Garner Tosses Complete Game As Spartans Shut Out No.13 Purdue

MSU Baseball Facebook Page

 By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier

Spartans pitcher David Garner took things into his own hands on Sunday when he threw a complete game shutout, while fanning seven to lead his Spartans to a 5-0 win over the No. 13 Purdue Boilermakers.

During the nine innings that Garner was on the mound, he allowed just five Purdue hits - impressive as Purdue entered Sunday as the third best batting team in the country. The shutout was the first the Boilermakers suffered this season.

The win was Garner's first complete game of his career and the second in three days for Spartans pitching. Tony Bucciferro threw eight innings against Purdue on Friday in Michigan State's 6-2 loss that day. Sunday's win allowed the Spartans to avoid the sweep by the Boilermakers who won in walk-off fashion in the 14th inning Saturday night.

Michigan State got on the board first in the fourth inning when Torsten Boss, Ryan Krill and Justin Scanlon all contributed RBI singles to the effort. The three runs would be all Garner would need as he did not allow a runner to reach base on balls and surrendered just two hits in the final four innings of the game.

The Spartans would tack on two more runs in the eighth and ninth innings, with Jared Hook hitting an RBI single in the eighth and Scanlon with his own RBI single in the ninth. 

No. 13 Purdue Takes First Two Games From Spartans

MSU Baseball Facebook Page

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier 

The Spartan baseball team traveled to West Lafayette, Ind. to take on No. 13 Purdue in a three-game weekend series. First on the mound for the Spartans was Tony Bucciferro, the ace of the staff, and despite giving Michigan State a complete game in the first game of the series, the Spartans fell 6-2. On Saturday, the Spartans lost a 14-inning heart breaker to the Boilermakers, 4-3.

Friday

Michigan State went up against Purdue's ace, Joe Haase, who improved to 7-0 on the season, allowing just one run and maintaining his perfect record. Haase gave the Boilermakers seven innings of work while giving up six hits and fanning three. 

In Bucciferro's eight-inning outing he scattered eight Boilermaker hits, while allowing six runs, four earned. Purdue struck big in the fourth inning when RF Barrett Sarrato turned on a Bucciferro pitch and sent the ball over the fences for a grand slam - erasing the one-run lead the Spartans had and putting the Boilermakers up 4-1.

Two unearned Boilermaker runs came across in the seventh inning to extend their lead to 6-1. With the win Purdue improved it's nation-leading winning percentage to .846 and their record to 33-6. Michigan State failed to scratch across another run until the ninth inning when they loaded the bases with no outs.

With the bases loaded and no one out the Spartans bounced into a double play, which allowed a run to score but all but put the nail in the Spartans coffin. 

Jordan Keur improved his team-leading batting average to .406, by going 2-for-4 and being the only Spartan with more than one hit.

Saturday

The Spartans were in familiar territory on Saturday when they took the Purdue Boilermakers into 14 innings, but for the first time in seven attempts, Michigan State did not come out on top in the extra inning match-up, falling to Purdue, 4-3.

Both pitchers were on their game on Saturday - with a pitchers duel going on, the Spartans did not score until they were able to get three in the eighth inning. Torsten Boss cleared the bases with two outs in the top of the eighth for the Spartans when he took a pitch and drove it into the gap.

Andrew Waszak was on the mound for the Spartans and went 7.2 innings, exiting in the eighth inning having allowed just one run on the day. Waszak was in line for the win with closer Tony Wieber on the mound with a 0.94 ERA. But Wieber didn't seem to have it on Saturday.

With one out in the ninth, Wieber loaded the bases, but after getting a fly out for the second out of the inning, a clutch hit plated the two tying runs, tying the game a three and sending it into extras. The Spartans threatened but did not score in the 11th inning when they squandered a Ryan Jones single and Torsten Boss reaching on an error with no outs.

Purdue took home the win in the 14th when Tyler Spillner was able to reach first base on a fielding error by Jones. The next batter, Eric Charles, got on first on a throwing error by Boss. With men on first and second, a wild pitch moved them each up 90-ft. Cameron Perkins then singled to right field to score Spillner and win the game for the Boilermakers, 4-3.

2012 NFL Draft: A look at this and past year's classes from Michigan State

By Adam Biggers
@AdamBiggers81

The Michigan State Spartans have put forth a solid class entering Thursday's 2012 NFL Draft.

