Baseball Release #3

March 11, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

Horizon League Player of the Week

Ross Vagedes, Wright State
Senior OF * Tipp City, Ohio
Vagedes hit safely in all three games at the Citadel Challenge, going 6-for-13 with two runs scored. He hit his third homer of the season and drove in four runs during Sunday's victory over Evansville. Vagedes' 3-for-5 outing against UE also marked his fifth multi-hit game of the season. The senior opened the weekend with a 2-for-3 effort versus UNC Asheville on Friday.

Previous Players of the Week: Zach Rodeghero (Valpo), Feb. 26; Jeff Mercer (WSU), Mar. 4.

Horizon League Pitcher of the Week

Grant Kohlstaedt, UIC
Senior RHP * Kearney, Mo.
Kohlstaedt fired a complete-game six-hitter as UIC defeated seventh-ranked Vanderbilt 2-1 on Thursday. Kohlsteadt allowed only an unearned run while striking out five. He retired the last nine hitters he faced and earned the victory after UIC scored twice in the top of the ninth inning.

Previous Pitchers of the Week: Brian Long (CSU), Feb. 26; Bryce Shafer (Valpo), Mar. 4.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending March 10

Rick Betsch, Butler
Jr. * OF * Cincinnati, Ohio
Betsch batted .500 (4-for-8) in two games last week. He was 2-for-4 in each contest at Southern Illinois, with a double, a run scored and an RBI in Monday's game.

Nick Wichser, Milwaukee
Sr. * OF * Waukesha, Wis.
Wichser had five hits in 14 at-bats (a .357 average) against Centenary, driving in five runs while scoring three. Four of those five hits came in Sunday's doubleheader.

Jake Carr, UIC
Jr. * 1B * Frankfort, Ill.
Carr hit three doubles during a weekend series at seventh-ranked Vanderbilt, including the game-winning two-run hit with two outs in the ninth inning Thursday to give UIC the 2-1 victory.

Josh Wallace, Valparaiso
So. * IF * Bellefontaine, Ohio
Wallace was 5-for-11 with a pair of home runs in three games. He scored four runs and drove in three, adding a double among his five hits for a 1.091 slugging percentage.

Sean Lucas, Youngstown State
Sr. * 3B * Warren, Ohio
Lucas hit safely in all three games at Alabama, batting .429 (6-for-14). He had three hits and scored twice in Saturday's loss, and posted two hits with an RBI in Sunday's series finale.

Matt Sokolowski, Butler
Jr. * LHP * Fort Wayne, Ind.
Sokolowski worked 4.1 innings of relief Sunday at Southern Illinois, allowing three hits and two unearned runs while striking out four Salukis without a base on balls.

Andy Hetebrueg, Milwaukee
Jr. * RHP * West Bend, Wis.
Hetebrueg allowed two runs on three hits in five innings Sunday at Centenary but was tagged with a tough-luck loss as the Panthers managed only three hits of their own in a 2-1 loss.

Bryce Shafer, Valparaiso
Fr. * RHP * Wabash, Ind.
Shafer pitched seven innings at Duke, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out thre without a walk. He has averaged six innings in three outings this year.

Michael Woytek, Wright State
Fr. * RHP * Dublin, Ohio
Woytek pitched 5.2 shutout innings against UNC Asheville on Saturday, allowing only two hits. He struck out a pair of batters but was not involved in the decision as WSU fell 2-0.

Matt Tucker, Youngstown State
Fr. * LHP * Westerville, Ohio
Tucker retired all six batters he faced in his collegiate debut at Alabama on Sunday. He struck out one hitter while pitching the final two frames for the Penguins.

Around the Horizon League

Flames defeat top-ten foe
UIC carries a 3-6 record into the week following a three-game series at Vanderbilt. The Flames won the opening game against the nation's seventh-ranked team (2-1 on Thursday) and took a 4-1 lead into the ninth inning Friday before a pop-up was lost in the snowy conditions for a 5-4 loss. Vanderbilt claimed the series finale, 9-3, on Sunday.

The Flames are 1-6 against teams in the top 25 this season, with three of those losses coming by one run apiece (Friday plus 4-3 to Tulane and 5-4 versus Baylor).

Senior right-hander Grant Kohlstaedt pitched a complete-game six-hitter to earn the victory Thursday. Through three starts this year, he owns a 2-1 record and a 2.37 earned-run average with 13 strikeouts in 19 innings. Last year, Kohlstaedt pitched only 15.1 innings, allowing 15 earned runs for an 8.44 ERA.

Kohlstaedt was the beneficiary of junior first baseman Jake Carr's ninth-inning heroics, as Carr's two-run double with two outs in the frame plated the tying and go-ahead runs.

Freshman infielder Jason Ganek continued his strong start with three hits and a stolen base in the series. Ganek leads the Flames with six RBI this season.

UIC opens the home portion of the schedule Thursday in the opener of a three-game series versus Northwestern.

Crusaders battle through elements
Valparaiso slipped to 2-9 after five losses on its East Coast road trip. The Crusaders fell at North Carolina State, Duke and UNC Greensboro before dropping a doubleheader at West Virginia on Monday.

Senior outfielder Zach Rodeghero had his 13-game hitting streak snapped in the opener at WVU but had a two-run single in the nightcap. He leads the Horizon League with a .419 batting average for the season, topping the loop charts with 12 runs scored and 18 hits.

