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A By The Numbers Look At The Latest Week’s Action

2…Wins by Washington State over #1 Arizona State.  By taking two of three games in the series in Pullman the Cougars won their first series in program history over the Sun Devils.

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6…Cougars who were hit by pitch in Sunday’s 9-5 series-clinching win over ASU.  Garry Kuykendall was plunked three times.

Clemson's Mike Freeman

6…RBIs by Clemson second baseman Mike Freeman in Wednesday’s win over Georgia.  Freeman played for the Bulldogs in 2007 before transferring to Georgia.

300…Career wins by Georgia head coach Dave Perno with a 6-5 Sunday win over Ole Miss-UGA’s only win in the series. Perno is in his 9th season at the helm at his alma mater.

15…Strikeouts in 8 IP by Ole Miss pitcher Drew Pomeranz in Friday’s 4-1 win over Georgia.  It’s the second time this season Pomeranz has fanned 15 in a game.

14…School record runs scored in the first inning by Arkansas in Wednesday’s 32-8 win over visiting St. Louis.  The Razorbacks also combined to tie a school record with 30 RBIs in the game.

2…Men named Fred Hill who were head coaches at Rutgers last week.  Fred Hill, Sr.-of the RU baseball team and Fred Hill, Jr.-of the Scarlet Knight men’s basketball team.

1…Fred hill who is currently coaching at Rutgers after Fred Hill, Jr. was dismissed as basketball coach last week.  The younger Hill’s dismissal was in part precipitated in part by an alleged profanity laced tirade directed at Pittsburgh baseball coach Joe Jordano during an April 1 9-8 win by RU.

2…Wins at Notre Dame over the weekend by Rutgers.  Saturday’s 25-5 win gave the elder Hill and his team its first win at Notre Dame since 2002.  The road series win at Eck Stadium is RU’s first since the Irish and Scarlet Knights joined the Big East together in 1996.

Michael Lang

7…Home runs hit by Rutgers in Saturday’s 25-5 onslaught.  Outfielder Michael Lang had two of the long balls with 7 RBIs.

3…Wins needed by Fred Hill, Sr. to reach 1,000 for his career.  He’s been the head coach at Rutgers since 1984.

1…Closer the Jersey coach could not use in Friday’s 9-8 loss to the Irish due to a jersey flap.  His closer, Tyler Gebler, was wearing jersey #4 instead of his usual #43 in the game and with the tying run at 2nd base and two outs in the bottom of the 8th Hill went to the pen to the freshman.  However, Gebler was ruled an illegal substitution in the game, because Hill had crossed-out Steve Nyisztor’s #41 instead of Gebler’s #43 on the line-up card he turned-in before the game.  Hill had to go to Kevin Lillis, who gave-up back-to-back RBI hits, including Adam Norton’s game-winning triple.  Gebler has a 1.50 ERA, while his 6 saves are tied for second-best in the Big East.

2…Triples hit and innings pitched by Notre Dame’s David Mills in Tuesday’s 13-6 win over Oakland.  The lefty started the game as the Irish DH and later entered the game on the mound.  He had 2 RBIs and pitched 4 innings in relief to earn another win on Friday in ND’s only win of the Rutgers series.

2…Wins by Pittsburgh over fifth-ranked Louisville in their weekend series at Pitt’s Trees Field.  Losses Friday and Saturday to start the series, combined with a midweek loss to Kentucky, gave the Cardinals their first back-to-back setbacks of the season as well as their first series loss.

4…Runs scored in the top of the 9th inning of Sunday’s series finale to give Louisville a 9-7 win and avoid the series sweep.  Adam Duvall and Ryan Wright each belted two-run home runs to provide the offense.

17…Combined runs surrendered 13 1/3 by Louisville starting pitchers Thomas Royse, Dean Kiekhefer and Gabriel Shaw in the three games vs. Pitt.  Royse (6-1) suffered his first loss in the series-opener.  Shaw was making his first start of the season in Sunday’s finale after 14 relief outings.

36…Combined runs that same trio had surrendered in 104 1/3 previous innings pitched this season.

Alex Wimmers

14…Strikeouts with no walks by Ohio State’s Alex Wimmers (7-0) in Friday’s 7-1 win over Indiana.  Hoosier outfielder Alex Dickerson went 0-for-4 in the game to end his 21-game hitting streak.

4…Home runs in as many games to end the week by Duke’s Will Currier.  His 8 RBIs over the weekend helped the Blue Devils take two of three games from #12 Clemson.

2…Hits allowed by Oregon State’s Greg Peavey in Friday’s complete game 4-1 win over #2 UCLA.  Peavy’s efforts handed the Bruins their first consecutive losses after a midweek setback to Cal State Fullerton.

16…Innings needed for UCLA to beat OSU 3-1 in game two of the Pac 10 series on Saturday.  The game lasted 6 hours and 23 minutes.

39…Combined runners left on base by the Bruins (22) and Beavers (17) in Saturday’s marathon.

