Will home turf prop up South Carolina?

Liberty baseball coach Jim Toman remembers the game on June 9, 2002, like it was played yesterday.

Then a South Carolina assistant coach to Ray Tanner, Toman watched the Gamecocks rally for five runs in the ninth inning against Miami, Fla., the defending national champions, in the deciding game of a Super Regional for an epic 6-4 victory at Sarge Frye Field.

“That got this program over the hump and got us to Omaha (for the first time in the Tanner era),” Toman said. “That game was probably the springboard to all the success.”

That game remains significant for another reason. It started a home winning streak in the NCAA tournament that’s still going 11 years later.

Now at 24 games – 11 of them at Sarge Frye Field from 2002-07 and 13 at Carolina Stadium from 2010-12 – the streak remains intact as Clemson, Liberty and Saint Louis come to town for this weekend’s NCAA regional. Toman was surprised to hear the Gamecocks haven’t lost at home in a postseason game since that point.

“I didn’t realize it was 24. That’s a lot,” he said.

USC coach Chad Holbrook understands what it’s like for opposing teams since he was on the other side of four of those 24 USC wins as a North Carolina assistant coach. But he has enjoyed being on USC’s side in the 13 wins at Carolina Stadium.

“It’s an incredible atmosphere. I sat in the other dugout when I was at North Carolina. I know how difficult it is to win here for an opponent,” Holbrook said. “Our fans create a great home-field environment for us. Our players are very comfortable playing at Carolina Stadium.”

The players and coaches believe the passion of the fans and their sheer numbers have played a huge role in the 24-game streak. Senior outfielder Sean Sullivan, who grew up in Columbia as a fan because his father played and coached baseball for the Gamecocks, said many other teams aren’t used to a ballpark that loud.

“When teams have to travel here in the postseason, it’s such a big advantage for us,” Sullivan said. “It’s like a shell-shock factor. They have to take in the environment and play the game at the same time.”

Saint Louis, the Atlantic 10 champions, will face USC in a Friday night game that will have the Billikens playing in front of approximately 8,000 more people than they normally do on their home field.

Coach Darin Hendrickson, who has admired the Gamecocks as he watched them reach the College World Series finals the last three seasons, salutes the on-field toughness that has allowed them to break through the parity in college baseball. He wants his players to be respectful of those accomplishments but not to be in awe.

“They’re pretty awesome numbers, to be honest. There’s no other way to say it,” Hendrickson said. “They’ve got great support, and they do it with great players, great coaches, (and) great administration in a great baseball city. I’ve digested all the numbers this morning again, and it’s going to be a lot of fun and a great challenge.”

His players are more than ready for the challenge.

“All of us come from a small school, and we want to get exposure,” Saint Louis first baseman Mike Vigliarolo said. “So we’d like to be the team that breaks the streak. We want to be the ones that are in the spotlight. We don’t get many big games so we’re just proud to be in this position.”

If USC wins and the Liberty Flames defeat Clemson, Toman would love to stop the streak he helped start.

“Eventually, that streak, someone’s going to break it,” he said. “The Flame Train is down here, and we might as well try to do it.”

USC press conference

USC practice highlights

This story was originally published May 30, 2013 at 7:42 PM.