Most notable is quarterback Kirk Cousins, who owns nearly every quarterback-related at Michigan State. Of course, Jerel Worthy could be the first taken, but don't forget about talented receivers like Keith Nichol, Keshawn Martin and B.J. Cunningham, along with tight ends Garrett Celek and Brian Linthicum.


Running back Edwin Baker declared early, and safety Trenton Robinson could be a late-rounder, further adding to a solid group which could see at least four drafted by a pro team.


As the Spartans continue their climb up the NCAA football ranks, surely, there will be more players considered for the draft. Since 2008, Michigan State hasn't had more than three athletes taken in a single year.


Since this year's class seems to be the deepest, it's only logical to take a look back at some of the sturdiest classes in recent history while also highlighting some of the better players in memory.


The 2005 class was arguably one of Michigan State's best of the decade, at least in terms of sheer numbers. Four players were selected that year: running back Deandra Cobb was taken in the sixth round by the Atlanta Falcons, while kicker Dave Rayner was taken the same round by the Indianapolis Colts.

The Miami Dolphins selected defensive tackle Kevin Vickerson in the seventh round, and the Green Bay Packers took guard William Whittaker later in the seventh.


Other noteworthy draftees include Javon Ringer, who was taken by the Tennessee Titans in the fifth round of the 2009 draft. Ringer still sees back-up duties behind Chris Johnson.


[Follow this link to see every NCAA school's draft history. Programs are listed in alphabetical order.]


Devin Thomas was a part of the New York Giants' Super Bowl XLVI team this season and has had a productive NFL career. He was one of the Spartans' most exciting receivers -- a great threat in open space with a set of incredible hands. He was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 2008 draft.


Other than Thomas, Drew Stanton has been Michigan State's earliest player taken in recent years. Thomas was the third pick of the second round in 2008, while Stanton, who now plays for the Indianapolis Colts, was the 11th player taken in the second round of the 2007 draft.


Stanton -- one of Michigan State's elite -- was drafted by the hometown Detroit Lions and made his way to the New York Jets. But he then asked to be moved to Indianapolis after Tim Tebow bumped him out the No. 2 role behind Mark Sanchez.


Check back for more Spartans-related NFL Draft notes and analysis throughout the week.

Jerel Worthy could be Michigan State's first 1st-round NFL Draft pick since 2003

Photo: Associated Press -- Jerel Worthy never lost to Michigan. That's not really important when it comes to draft talk, just a reminder.


By Adam Biggers
@AdamBiggers81

The Michigan State Spartans haven't had more than two players taken in the NFL Draft since 2008. And perhaps more interesting is the fact that they haven't had a player taken in the first round since 2003, when the Detroit Lions selected wide receiver Charles Rogers with the No. 2 pick.

Well, starting Thursday, the Spartans could see at least four (maybe up to six) players taken in the 2012 NFL Draft. More importantly, Michigan State could see one of its own go in the first round: defensive tackle Jerel Worthy.


Now, Worthy didn't blow away the competition during the NFL Combine. However, he's ranked 22nd in Scout's top players available and ranked the No. 2 defensive tackle behind Mississippi State's Fletcher Cox.


Initially, Worthy was thought of as an early second-round pick. But he's slated to go in the first round, according to a handful of mock drafts.


Worthy, who would be a senior come fall, was an incredibly aggressive and reliable defender at Michigan State. He had a spectacular sophomore year and followed up with a solid junior year, in which he was named an All-American. Worthy started 38 times at defensive tackle and made 107 tackles -- 27.5 for a loss, which is 13th in school history. His 12 sacks are the 12th-most in Spartans history.


When looking at other Spartans in this year's draft, it's almost certain that Worthy -- who combined for six tackles in three wins over Michigan -- will be the first taken. Although it's uncertain if he's a shoo-in first-rounder, he'll probably be selected before teammates Kirk Cousins, BJ Cunningham, Keshawn Martin, Trenton Robinson and Edwin Baker.


Keith Nichol, Brian Linthicum and Garrett Celek are also eligible for the draft.

Stay tuned for more NFL Draft coverage from Gang Green, the Oakland Press' No. 1 MSU blog (or so we'd like to think).

Spartans Baseball Take Two of Three Against Minnesota

MSU Baseball

By Sean Gagnier
@SeanGagnier
 
After a rain soaked Friday forced a double header on Saturday the Spartans and Golden Gophers of Minnesota split the twin billing with Michigan State winning on a walk-off in game one before having their five game winning streak snapped in game two. On Sunday, the Spartans shook off their loss and beat the Gophers in the 10th inning on a Torsten Boss walk-off allowing the Spartans to win two out of three games on the weekend.

