Baseball Weekly Release #14

May 21, 2007

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Horizon League Player of the Week

Bobby Cash, Cleveland State
Junior IF * Hudson, Ohio
Cash batted .478 (11-for-23) and scored 11 runs in five games, leading the Vikings to three victories against Youngstown State to secure the fourth seed for this week's League Championship. Cash posted six hits and scored seven runs in those three games versus YSU, driving in four runs.

Horizon League Pitcher of the Week

Lucas Engle, Youngstown State
Junior RHP * Marysville, Ohio
Engle carried a three-hit shutout into the ninth inning Friday night, leading YSU to a 7-3 victory in the series-opener versus Cleveland State. Engle posted his fourth victory of the season with 8.2 innings of work, striking out eight while allowing only one earned run.

Other Top Performances for the Week Ending May 20

Joe Pauley, Butler
Jr. * SS * Skokie, Ill.
Pauley hit .500 (12-for-24) with three doubles and a home run in five games. He had six hits with three RBI and three runs scored in Friday's doubleheader sweep of UW-Milwaukee.

Ty Rubio, UIC
Fr. * OF * Palatine, Ill.
Rubio provided a spark at the top of the Flames line-up, hitting .500 (five-for-10) with three doubles in three games at Wright State. He scored five runs and drove in four.

Kyle Silver, UW-Milwaukee
Sr. * 3B * Canton, Ohio
Silver recorded the game-winning single in the 10th inning to defeat Butler 2-1 in Saturday's opener. His double in the nightcap tied the game 1-1 on the way to UW-Milwaukee's 6-2 victory.

Ross Oeder, Wright State
Sr. * SS * Sandusky, Ohio
Oeder went 5-for-11 (.455) in three games versus UIC over the weekend. He scored five runs to help the Raiders take the series, two games to one.

John Koehnlein, Youngstown State
So. * OF/3B * Toronto, Ohio
Koehnlein drove in a pair of runs in YSU's 7-3 win over Cleveland State on Friday and had three hits and scored two runs in a loss in the nightcap. He has now hit safely in 25 straight games.

Matt Sokolowski, Butler
So. * LHP * Fort Wayne, Ind.
Sokolowski notched his first career victory at Xavier on Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits in seven innings. Only two of the Musketeers' hits left the infield.

Brandon Hewitt, Cleveland State
Sr. * LHP * Eastlake, Ohio
Hewitt worked seven innings to get the victory in Friday's 10-3 triumph over Youngstown State. He allowed three runs (two earned) on nine hits while striking out six Penguins.

Zach Peterson, UIC
Sr. * RHP * Minnetonka, Minn.
Peterson scattered six hits in six innings Saturday against Wright State, allowing only an unearned run to post his sixth consecutive victory. He struck out four without a walk.

Mike Rauwerdink, UW-Milwaukee
Sr. * RHP * Sheboygan, Wis.
Rauwerdink posted the victory as UWM defeated Butler 6-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep on Saturday. He allowed only one earned run in eight innings, striking out three batters.

Kyle Kearcher, Wright State
Sr. * LHP * Mattawan, Mich.
Kearcher posted his League-high ninth win of the year versus UIC on Friday, allowing one earned run in 5.2 innings. He struck out five and did not walk a batter.

Around the Horizon League

Flames prepare to host League summit
Saturday's 14-5 victory was the 300th of head coach Mike Dee's career. The UIC dugout boss owns a record of 300-199-1 in his nine-year tenure at the school.

Senior right-hander Zach Peterson won his sixth consecutive decision in that same contest, tying the school record with his 26th career victory (matching Steve Carlson's total). Peterson is 6-0 with a 2.19 ERA in 53.1 innings over his last eight starts since April 10. He was undefeated in six decisions in League play this season, holding Horizon League batters to a .249 average.

Senior outfielder Larry Gempp Jr. ranks fourth in the League with a .375 batting average and stands second in the circuit with 48 RBI. Freshman right-hander Steve Crnkovich owns the League's best ERA (2.44) with sophomore right-hander David Cales touting a loop-high 11 saves this season.

The Flames lead the League with a 4.14 ERA this season, including a 3.64 mark in League play. Dee's pitching staff has been even better at home in 2007, with a 2.63 team ERA at Les Miller Field.

