College World Series : Florida State, Wichita State Win in First Round

With seven of the nation’s 10 winningest pitchers present, this year’s College World Series has been billed as “A Call to Arms.”

And as the eight-team tournament got under way Friday in warm, muggy weather, pitchers dominated as expected.

Top-seeded Florida State defeated North Carolina, 4-2, and Wichita State beat Arkansas, 3-1, before a crowd of 14,039 at Rosenblatt Stadium, where slugfests have been common.

For the second year, the eight-team field is broken into East and West brackets that will be played with a double-elimination format. Winners of each bracket will advance to a one-game final June 10.

Cal State Long Beach (50-13) will play Texas (51-17), and Miami (48-16) will play Louisiana State (53-15) today in the first round of West Bracket games.

Florida State (53-16) will play Wichita State (64-15), and North Carolina (41-17-1) will play Arkansas (50-15) in East Bracket games Sunday.

Wichita State Coach Gene Stephenson predicted that the hitting will intensify as the tournament progresses.

“First-day jitters affect hitters more than pitchers,” Stephenson said.

However, unlike the regional playoffs, which feature consecutive-day playing schedules and doubleheaders that can drain a pitching staff, the World Series uses an every-other-day format that should keep top pitchers available.

Florida State and Miami both have staff earned-run averages of under 3.00. Texas, at 4.26, is the only team with a staff ERA higher than 4.00.

Because of his team’s pitching depth, Florida State Coach Mike Martin was able to rest staff ace Clyde Keller (12-0, 2.63 ERA) and go instead with Gar Finnvold against the Tar Heels.

Finnvold, a junior right-hander, gave up four hits and struck out five in 7 1/3 innings to improve to 10-3.

Finnvold gave up two hits and a run in the first, then yielded only one hit over the next six innings.

“My slider was working real well,” Finnvold said. “Once you get the slider over, that’s a real confidence-builder. From then on I was able to spot my fastball.”

Florida State led, 4-1, when Finnvold gave way to Ricky Kimball with one out and runners at second and third in the eighth.

Kimball walked Tom Nevin to load the bases and Brad Woodall hit a sacrifice fly to center to make the score 4-2. Kimball then hit Ron Maurer to load the bases but North Carolina catcher Jesse Levis flied out to left, ending the threat.

Kimball retired the side in order in the ninth to earn his ninth save.

North Carolina pitcher John Thoden (12-1) gave up six hits in 7 1/3 innings, including a second-inning home run by Florida State designated hitter Buddy Cribb that tied the score, 1-1.

Florida State went ahead, 3-1, in the third on Bob Reboin’s single that scored Rocky Rau, who had singled to lead off the inning and moved to third on a double by Pedro Grifol. Brian Gilliland then grounded into a double play, enabling Grifol to score.

The Seminoles scored their final run in the seventh when Rob Bargas scored from third on an errant pick-off throw by Levis.

In the second game, Wichita State starter Greg Brummett (16-2), a senior All-American right-hander, gave up only four hits in 7 1/3 innings before giving way to Jim Newlin, who earned his nation-leading 16th save.

“My fastball kept me in the game,” said Brummett, who lasted only 1 1/3 innings against Arkansas in February in the Shockers’ season-opener. “I moved it in on them, making them pound it into the ground.”

The Shockers scored first, in the fourth inning when Jim Audley hit a two-run homer off starter Mark Swope (7-1), who gave up five hits and struck out five in six innings.

Arkansas scored its only run in the sixth when Greg D’Alexander hit a Brummett slider over the left-field wall.

Pat Meares scored Wichita State’s final run, in the eighth, when he came home from third on a wild pitch by reliever Mike Oquist.

College World Series Notes

Cal State Long Beach Coach Dave Snow was selected as coach of the year by the newspaper Collegiate Baseball. Snow led Long Beach to a 50-13 record and its first berth in the College World Series after last season’s 14-45 finish. . . . Snow is the fourth head coach to bring two different teams to the World Series. In 1986, Snow led Loyola Marymount to Omaha. . . . Andy Croghan (12-0, 3.09 ERA), a freshman right-hander from Yorba Linda, will start tonight for Long Beach against Texas. Sophomore right-hander Kirk Dressendorfer (16-2, 2.46) will start for the Longhorns. . . . Junior left-hander Kyle Abbott (15-2, 2.37) will start for Long Beach on Monday against either Miami or Louisiana State, who play each other tonight.