Saturday - Double Header

The first game of the double header featured some of the best pitchers, starting and relievers, in the Big Ten. Michigan State had Tony Bucciferro on the mound going against Minnesota's TJ Oakes. Oakes entered the game ranked No. 1 in the Big Ten in ERA, IP and wins.

Minnesota struck first in the game when they strung together three hits in the first inning and were able to plate a runner, but the Spartans Jordan Keur tied things up in the bottom of the third inning with an RBI single.

Michigan State got to Oakes in the fifth with two outs when Ryan Jones singled to center field and was able to scamper around the bases and score on a Boss double to left field. After a shaky first inning, Bucciferro was able to toss four scoreless innings for the Spartans, allowing them to get out to a 2-1 lead in the fifth inning.

The Gophers tied the game at two in the sixth when catcher Matt Halloran singled in a run. Minnesota was able to chase Bucciferro from the game in the seventh when they loaded the bases with two outs. Spartans coach Jake Boss, Jr. gave the ball to Jeff Kinley to get his team out of the jam. Kinley did his job and got the next batter to ground out to end the inning.

Oakes also left after throwing 6.2 innings; he left runners on first and second with two outs for his reliever who was able to get Boss to pop out to end the threat.

Kinley and Gophers reliever Tom Windle both continued the pitchers duel into the 11th inning when Joel Fisher singled with two outs to put Spartans on first and third. Minnesota turned to their closer Kevin Kray to stop the rally but he walked Jones, loading the bases. Then Boss was able to draw a five pitch walk that forced in the game winning run.

The win was the Spartans third walk-off of the season, the fifth win of the season for Kinley and expanded Michigan State's extra innings record to 5-0.

Game two did not go the Spartans way. Michigan State, looking for their sixth win in a row, jumped out to a early 1-0 lead in the first inning. Ryan Krill, continued to shine in his freshman season when he drove in an RBI in the first with a ground out. The Spartans struggled to bring runners home in the early innings, leaving four runners on in the first two innings.

Krill's RBI would be the only run the Spartans would get until in the late game as they struggled to get anything going against Minnesota's DJ Snelton. The Gophers would bounce back in the second inning and plate two runners before adding two more in the fifth to take a 4-1 lead.

After a shaky first two innings Snelton settled in and faced the minimum through the next four innings. In the seventh the Spartans were able to scratch across another run when Jimmy Pickens was able to ground out to the right side of the infield.

Snelton completed the game, his first of the season, while throwing 121 pitches, allowing seven hits and fanning three. His counterpart, Andrew Waszak allowed just four runs through 5.2 innings, but his offense wasn't able to bail him out and he suffered his third loss of the season, making his record 4-3.

Sunday

In another extra innings game, the Spartans counted on Torsten Boss once again as he drove in the winning run on an RBI single to lift Michigan State over Minnesota in the rubber match of the series by a score of 5-4.

Extra innings have been good to the Spartans this year, with Sunday's victory being the fourth walk-off win of the season and second of the series for the Spartans. Michigan State's bats were hot on Sunday, racking up 15 hits, lead by Jordan Keur who matched a career high four hits on the day.

Minnesota scored twice in the eighth to tie the game at four, then Michigan State loaded the bases with no outs for the second straight inning, but came up short in both instances. Jimmy Pickens attempted to break the tie with two outs in the eighth when he made a break for the plate on a fly ball to center, but Gopher's center fielder Jake Bergren cut him down at the plate to end the inning.

In the 10th inning the Spartans once again filled the bases with no one out when Pickens launched a deep hit to right-center field, but as he was rounding first base he ran into Gophers first baseman Dan Olinger. The collision with Olinger sent Pickens stumbling but he was able to round second base and dig for third where he was thrown out. The umpires called Olinger for interference however, and awarded Pickens third base on the play.

Joel Fisher hit a hard liner between the shortstop and third baseman, but Gophers SS Matt Puhl was able to knock it down before it got out of the infield and held Pickens at third while Fisher reached first on the infield hit. In the next at bat, Ryan Jones was able to hit a pop up that dropped just in front of the Minnesota left fielder; it allowed Fisher to advance to second and Jones to reach first but was not deep enough to score Pickens.

With the bases loaded and no outs Boss stepped to the plate. He had worked a five pitch walk to score the game-winning run in the first game of the double header on Saturday and now he looked to do the same. On the first pitch Boss saw he connected with it and drove it to left-center field to score Pickens and give Michigan State the 5-4 win.