Raiders make a statement in final weekend
Wright State gained momentum for the League Championship after taking two of three games from UIC over the weekend. The Raiders improved to 34-20 overall and 21-9 in the League, opening defense of their 2006 crown as the second seed in this year's tournament.

Senior infielder Ross Oeder scored five runs in the three games, giving him a League-high 74 for the season. Oeder also tops the circuit in home runs (eight), stolen bases (25), on-base percentage (.494) and slugging percentage (.656) while ranking second with a .410 batting average.

Sophomore first baseman Jeremy Hamilton leads the League with 53 RBI and 34 extra-base hits---including 22 doubles, six triples and six home runs. His .373 average is fifth-best on that loop list, two spots behind sophomore Justin Parker, whose .377 average includes 24 doubles.

Senior right-hander Kyle Kearcher leads the League with nine victories, reaching that mark with his 5.2-inning effort in Friday's series opener when he allowed only one run on six hits. Senior right-hander Erich Schanz is 6-4 with a 3.18 ERA which ranks third in the League, one spot ahead of Kearcher's 3.35 mark.

Wright State's 34 victories are the most by a Raider squad since 1994, when WSU finished 39-21.

Panthers continue hitting, rally for split
UW-Milwaukee, which won the last League Championship held in Chicago (2001), moved to 23-30 overall and 16-14 in League play with a four-game split at Butler over the weekend. The third-seeded Panthers have won 23 of 39 games after an 0-14 start to the season.

UW-Milwaukee is hitting .355 as a team in May, winning 13 of 18 games this month. Sophomore Josh Groves carries a .473 average since May 1, collecting 26 hits (including nine doubles) and 17 runs batted in while scoring nine runs. Senior third baseman Kyle Silver isn't far behind, with a .384 clip, 19 RBI and 22 runs scored in 18 May outings.

Senior outfielder Ross McCoy has now played in 206 games in his career, the most in Panther history. He eclipsed the previous mark of 202, set by Charlie Reschke (2002-05). McCoy is also tied with Reschke for second place on the school's all-time hits chart with 213.

Junior right-hander Brandon Duffy earned the victory in Saturday's opener and came back to record the save in the nightcap. UWM now has four saves as a staff, one each by four different hurlers. Senior Mike Rauwerdink logged the nightcap victory with eight innings of work.

Senior outfielder Rob Brockel extended his hitting streak to 16 games, while Groves and junior outfielder Nick Wichser each bring 12-game streaks into the tournament.

Vikings re-discover winning ways
Cleveland State snapped a 16-game losing streak in style, winning the final three contests of a four-game set versus Youngstown State to gain the fourth seed for this week's tournament. CSU enters the League summit at 12-43 overall and 10-17 in loop play.

The 10 League victories are CSU's most since posting an 11-12 mark in 2004. The Vikings went 6-22 in circuit competition last spring.

Junior shortstop Bobby Cash led the way with a .478 (11-for-23) average and 11 runs scored last week. Cash leads the team with a .277 average for the season, scoring 35 runs and driving in 24---one fewer than team-leader Matt Madrid (25). Cash and senior teammate Rich Ranells are tied for third in the League with 11 stolen bases apiece.

CSU's pitching staff boasts a 5.29 earned run average this season, including a 4.90 mark in League action. That represents a dramatic improvement over last year's team, which recorded an 8.02 ERA.

Sophomore left-hander Josh Hungerman serves as a graphic example of the difference oen year can make. Hungerman went 0-9 with an 8.04 ERA in 2006, but ranks seventh with a 3.58 ERA this spring. Senior southpaw Stephen Procner owns a 4.63 mark and leads the League with 70 strikeouts in 91.1 innings (second-most in the circuit).

Bulldogs split fortunes in homecoming
Butler enters the tournament at 22-31 overall with a 10-20 League ledger which installs the Bulldogs as the fifth seed for the second year in a row. BU split a four-game weekend set with UW-Milwaukee, sweeping a doubleheader Friday (the team's first home games since April 21) before being swept Saturday.

Senior outfielder Dustin Bucalo posted a .524 average with 11 hits in five games last week, including a five-for-six showing with three RBI in Friday's opener. He currently ranks ninth in the League with a .345 batting average for the season.

