Clemson Postgame

Perhaps Coastal pitcher Austin Fleet said it best last night: "I'm sure we'll see these guys in the postseason again," the senior said.

If the Chanticleers do run into Clemson again this season, at least they know now that they can beat the Tigers. That certainly wasn't the case before Wednesday's 4-3 win at Doug Kingsmore Stadium, which was Coastal's first win in the series since 2005 and first in Tiger Town since 2003.

This was certainly a big RPI win -- the Tigers were seventh and Coastal was 13th in the simulated rankings on Wednesday -- but this was more mental than anything. This team has gone into ACC parks and won before -- a midweek victory over No. 1 North Carolina in 2009 comes to mind -- but you didn't necessarily believe the Chants when they said they could go into Kingsmore Stadium and win. Now they should feel confident about it, especially considering the early deficit they overcame.

And the Chants now known they can thrive in a big-time atmosphere. Rarely playing in front of several thousand fans, you never know how the Chants are going to perform when they get into such an atmosphere in the postseason. Kingsmore Stadium was packed Wednesday, but the environment never got to the Chants.

"It's a confidence builder," coach Gary Gilmore said. "You always realize there is a chance we'll be on the road in a regional somewhere if we don't play well the entire year. If not in a regional in a super regional you'll have an environment like this against a team like this. To squeak out any win in that situation is huge for us, because it gives us a lot of confidence. We've played a lot of home games so far, and I think the true greatness of team is [measured by its ability] to win on the road and in tough environments. The team two years ago that got to a super regional was able to do that. Their road record was outstanding. We went into some tough environments and won.

"All if you have to do is look at our track record and realize how tough this place is for us to win in for some reason."

Despite the confidence it built, the bottom line is that Coastal needed a win if it wants to host a regional. I said in the press box during the game that the Chants might need to go 2-1 in midweek games -- this is mainly due to the series loss against San Diego -- at Clemson, North Carolina and No. 1 Virginia and then dominate the Big South to host. Those ACC games could be RPI-boosting results and help the public perception of Coastal's resume.

"It's a huge piece of the puzzle for us," Gilmore said. "We're the guy out there trying to be a resume builder. For us getting a road win here is huge. Hopefully we can build upon it."

That starts this weekend against a bad Presbyterian team. A loss in any of those three games -- the Blue Hose won a game in 2009 -- would be a disaster and would kill any momentum created on Wednesday.

If the Chanticleers do run into Clemson again this season, at least they know now that they can beat the Tigers. That certainly wasn't the case before Wednesday's 4-3 win at Doug Kingsmore Stadium, which was Coastal's first win in the series since 2005 and first in Tiger Town since 2003.

This was certainly a big RPI win -- the Tigers were seventh and Coastal was 13th in the simulated rankings on Wednesday -- but this was more mental than anything. This team has gone into ACC parks and won before -- a midweek victory over No. 1 North Carolina in 2009 comes to mind -- but you didn't necessarily believe the Chants when they said they could go into Kingsmore Stadium and win. Now they should feel confident about it, especially considering the early deficit they overcame.

And the Chants now known they can thrive in a big-time atmosphere. Rarely playing in front of several thousand fans, you never know how the Chants are going to perform when they get into such an atmosphere in the postseason. Kingsmore Stadium was packed Wednesday, but the environment never got to the Chants.

"It's a confidence builder," coach Gary Gilmore said. "You always realize there is a chance we'll be on the road in a regional somewhere if we don't play well the entire year. If not in a regional in a super regional you'll have an environment like this against a team like this. To squeak out any win in that situation is huge for us, because it gives us a lot of confidence. We've played a lot of home games so far, and I think the true greatness of team is [measured by its ability] to win on the road and in tough environments. The team two years ago that got to a super regional was able to do that. Their road record was outstanding. We went into some tough environments and won.

"All if you have to do is look at our track record and realize how tough this place is for us to win in for some reason."

Despite the confidence it built, the bottom line is that Coastal needed a win if it wants to host a regional. I said in the press box during the game that the Chants might need to go 2-1 in midweek games -- this is mainly due to the series loss against San Diego -- at Clemson, North Carolina and No. 1 Virginia and then dominate the Big South to host. Those ACC games could be RPI-boosting results and help the public perception of Coastal's resume.

"It's a huge piece of the puzzle for us," Gilmore said. "We're the guy out there trying to be a resume builder. For us getting a road win here is huge. Hopefully we can build upon it."

That starts this weekend against a bad Presbyterian team. A loss in any of those three games -- the Blue Hose won a game in 2009 -- would be a disaster and would kill any momentum created on Wednesday.