Great news: Michigan State center Adreian Payne is 'OK' after car crash

Photo: Associated Press -- Adreian Payne dunks in Michigan State's Carrier Classic loss to North Carolina.


By Adam Biggers
@AdamBiggers81

Michigan State Spartans basketball center Adreian Payne is OK after being involved in a car accident Friday in Ohio, reports MLive.com's Diamond Leung.

According to the article, Payne posted a photo to his Twitter account after the accident which reportedly took place on Interstate 70, adding that "God is real," to add context to the severity of the collision.

"I should not be here," Payne wrote on his Twitter account, according to MLive.com. "God blessed me. I was in a car accident someone hit me on the highway..."

Leung's report says that a deer caused the accident, relaying information obtained from a Montgomery (Ohio) County dispatcher.

Considering the consequences of deer-related highway crashes, it's safe to say that Payne was indeed lucky to escape unharmed -- or, at the very least, significantly injured. Deer plus speedy highway travel usually doesn't have a happy ending. We at Gang Green would like to wish Payne well. 

Quotable gems from Michigan State Spartans football coach Mark Dantonio

 Photo -- Associated Press: Michigan State's Mark Dantonio has never been short on great Michigan-related quotes. Never. Not once.

By Adam Biggers
@AdamBiggers81

Honestly, I can't take full credit for the following. MLive.com's Graham Couch did a wonderful job of gathering Michigan Wolverines-related quotes from Michigan State Spartans coach Mark Dantonio.

However, after Dantonio's gem yesterday, implying he's not threatened by Michigan, I started thinking of all the uber-quotable phrases from the Spartans' sixth-year coach.


Dantonio has never been one to take obvious, hate-filled shots at Michigan. He's more or less subtle and witty while doing it -- until yesterday, of course. But even then, his words weren't out of line. They were great for the rivalry.


I can remember the escalating confidence Dantonio displayed since his first win over Michigan: A 35-21 romping in Ann Arbor in 2008. Dantonio was even optimistic after a four-point loss to Michigan (28-24) in 2007.


Here's a look at Dantonio's Wolverines-related phrases. Of course, Couch beat me to the punch -- so kudos to him. But if you follow Michigan State football, Dantonio's words about Michigan likely linger in your mind.


From Couch's latest Michigan State post: (Thanks, Graham). I took the liberty of explaining the quotes/adding context for further clarification. The direct quotes from Couch's post are italicized.

 
Nov. 3, 2007: "Let's just remember, pride comes before the fall," Dantonio said, repeating the phrase, shortly after Michigan's 28-24 win at Spartan Stadium in his first season as Michigan State's coach.


"This game is an important game. If they want to mock us all they want to mock us, I'm telling 'em, it's not over. … It's not over and it'll never be over here ... It's just starting."


[2007 was Michigan's sixth consecutive win over Michigan State.]

 
Oct. 25, 2008: "I'll go on the record as saying this one counts as more than one," Dantonio said after the Spartans' 35-21 win in Ann Arbor. "We took a step forward in the eyes of the people in Michigan and toward changing the culture in this state."


[The win in Ann Arbor was Michigan State's first since 1990.]

 
Oct. 3, 2009: "We did something that hasn't been done in 42 years," Dantonio said after Michigan State's 26-20 overtime win in East Lansing, its first back-to-back wins over Michigan since the late 1960s. "That's amazing. But facts are facts. This game has a way of defining you."


[Dantonio was referring to Michigan State's first back-to-back victory over Michigan since 1965-66. The Spartans went on to post their third straight in 1967.]

 
Oct. 9, 2010: "The only response I have is maybe some day the little brother grows up," Dantonio said after a 34-17 victory at the Big House, referencing former Wolverine running back Mike Hart's now famous line following Michigan's 2007 win over the Spartans. This was also Dantonio's first game back after his heart attack suffered three weeks earlier.


[Dantonio was referring to former Michigan star running back Mike Hart's "Little Brother" comment, directed toward Michigan State, which Hart viewed as a little brother struggling to compete with his big brother. The victory was Michigan State's third consecutive, a feat it hadn't achieved since 1965-67.]

 
Oct. 15, 2011: "Times have changed," Dantonio said, closing a brief postgame live television interview on the field after Michigan State' 28-14 win in East Lansing, its fourth straight against Michigan.


[Michigan State posted its fourth consecutive win over Michigan for the first time since 1959-62. Dantonio believed that win showed Michigan State wasn't lucky in winning four in a row, but that Michigan State was indeed the state's best program.]