hard to sound "impartial" unlike his fellow alums Don MacLean who just focus on analyzing the game). Guess Terry Donahue could be there too ... but ... meh ... whatever.
Anyway, every current head coach and number of student athletes will be attending the event. It sounds like a lot of fun. So if you live around Southern California, this seems like the perfect excuse to go back home to Westwood .
GO BRUINS.