UW-Milwaukee's Goetz, UIC's Hallberg top national baseball statistical charts; Babineaux also in top 10

April 27, 2006

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INDIANAPOLIS -- For the third consecutive week, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee senior outfielder Mike Goetz stands atop the national batting charts according to baseball statistics released by the NCAA on Wednesday (April 26). This week, he isn't the only Horizon League performer with a number-one position, though, as University of Illinois at Chicago sophomore infielder Mark Hallberg is rated as the toughest batter to strike out.

Goetz's .529 batting average (through games of April 23) establishes the Panther outfielder as the only Division I player above .500, and gives him a 49-point lead over Kellen Kulbacki of James Madison University (.480). If Goetz maintains his current pace, he would become the first Division I player to finish above .500 since Ira Smith of the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore posted a .519 clip in 1990. Goetz's current number would be the highest average since Seton Hall University's Marteese Robinson had a similar .529 mark in 1987.

Goetz also shares 42nd place with an average of 0.40 doubles per game (14 in 35 contests), matching the total of Wright State University senior catcher Aaron Garcia. UWM junior outfielder Ross McCoy is 23rd on that list with 13 two-baggers in 31 appearances, a rate of 0.42 per outing.

Hallberg has gone down on strikes only four times in 144 official at-bats, a rate of one per 36 trips. The sophomore first baseman has not been retired on strikes since a March 18 contest versus Indiana University---a span of 105 at-bats covering 24 games (including a three-for-four performance versus Northern Illinois University on Tuesday). In two seasons for UIC, Hallberg has fanned just 15 times in 440 plate appearances.

Hallberg's teammate, senior outfielder Bart Babineaux, stands among the nation's top sluggers. He currently stands ninth with his average of 0.39 home runs per game, belting 14 round-trippers in 36 appearances. Thirteen of those have come since March 25. He also ranks 14th with a .758 slugging percentage, and his pace of 1.22 RBI (a League-high total of 45) is 32nd in the nation. Goetz rates 25th on the slugging list at .736.

Kulbacki is threatening to win college's Triple Crown, ranking second in average and fifth in RBI while leading the nation with a pace of 0.50 homers per game (20 in 40 contests). His 1.007 slugging percentage is also the best in Division I.

On the mound, Wright State senior right-hander Robert Barrett ranks 12th with a 1.46 earned-run average. He has allowed only seven earned runs in 43.2 innings while fashioning a perfect 6-0 ledger for the Raiders. Junior right-hander Joe Smith has played a key role in the Raiders' success with nine saves to rank 15th in the nation in that category. UIC's Zach Peterson is the other Horizon League pitcher on the national charts, rated 48th with a 2.15 ERA in 71.2 innings of work.

As a team, UW-Milwaukee boasts a .323 batting average which is 21st in the nation and includes a rate of 2.49 doubles per game (sixth-best in the country). UIC's .968 fielding percentage establishes the Flames as the 40th-best fielding team in Division I, while UIC is also 45th with a League-best 3.73 ERA.

For more information and a complete list of team and individual statistical leaders, log on to the NCAA statistical database at http://ncaasports.com/baseball/mens/stats.

League competition resumes this weekend with three-game sets featuring Wright State at UW-Milwaukee, while Cleveland State University visits UIC and Youngstown State University hosts Butler University. The Flames (22-15 overall) lead the League standings, carrying a 14-4 loop ledger into the set against CSU (8-27 overall, 6-12 in the League). Wright State (21-17, 12-9) tries to hold on to second place against UW-Milwaukee (18-18, 9-9), while Butler (15-25, 8-13) and Youngstown State (17-24, 8-10) also try to move up in the League standings.

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