June 9, 2007
State Head Coach Pat Murphy
"There's a lot to say about that game. This was just a credit to our guys. We have a long way to go. This does not guarantee us anything, but it's a great way to win. The thing that makes the story so beautiful is a kid like Ike Davis, who has not practiced well and is low on confidence. He has not had a real good self image [as a ballplayer] this week and to see him come up there and get a knock after three or four tough at-bats, coming through in a big situation is huge. Tim Smith had not had great AB's and also doesn't have the greatest self image of his Sun Devil career yet had huge AB's with runners at first and second. Give credit as well, in his first relief appearance. He was locked in and didn't give up a hit.
"I felt like we had a lot of things going against us early, the ball that was touched by a fan and probably would have scored two if it had gotten into the corner. There were a lot of things. We are facing a great pitcher tomorrow and I'm already thinking about that game. We did stay cool in the ninth. We were tense all game. We looked tense early on and we didn't make [Will Kline] work, he pitched great, and that's atypical of this team to not make him work."
On how the team responded with toughness:
"They had given me an inkling [of their character] before this, but I wanted to make sure that they understand that that's what wins games of this magnitude: toughness. It's mental toughness; nobody is going to fight out there, I hope, but its all about mental toughness."
On sticking with Leake in the seventh with runners on:
"It really started with the guy he hit, who was down two strikes in the count. My option right there was to bring in in that situation; I thought it was a bit too early. I said to myself, `What's the better option? right now, or stay with Mike.' I said, `Michael, I need one more hitter.' He hit the guy with two strikes and got ticked at himself; the next guy leaned out and got a little knock. Out of their 13 hits, you could count on one hand how many were hit hard. There were at least two in-field hits and a few that dropped in the gaps. They were balls that usually we make plays on.
On the team's performance:
"We've played worse than that before, but we made a base running mistake and usually we make those infield plays. Those plays bother me a little bit and offensively we didn't stay convicted. We weren't locked together like we were in the ninth inning."
On the homerun:
"I was seeing the ball well tonight and I figured he would come inside with the fastball again. I was able to drop the head on it and I was fortunate that it was not a fly out."
On struggling in his early at-bats:
"[Kline] was obviously a really good pitcher and was throwing well tonight. I was not 100% on my game plan. In the ninth, it was more about the team and making contact, trying to go the other way. I thought our team really picked everyone up in the ninth. If you had looked up at our dugout, everyone was up on the rail, cheering each other on, and picking each other up. It was a real team effort."
On coming through in the ninth inning:
"It was awesome. Especially tonight where I had come up in a couple situations with runners on and I felt like I had let them down a little bit. To be able to come up in a big situation like that and come through, pick your team up, you feel like you can do anything. The team did a great job of staying with me throughout the game and everyone was talking to me through the game to make sure I was still up."
Head Coach Mike Bianco
On the game against ASU:
"Obviously a very disappointing loss. Will pitched a heck of a game. He pitched his guts out. You have to tip your hat to . They were able to put together an inning like that, especially the way [Kline] was throwing. He just controlled the game on the mound. We had a good approach offensively but we just lacked the big hits. We couldn't extend the inning. We left a lot of people on base. Again, credit with their defense. [They had] some sensational plays in the outfield. We just weren't able to get the big hit with runners on and extend the lead which would have given us more cushion at the end."
On leaving Kline in the game:
"He was about a pitch away. Especially with Jarvis at bat and two strikes. Will is so good. You are hoping for a strike out there and maybe he can finish. Obviously it might have not been the right decision tonight. He was pitching so good and it was his game. I thought about it, if he didn't look like he had the command, than we would go to the bull pen. But since he was filling it up and he looked good out there, you figure eventually they are not going to get enough hits."
Pitcher William Kline
On pitching nine innings:
"I felt good. I felt like my stuff was there the whole game. It is just disappointing that the ball didn't fall our way in the last inning. It was a heck of a college baseball game. It stinks that we came out on the losing end."
On pitching against ASU's Jason Jarvis:
"I threw him three straight sliders, I believe. It has really been my go to pitch this year against right handed hitters. They didn't bat many righties, but it's not like I didn't have a feel for it. He got enough on it. He hit it deep enough to sacrifice a run."
On the ninth inning:
"For eight innings, things were going my way. We had a game plan coming in and we executed it well for eight innings. They are the number one offense in the country. I tip my hat to them, but at the same time I'm disappointed in myself for not making pitches. The game is won or lost on one or two pitches. My one or two pitches just happened to be in the ninth. It is disappointing."