May 27, 2001
Game 4 Quotes #1 Notre Dame vs. #3 Florida International May 27, 2001
NOTRE DAME HEAD COACH PAUL MAINIERI
On the catcher’s interference call in the bottom of the 10th inning… “It was pretty difficult to just accept that. The obvious reason I was arguing was because the umpire originally called foul ball. It was really a shame because it was such a great ball game. Both teams played very well. They just got a couple more clutch hits than we did. We had the opportunity to get some runs earlier in the game and we didn’t do that. It came down to a close ball game at the end. You hate to see it decided by a controversial play like that.”
On the performance of Notre Dame starting pitcher Danny Tamayo…
“[Danny Tamayo] pitched his heart out. I thought he deserved better than that. He pitched well enough to win the game. “
On moving on after this afternoon’s game…
“It is not easy to win a tournament. We will have to do it the hard way now. But, that was probably as gut-wrenching a loss as I have had in my entire coaching career. However we can’t sit around and feel sorry for ourselves. If you let difficulty carry over to the next game they will have a tough time living with themselves. We have always said that as soon as the game is over you need to turn the page and move forward. That is what we are going to do.”
On his team’s hitting…
“We had so many opportunites, but we just could not get enough big hits. We just did not get them consistently. The last half of the order just didn’t contribute much, but it is a team effort.”
NOTRE DAME LEFTFIELDER KRIS BILLMAIER
On the abrupt ending to this afternoon’s game…
“It ended kind of quickly, but down the stretch they got it done and we didn’t.”
On his confidence in his team…
“I have complete confidence in our team. From here on out, we will just take it one game at a time so we can win this thing.”
NOTRE DAME PITCHER DANNY TAMAYO
On the ending of this afternoon’s game…
“We lost the game. Its hard, but we lost the game and that’s the bottom line.”
On losing to former childhood teammates…
“A loss is a loss. It doesn’t matter who it is to.”
On his performance…
“I felt stronger as the game went along. Unfortunately in the third and fourth innings, I gave up six runs. They hit some good pitches. I did not feel I was pitching badly. I did feel like I got stronger.”
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL COACH DANNY PRICE
On the nature of this afternoon’s game…
“It was one of those games that is very, very mental with lots of emotions. You just have to hang in there and fight. We had to keep battling and battling. Both teams really fought hard. It was just a great ball game. “
On the catcher’s interference in the bottom of the 10th inning…
“As soon as it happened I was running out. I saw it, I heard it, and I knew it was catcher’s interference. That is what I saw. To me it was pretty obvious. It is one of those things that just happens. It’s baseball. “
On his opponent’s performance…
“I would never take anything away from Notre Dame. It was such a hard ball game. It was just the call and it was really sad that it came down to something like that. I feel like he made the right call. It was such a great ball game. Both teams competed so hard. You hate for it to come down to just one play.”
On Notre Dame centerfielder Steve Stanley’s impressive grab and throw in the 7th inning…
“That was a great, great play. It was really a major league play. He truly caught it on the run and threw it all in the same motion. I had Hector (Nunez) tagging, but he had to hold up on his own.”
On his outlook for the tournament…
“We are not there yet. The whole goal today was to win one ball game and we did it. Tonight we will relax and tomorrow we will come out and just go for it.”
On the pressure of NCAA tournament play…
“When I get here I don’t feel pressure, I think it is more pressure getting here. I really enjoyed the game today. You can enjoy the game when you know you have done everything you could to prepare your team. It is really fun to watch two teams play like that at this level.”
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL LEFTFIELDER BARRY PAULK
On his mindset before his game-winning hit and RBI…
“I was thinking that I have a chance to enter uncharted territory for our program. I have been here for four years and we have always just been on the brink. It came down to me and it just happened. I tried not to think about my opponents. It was my opportunity and I just tried to focus on myself. I came down to me so I didn’t need to worry about them.”
On his success against Notre Dame starting pitcher Danny Tamayo…
“Actually, he had the better of me all game, but all it takes is one pitch. He fooled me most of the game and made me swing at some bad pitches, but you have to put it aside and go on. That is the essence of the game. “
FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL SHORTSTOP TINO BURGOS
On the catcher’s interference in the bottom of the 10th inning…
“I was not really surprised. I thought I felt it happen so I looked around for help. Coach Price came out to help me. That is just a part of baseball. The umpire made the right call.”