Junior shortstop Joe Pauley added a .500 clip (12-for-24) with four runs scored and four RBI. His home run powered BU past Xavier 4-1 on Wednesday. Pauley's .327 season average is 12th-best in the League.

Sophomore lefty Matt Sokolowski notched his first career victory versus XU, allowing one run on four hits in seven innings.

Sophomore right-hander Ryan Kruszka lowered his season ERA to 2.96 (second-best in the circuit), while junior right-hander Jon Dages stands fifth on the loop charts with a 3.50 ERA, and ranks second in the circuit with 61 strikeouts in a team-high 90 innings this season.

Senior catcher Joe Dempsey is sixth in the League with 38 RBI and tied for third with six home runs this season.

Penguins look for redemption in tournament
Youngstown State is the sixth seed, falling to 17-35 overall and 9-21 in the League after dropping three of four games to Cleveland State over the weekend following an 8-3 loss to Akron on Tuesday.

Sophomore John Koehnlein continued his torrid hitting, extending his hitting streak to school-record 25 games (the best in the League this season) with safeties in all five games last week. During his run, Koehnlein is hiting .464 with 22 runs scored and 16 RBI. His 97 hits are tied for fifth place on the League's all-time single-season list, and his .425 season average tops the loop charts in 2007. Against Horizon League foes, the third baseman is hitting .436.

Junior designated hitter Erich Diedrich ranks eighth in the League with a .348 average, and his 37 RBI place seventh on that loop chart.

Junior right-hander Lucas Engle has allowed three earned runs or fewer in seven of his nine Horizon League starts---including Friday's victory over CSU. He carries a 3.24 ERA against League foes, but the Penguins are averaging just 1.3 runs in his losses as Engle is 2-3 in circuit competition.

YSU hit four home runs in five games last week after belting only one in its first nine games during the month of May. Freshman Lee Bainbridge homered in consecutive games to give him three round-trippers for the year.

Crusaders extend Mid-Con tenure
Valparaiso formally joins the Horizon League on July 1, but the Crusaders will play at least one more week in the Mid-Continent Conference, qualifying for that circuit's tournament for the first time in four years with a four-game sweep of Southern Utah to gain the third seed in the four-team summit.

The Crusaders stand at 21-32 overall. Valpo's 10-10 Mid-Con record marks the school's first time at .500 in conference play since 2001.

Senior infielder Ryan Manthei hit safely in all four games against SUU, driving in five runs with a six-for-13 weekend.

Crusader starting pitchers allowed only five earned runs in 25.1 innings against Southern Utah, with junior Dallas Cawiezell posting a win and a save. He struck out five of the nine hiters he faced in 2.2 scoreless innings. Cawiezell fanned four consecutive hitters on 14 pitches in the opener of Saturday's doubleheader, lowering his ERA in conference play to 0.68. Cawiezell's nine career saves (including six this spring) tie him for third on the all-time Crusader charts.

Senior Michael Arensdoff is closing in on another school record, entering the Mid-Con tourney with 154 career runs scored---four short of Mark Pedersen's mark set from 1999-2002. Arensdorff already passed Pedersen on the Valpo hits chart earlier this spring and now has a Mid-Con-record 268 in his career.

Six teams looking toward NCAA play
All six teams will compete at the 2007 U.S. Army Horizon League Championship, scheduled for Wednesday-Saturday (May 23-27) at UIC's Les Miller Field.

The winner of the 2007 U.S. Army Horizon League Championship will represent the League in the 2007 NCAA Championship, which begins June 1. A total of 64 teams will compete in that event, with 30 conference champions joining 34 at-large entries in the field.

Action begins Friday, June 1, at 16 regional sites across the country. The winners of those double-elimination gatherings will then square off in best-of-three super-regional series on June 8-9 for the right to advance to the College World Series. For the 58th consecutive spring, Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb., serves as the site for this year's event, which begins on June 15 and runs through June 25.

Wright State won the 2006 Horizon League Championship on its home field, outscoring four opponents 52-5 to advance to the national tournament for the first time since 1994. UIC last reached the NCAA tournament in 2005, while Youngstown State last represented the League in 2004 and UW-Milwaukee is looking for its first national appearance since 2002. Butler last played in the NCAA tournament in 2001, while a Cleveland State title would send the Vikings to regional play for the first time.