The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Postgame quotes: Game 6 of NCAA Baseball Austin Regional
05.31.2009 | Baseball
May 31, 2009
Head Coach Augie Garrido
Opening statement: I think the finish wouldn't have been nearly as exciting if it hadn't been for the tremendous, competitive play of Army. They set that up with outstanding effort. They hit the ball hard. They hit it far. They hit it often. They hit it off the ground. They hit it when it was in the air. They hit it off the fence. They hit it over the fence. They really did a great job this game. We're fortunate to win and it was a dramatic win, combined with the dramatic win of last night. Those are the kind of magical things that I talk about. Well, it's the truth. There's something spiritual about baseball like Mother Nature. You don't mess with it. I think before a player can really believe in it, he has to experience it. We've experienced it two times in a row. Did one lead to the other? I don't know. But is this the kind of experience that gives players more confidence, gives them trust in themselves and helps them reach that level of invincibility that allows them to win a national championship? The answer is yes. It happened to Fresno State. It happened to Oregon State. We have a long way to go, but it's a great step forward. If we can hold on to the confidence that can come from this, and the players deserve to have that confidence, then all things are obtainable.
On advancing out of the regional: The whole game is about overcoming adversity. We faced about as much adversity as you possibly can and came out on top the last two days. That has a great chance to really do some great things for the individuals involved and the team.
On Preston Clark's performance: I was really happy for him. He's paid his dues. He's been through a lot of difficulties, and he's overcome them. Now he's getting to experience the good parts of all this.
Senior DH Preston Clark
On his grand slam walk-off home run: I'm still in shock. I can't express the feelings I have and excitement that goes along with that. It's not something everybody gets to experience. For me to be able to do that, it's an unbelievable feeling. I can't even tell you. As a little kid, that's what you dream about doing. You want to end a game like that, and that dream came true for me. I have many dreams, and that's one of them. I'll be smiling for the next week. I won't ever stop smiling. I don't even know what to say right now.
On his thoughts walking up to the plate in the ninth inning: Sit breaking ball. They've been throwing them all day, and I hadn't done anything with them. I didn't stay through the ball like I wanted to, to the middle side of the field. I had my chance earlier to knock in a guy, Michael [Torres] from third. But I got my chance in the ninth. It's all I can say. I was up there sitting pressure breaking ball. I knew it was coming, and I just took a hack at it and good things happened.
On the emotions of the dugout in the ninth inning: A lot of confidence. We didn't think we were finished. We sure didn't want to come back and play tomorrow. We wanted to end it today. Once B-Loy [Brandon Loy] came up big and hit that ball off the wall, we knew instantly that we were going to win that game. That was something that kept driving and building us to where we're at right now. All I had to do was put that ball into play that last inning and something bigger happened.
Freshman SS Brandon Loy
On his bases-clearing double to tie the game in the ninth: To tell you the truth, I was trying not to hit into a double play, because I have had a tendency to do that this year. I was trying to hit the ball and put it into play somewhere, and it turned out well. I'm glad it didn't go out so old Papa [Preston Clark] over here could walk it off for us. I was just trying to get a base hit. Act like it was a first inning, no big deal. I went up there confident, and I got the job done.
Sophomore RF Kevin Keyes
On advancing out of regionals: First of all, I lost my voice that last inning. This is awesome. This is what we've been working for since the fall. We kicked into the next gear the last inning, and everybody put in a huge, humongous fight. That's what Texas Baseball is all about. We showed a lot of heart. We showed a lot of character.
Army Head Coach Joe Sottolano
Opening statement: You have to congratulate The University of Texas. The way they competed all night long, they didn't give up. They scrapped and fought, and they came up with big hits when they needed to. Obviously they are a team that is on a mission, and we tip our caps and wish them well.
On our side, I couldn't ask for anything better in terms of the way we competed and the way we went about our business. We've been waiting all weekend long for our offense to show up and really perform. I kept saying we can hit, and I'm hoping that there's nobody here who doesn't believe that.
It's a different situation. We obviously knew when we came down here that people would respect us because of what these gentlemen wear across their chest. That certainly commands respect. But each and every one of these individuals that leaves this field wants to be remembered as a great baseball player and a great team. And I hope when this is done and when we leave, people just don't look at this as a great effort. They're a fine Army team. We want them to think that this team is good and these guys can play. They represent everything that's right in this country, and I'm privileged to be a part of that.
On when he felt his team was in trouble in the ninth inning: When the grand slam was hit. I don't mean this arrogantly or anything like that, but I don't think that we ever put ourselves in a position where we were in trouble. I don't think you weigh the odds before accepting the challenge. We were looking to man up in that situation and that's just the way we play. That's what we believe in and that's what's written across our chests. I believe when that grand slam was hit and when it cleared the fence, that was it.
Army CF Andy Ernesto
On the respect from the Texas crowd: We appreciated that a lot. All weekend we heard tons of respect from everyone. It was a nice gesture at the end.
Army SS Clint Moore
On his performance this weekend: It was a great tournament. I give all the credit to our guys. We had a great showing. Personally, I did pretty well but we still came out on the short end. We maybe could have done a little bit better. I reiterate the team, we did great. That's all that matters.