Sports

Cougars turn into hit factory

by Emily Davis
The Daily Cougar

After suffering a three-game sweep at Tulane that dropped them back to .500 and threatened to send the season spiraling downhill, the Cougars remembered something they apparently forgot to take with them to New Orleans last weekend.

Pin Lim/The Daily Cougar

The bats.

The baseball team broke out the lumber again this weekend to pound out 30 hits -- seven for extra bases -- and score 20 runs in a three-game sweep of Saint Louis at Cougar Field.

The Conference USA sweep, combined with a confidence-boosting 5-1 win over No. 1 Rice on Wednesday, left UH at 22-18 on the season -- but more importantly, 13-6 and in third place in C-USA.

The Cougars hope to keep the good times -- and the hits -- rolling when they travel to San Marcos today for a 6:30 p.m. game against Southwest Texas, a team they beat 14-6 earlier in the season.

"This is a team that cannot be underestimated," assistant coach Sean Allen said. "Southwest loves to play us and they will be ready."

After twice being limited to five hits and scoring a total of four runs in their lost weekend in New Orleans, the Cougars started swinging again against crosstown rival Owls, which had beaten UH in the teamsi four previous meetings.

But much to Riceis chagrin, the fifth time was the charm for UH batters, who collected eight hits and knocked around four Rice pitchers in a much-needed victory. Michael Bourn and Travis Tully each had two hits and an RBI against the Owls.

The thwack of the bat was heard from all over this weekend. Bourn set the table with seven hits and also drove in four runs from the leadoff spot; left fielder Tully added three hits and four RBIs in limited duty, raising his average to .390; catcher/second baseman Nick Bott had four hits, including a home run, and three RBIs; and second baseman/designated hitter Cole Bruce had four hits.

And then thereis Hyung Cho. The slugging third baseman continued to punish opposing pitchers like no other UH hitter, picking up five more hits against the Billikens and driving in three runs.

Two of the hits were doubles, his team-leading 14th and 15th of the season, and he blasted his ninth home run in Game 3 of the series to put him six ahead of his nearest teammate in that category. Cho is hitting a robust .372 and slugging at a phenomenal .641 clip on the season.

"I am proud of where our hitters have gone," Allen said. "Some new guys have stepped up and made some noise, but all of the hitters have something to be proud of."

On the mound, All-American Brad Sullivan continued to rebound from a shaky start to the season, notching his fifth win in Game 1 with a four-hit gem. He allowed two earned runs in eight innings to lower his ERA to a minuscule 2.10.

So with the bats and arms in sync again, the Cougars move on to San Marcos, where they will face an SWT team fresh off a Southland Conference series win over Texas-Arlington that pulled it within a game of first place in the league standings.

The Bobcats (21-21, 12-5) are led by outfielder Richard Martinez (.320, 3 HR, 22 RBIs), second baseman Jacob Spencer (.299, 1, 27) and shortstop Ignacio Suares (.305, 3, 25) at the plate and have two hurlers, Tom Robbins and Brandon Hankins, with ERAs under 2.

After facing SWT, the Cougars travel to Tampa, Fla., for a weekend C-USA series with South Florida.

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