Rodeghero and sophomore infielder Brett Bivens have each driven in ten runs, while freshman infielder Josh Wallace shares the League lead with three home runs. Wallace belted his third round-tripper during a 2-for-4 performance in the nightcap at West Virginia.

Freshman right-hander Bryce Shafer took a no-decision at Duke on Wednesday despite pitching seven innings, allowing two runs on three hits. In three starts this season (all no-decisions), he has averaged six innings per start and has limited the opposition to a .136 batting average.

Valparaiso continues its road trip with doubleheaders versus Marshall on Tuesday and Wednesday, followed by a single non-League game at Wright State on Friday. The Crusaders take on Dayton in a twinbill Saturday and face Eastern Michigan on Sunday.

Raiders break into win column
Wright State starts the week at 1-8 overall after winning the finale of the Citadel Challenge. WSU lost twice on Saturday---2-0 to UNC Asheville and 6-4 to the host school---before defeating Evansville 13-3 on Sunday for its first victory of the year.

Sunday's triumph was also the 999th in program history. WSU can reach the 1,000-win milestone Wednesday at Louisville. The Raiders also host Valparaiso in non-League action on Friday before a Saturday twinbill versus Eastern Michigan and a Sunday contest against cross-town rival Dayton.

Senior outfielder Ross Vagedes drove in four runs Sunday, hitting his third home run of the season. He is tied with Valpo's Josh Wallace for the League lead in that category.

Junior first baseman Jeff Mercer extended his hitting streak to nine games after collecting safeties in all three weekend contests. He had a pair of doubles and scored two runs.

Junior first baseman Jeremy Hamilton made his first start of the season, notching four hits in ten at-bats, including two doubles. He scored three runs while posting a .538 on-base percentage for the weekend after missing the first two weeks of the season due to a hamstring injury.

Freshman Michael Meintel earned his first collegiate victory Sunday, allowing three runs on six hits in five innings.

Panthers swept twice at Centenary
Milwaukee dropped to 1-10 overall after being swept in two doubleheaders at Centenary. The nightcap of each twinbill was a one-run loss, with UWM falling 8-7 Saturday and 2-1 on Sunday. Centenary won Saturday's opener 8-4 and began Sunday's action with an 8-6 victory.

Junior first baseman/catcher Josh Groves had his 61-game errorless streak end in Saturday's opener. Groves had handled 197 consecutive chances without a miscue before making his first error since April 11, 2006.

Groves also had a 19-game hit streak end, as did senior outfielder Nick Wichser. The streaks, which included contests at the end of the 2007 campaign, are tied for the fifth-longest runs in school history.

The four teams UWM has played own a combined record of 36-10, as Centenary improved to 9-2 overall. Saint Mary's owns an 8-3 ledger, with UNC Wilmington starting the week at 9-4 and Jacksonville at 10-1.

Junior right-hander Andy Hetebrueg allowed two runs on three hits in five innings of Sunday's nightcap but suffered the loss as UWM had only three hits (two by Wichser) in a 2-1 defeat.

Milwaukee travels south for a three-game weekend series at Austin Peay. The teams are scheduled to play single games Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Penguins come up empty at Alabama
Youngstown State fell to 0-6 on the season after being swept in a three-game series at Alabama. The Penguins dropped the opener 15-7 on Friday, losing 7-4 on Saturday and 6-2 on Sunday.

YSU batted just .225 as a team against the Crimson Tide while playing without its top two hitters. Junior third baseman/outfielder John Koehnlein is sidelined after breaking a knuckle at Georgia Tech, while senior catcher/first baseman Erich Diedrich has not played in 2008 since breaking his wrist in preseason drills on Feb. 1.

Freshmen David Leon and Joe Iacobucci have made the most of their playing time so far in 2008. Each carries a .294 (5-for-17) batting average with four walks and a .429 on-base percentage. Iacobucci is also tied with senior third baseman Sean Lucas for the team lead in RBI.

Lucas hit safely in all three games in Alabama, collecting six hits in the series. He has a team-best three multi-hit games this season---including a 3-for-5 effort in Friday's series opener---and owns a .375 (9-for-24) average for the year.

Sophomore catcher Dustin Wachter has a .308 batting average in four starts.

Youngstown State opens a busy week Tuesday at Cincinnati. The Penguins then tour Ohio with Xavier, playing the Musketeers four times in three locations over the following four days while also facing Dayton on Thursday.

Bulldogs still looking for first victory
Butler remains winless in six games this season after two losses at Southern Illinois. The Bulldogs added the games to the schedule after being rained out Tuesday at Dayton and having a weekend set at Murray State canceled by the weather.

Butler has been outscored 78-10 so far this season.

Junior outfielder Rick Betsch logged consecutive 2-for-4 games against the Salukis, with Monday's effort featuring a double, an RBI and a run scored. He has hit safely in three consecutive games, going 5-for-11 (.455) during that span. Senior infielder Ryan Neat also recorded hits in both games in Carbondale.

Junior southpaw Matt Sokolowski rebounded from a rough day in his first outing, yielding only three hits and two unearned runs in 4.1 innings Sunday. Sokolowski struck out four batters without a walk.

The Bulldogs open the home portion of the schedule Tuesday versus Taylor and host Indiana Tech on Wednesday before a weekend series at Tennessee Tech. The set includes single games Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Note: Cleveland State had a weekend series at Cincinnati canceled due to snowy conditions. The Vikings return to action Tuesday in the opener of a three-game series at Morehead State.