May 27, 2001
UWM Head Coach Jerry Augustine
“We had six errors early and got ourselves in trouble early in the ball game. We battled, and that’s been the way we’ve played all year. We’ve been a team that battles and doesn’t get down and just plays until its last at-bat. We just told ourselves that we’d go into this game with the confidence of a champion and accept the challenge. We did not play as well as we wanted to, but we battled.”
On pitcher Matt Freisleben’s contribution… “Matt’s been one of our keys all year. He’s a kid who came in and learned a new pitching style a couple years ago. He’s really battled. He’s worked so hard and never lost confidence. He’s been our man all year, coming into tough situations. What happened today is he threw a ball a little bit out over the plate, and a guy got it up to win it. That happens. That’s baseball. You can’t look at just one pitch.”
On the NCAA’s regional/superregional format… “I really enjoy this. This is a lot of fun. First of all, we have more teams in the tournament, and that’s the most important thing. I know the NCAA realizes the impact this has on college baseball. It really shows that there is good baseball being played. It gives teams in the northern parts of the U.S. a great opportunity.”
UWM second baseman Scott Gillitzer
On his effort today… “On the offensive side, I do [feel like I left everything out on the field]. Defensively, though, I wish that I would have had a better effort and not gotten the pitching staff in as much trouble. On the offensive side, I think everyone should feel good about themselves. We hit the ball like we could, no matter who was on the mound.”
On losing the game on a ninth-inning home run… “I’d rather lose by one run on a homer in the last inning than by 12-4. It says a lot for our team. We’re not flashy. We just hit the ball and try to play defense the best we can. The six errors killed us.”
UWM Pitcher Matt Freisleben
On the home run… “I knew it would be good as soon as it was hit. I was pitching well. That was the longest outing I’d had all year, but they needed me to soak up some innings because the bullpen was getting depleted the last few days. My biggest mistake was that I threw it in, and it was supposed to be out. He took advantage. That was the most sliders I’ve thrown in a game, too, trying to keep them off balance. That’s how it goes.”
On his team’s rally… “After the rain yesterday, we almost thought we had the game run already. We were down five runs, but I kept thinking that we were very confident for a team that was down five runs. We came back in (today) and scored four runs right away and were back in it just like we thought we would be.”
UWM’s D.J. Daggett
On the delays… “It gets to you. You warm up one pitcher, and then he has to sit twenty minutes, two hours sometimes, and you know he can’t go back in. Our pitching staff did the best they could, but it’s hard for all the players. They had to deal with it just like we did, and today they beat us.”
UCSB head coach Bob Brontsema
On the game… “I have to tip my hat to their squad. We had a chance to get to know them over the last couple days, and not only are they a great bunch of guys, but offensively, they were the best team we’ve played all year. Their approaches were outstanding, tough outs. I have to give Jerry (Augustine) all the credit in the world. Being able to come back at the end was a pretty good testament to our capabilities as well.”
On outfielder Ryan Spilborgh’s hitting streak… “He is one of the guys that we do utilize to move players around the bases. So, the fact that he has this hitting streak intact is quite an accomplishment. We do use him to bunt, he has the school record for sacrifices. We hit-and-run with him a lot, so it makes his streak that much more impressive.”
On his team’s response to the rain delays… “It had all of the makings of a comeback-disaster loss. That’s why I have to give our guys a lot of credit. Our guys have been pretty strong throughout the game. Our guys have teetered, but they have never fallen, and it’s been a testament to them.”
UCSB outfielder Jed Stringham
On his game-winning home run… “I was looking for something a little more inside with the wind blowing that way, but he came inside. I just went with it. The wind was blowing that way, so I was just looking for it to drop fair, and it kept going. The guy kept running, and he just ran out of real estate.”
On sidearm pitching… It was tough on me. It was hard to pick up a couple of times. I took a couple of pitches from him, and it was just a different arm angle, a different look. It’s always nice to have a second at-bat, to try and win the battle a second time. That’s what I try to do.”
UCSB outfielder Ryan Spilbourghs
On extending his hitting streak in the last at-bat… “It feels pretty good. I’ve been doing it all year like that. With a lineup like ours, you always feel like you’ll get another chance. Throughout the rest of the game, I have other jobs to do, to move the runners over. I know I’ll get a chance by the end of the game to extend my hitting streak. I don’t really consider it during the game. I just try to do my job, and the hits tend to come.”
UCSB pitcher Matt Moran
On the effect of the rain delay… “I didn’t really have any doubt. I’ve never been in a rain delay like that before, so I just tried to stay loose. When they took the tarp off, I tried to run a little bit to keep my legs loose.