SSC 40 Great Moments: Spartans Rally to Win National Title

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Down twice in the 2006 national title game, players for the University of Tampa knew they had to dig deep. The Spartans fought back from two one-run deficits to win the program's fourth baseball national championship.

Tampa ran through the south regional, defeating Albany State, Florida Southern, Florida Gulf Coast, and Catawba to claim their spot in the national tournament. Once the Spartans arrived at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, Alabama their playoff competition stiffened.

First up for the Spartans at the national tournament was Francis Marion, followed by Montevallo. Both squads battled the Spartans in one run ballgames, but Tampa outlasted both squads. In the semifinal game against Franklin Pierce, UT's offense exploded with a 13-run effort. The Spartans were on to the national title game.

Tampa was the visitor against the 46-21 California State - Chico and looked to be on their way to a big first inning. A popped-up bunt and a line-drive double play ended the inning with runners in scoring position.

In his second start of the tournament, Ross Jackson took to the mound for the Spartans. He started sharply, dealing a strikeout and two groundouts for a perfect first.

After quiet UT bats in the second, Chico would score following a double and single just under the glove of a diving Jose Jimenez. Chico now led 1-0 and Tampa trailed for the first time in the championship.

The game was a defensive and pitching battle. Each side made great plays to hold their opponent scoreless. In the top of the sixth, the Spartans evened the score. UT's Roberto Mena led off with a double to left center and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt. Ryan Kennedy hit a hard grounder that caromed off the short stop allowing Mena to score.

Jackson retired the side in order in the sixth and seventh innings before Aaron Cook came in to pitch the eighth for Tampa. Chico State took the lead following a walk and two singles. Tampa closed out the half-inning but found themselves down 2-1 with only three outs left to play.

The Spartans were facing the 2-1 deficit with the bases empty and two outs in the ninth. Craig Corrado had a 1-2 against him before delivering a single against the Wildcats. Roberto Mena followed suit with an infield single. Troy Ferguson delivered a ground-ball base hit that eluded the glove of the shortstop and scored Corrado from second to tie the game.

Cook tossed a perfect ninth inning with help from the defense of Kennedy and Jimenez. The two teams went to extra-innings.

In the 10th, Lee Cruz singled and catcher J.R. Hopf walked, setting the stage for the Spartans. Tampa coach Joe Urso motioned for Chris Rosenbaum to grab a bat and pinch hit. The junior from Castleton, New York delivered a solid opposite-field single that scored Cruz, the tournament's most outstanding player, with the go ahead run.

"I just wanted something I could put out into right field," Rosenbaum said in the Montgomery Advertiser. "I thought that if I could get the right pitch, and put it out there on the grass somewhere, I could get the run in. That's exactly what happened."

In the bottom of the tenth, Sergio Perez made his first appearance all season as a relief pitcher. Perez and Jimenez retired the first Chico batter on a nice defensive play. Perez struck out the next batter looking for the second out. The third batter of the inning roped a double down the left-field line before Perez induced a game-ending groundout to short.

"People think we had an easy run because of our record, but we've had a ton of games that we won late just like this," Urso said following the game. "That's the personality of this team. That's what got us here and that's what won it for us."

The all-tournament team consisted of Tampa players Troy Ferguson, JR Hopf, Roberto Mena, and Sergio Perez. National Player of the Year Lee Cruz was named tournament MVP.

Joe Urso led the Spartans to the best record in school history with 54 wins for his first national championship as a coach. He also saw his team break almost all of Tampa's previous offensive records. Urso's 54 wins would stand until the 2014 Spartan team would tie the record.

To date Tampa has won seven Division II baseball national championships. The 3-2 victory over Chico State marked the fourth time Tampa baseball won the national championship. The Spartans also won titles in 1992, 1993, 1998, 2007, 2013, and 2015.

About the 40 Great Moments Campaign
The "40 Great Moments" campaign exists to bring attention to the athletic excellence, academic excellence, community engagement, and sportsmanship that has made up the Sunshine State Conference over the last 40 years. Moments were nominated by current and former student-athletes, coaches, administrators, alumni and fans. The final 40 moments were decided upon by vote of conference Sports Information Directors. The "40 Great Moments" campaign will conclude during at 2016 Sunshine State Conference spring season. Check back for the next edition, which will be released on May 20th.

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