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Defending champion Miami sneaks into super regionals

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) - Maybe Jim Burt was meant to be a star on Sunday. And maybe Miami Magic wasn't destined to end quite so soon.

Burt capped a dramatic day of baseball with a two-run, two-out double in the bottom of the ninth to give defending national champion Miami an 8-7 victory over Florida in the NCAA regionals.

The Hurricanes (33-27) trailed 7-5 heading into the inning, but this team never quits. Down to his last strike, Burt slammed the ball into the wall in left-center field. "I hit the ball as hard as I could possibly hit a ball," he said.

A few seconds later, the Hurricanes hit Burt - dogpiling him near second base and starting a celebration worthy of a national championship, even though that's still several wins away.

It was an improbable victory to continue an improbable postseason run. The defending champs were hovering around .500 in mid-May, simply hoping for some spark, and an invitation to the postseason.

But suddenly, the 'Canes have won eight of nine. They advance to the NCAA super regional at South Carolina next week on a roll. The winner of the best-of-3 series, which begins Friday, goes to the College World Series.

And then?

"We know if you get hot and believe in yourself, anything can happen," coach Jim Morris said.

Miami is still alive in large thanks to Burt, who may simply have been destined to be a star on this day.

With two out in the ninth inning of the first game, he hit a three-run homer to tie the game at 10. But the Gators (46-19) spoiled his dramatics when Mark Kiger homered in the bottom of the 10th for an 11-10 victory, forcing another game.

"It definitely gave me confidence from the first game," Burt said.

"I hadn't done anything like that all season. I've never even heard of somebody doing something like that in two games before. It'll probably never happen to me again."

And Morris will probably never feel as much pain in a postgame celebration again. Burt's father is Jim Burt Sr., the former lineman for the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers.

"His old man just about killed me, he squeezed me so hard," the coach said.

Florida went ahead 7-5 in the top of the ninth when pinch-hitter Matt Maley hit a high grounder that second baseman Javy Rodriguez could not handle. Two runs scored on the play.

"I was so disappointed," Rodriguez said.

But the Hurricanes had been getting clutch hits all day, and they weren't about to stop.

Paco Figueroa opened the bottom of the ninth with an infield single. Two batters later, Rodriguez moved him to third with a single of his own.

After a sacrifice fly made it 7-6, Kevin Howard singled to move pinch runner Joey Hooft to second.

Then came Burt, who ripped a ball into deep left center to win the game and keep the Miami Magic going. Burt, who was 0-for-4 going into the ninth inning of the first game, finished the day with three hits and five RBIs.

The most amazing stat for the Hurricanes - 16 of their 18 runs on Sunday came with two out.

"The difference between winning and losing is you've got to get hits with two outs," Morris said. "We've been doing that lately."

Miami closer George Huguet (7-4) wound up with both a win and a loss on the day.

Until the dramatic close, Florida pitcher Ben Hedgecock looked like he might be the hero, not Burt.

A junior who had thrown only 9 1-3 innings all season, Hedgecock pitched 6 1-3 innings of the second game, allowing four runs and eight hits. He left to a standing ovation, before giving way to Jimmy Ramshaw with one out in the ninth and runners on first and third.

Ramshaw (6-4) never got the final out, however, and the Gators ended this season with a stunning disappointment, rolling around in grief in front of their dugout while the Hurricanes celebrated on their field.

When it was over, the Gators figured Miami Magic might have played as big a role in their loss as the Hurricane players themselves.

"I have a really high opinion of them," Florida's Ryan Shealey said. "They are living on tradition right now. They have a lot of seniors with a lot of heart. They've been through all this before, and I think that helped them."

 

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