529…Pitches thrown in the game by a total of 12 pitchers, including eight sent to the mound by Oregon State.

11…Consecutive scoreless innings pitched by UCLA pitchers-with seven scoreless frames to end the 16-inning game combined with four shutout half innings to start Sunday’s series finale, which the Bruins won 8-2.

18…Combined pitchers used by LSU (8) and Southern Mississippi (10) in Wednesday’s 6-5 win in 12-innings in Metairie, LA.

2…Wins by Auburn over defending SEC & National Champion LSU in their weekend series at Auburn’s Samford Stadium.  The Tigers win game three 6-5 after a game-ending squeeze bunt by right fielder Justin Fredejas.

1998…The last time Auburn had won a home series vs. LSU prior to the weekend’s wins.  LSU had swept the last two series between the two teams and had won eight of the previous 11 series since 1999.

0…Outs recorded by Auburn starting pitcher Cole Nelson, who surrendered six earned runs on seven hits in Friday’s 14-10 loss to open the series.

0…Hits by Auburn catcher Tony Caldwell, who still had 3 RBIs in Saturday’s 11-7 Auburn win.  Caldwell was 0-for-1, but drove-in his runs with a bases loaded walk and two sac flies.  He also had a sacrifice bunt on the day.

Trent Mummey

7…RBIs in the series by Auburn’s Trent Mummey, who made his first three starts of the year after injuring his ankle prior to the start of the season.  Mummey hit two home runs, including his second career grand slam.

2 of 3…Wins by Oregon in its series at Stanford to give the Ducks their first Pac 10 series win since 1980 and their first Pac 10 road series win since 1976 at Washington.

21…Wins by Oregon through 32 games this season after winning just 17 games all of last year-the first year baseball was played at the school after it was disbanded following the 1981 season.

26…Game hitting streak by Kansas State’s Nick Martini-the longest active D1 streak in the nation this season.  A pair of 21-game hitting streaks ended over the weekend.  Martini had at least one hit in KSU’s series vs. Nebraska.  His streak is a school record and the fifth-longest in Big 12 history.

62…Career stolen bases by Martini’s teammate, Adam Muenster, to set a school record that had held since 1995.  Muenster’s record-breaker came in Sunday’s 8-3 win over the Cornhuskers.

8,540…Fans who saw K-State take two of three games from Nebraska to set a 3-game series attendance record at Tointon Family Stadium in Manhattan.

9-0…Kentucky’s lead over Alabama heading into the top of the sixth inning of Sunday’s game in Lexington, KY.

11-9…Final score of Alabama’s win in that game.  Jake Smith’s grand slam capped a 5-run sixth inning and the Tide scored five more runs in the 8th and another in the 9th to cap the biggest comeback in school history.

Jason Coats

4…Combined shutout innings pitched by Alabama’s Tyler White and Nathan Kilcrease in Sunday’s improbable comeback.  White got the win to improve to 3-1 while Kilcrease earned his second save.

3…Home runs off three different pitchers by TCU’s Jason Coats in Sunday’s 12-2 win over Houston.   Coats’ efforts helped the Horned Frogs outscore the Cougars 33-3 in the series.

2…Wins by Virginia Tech over #14 Miami in their weekend series.  The Hokies’ first ever series win over the Hurricanes comes a week after their first win over another traditional college baseball power-Florida State.

3…ACC series won by Virginia Tech all of last season.  They have won four of five conference series already this season, with their only loss (a sweep) coming at the hands of Clemson.

Jamie Skagerlind

2…Walk-off home runs in as many days by Bryant first baseman Jamie Skagerlind to help his team win three of four games vs. Central Connecticut State.  Skagerlind’s shot in the bottom of the 10th inning ended Saturday’s 3-2 win in game one of a doubleheader.  His blast to end Sunday’s 7-inning twin bill opener capped a 5-run Bryant rally.  The game-winning blasts are his only home runs of the season.

3…No-hitters thrown last week.  Fresno State’s Greg Gonzalez and Lehigh’s Greg Angelo each tossed 7-inning no-hitters, while Kevin Johnson of West Florida fired the second 9-inning no-no of 2010.  Gonzalez is the first Bulldog to pitch a no-hitter in 34 years, while Angelo had the first at Lehigh since 1988.

11…Shutout innings pitched across two games by North Florida’s John Atteo.  He earned the win with two scoreless innings in Tuesday’s 3-1 upset of Florida State, and then fired a complete game shutout in Sunday’s 10-0 win over USC Upstate.

1,201…Career wins by UNF head coach Dusty Rhodes-who will retire at season’s end-with Atteo’s Sunday victory.

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High Expectations For FGCU In First Year Of NCAA Eligibility

2009 Regular Season Champion: Florida Gulf Coast

2009 Tournament Champion: Jacksonville defeated Lipscomb 7-4 to win their 4^th A-Sun title.

End of the Rhodes: North Florida head coach Dusty Rhodes announced that 2010 will be his last season with the Ospreys.  Rhodes announced his retirement last August.  He will have spent 23 season at the helm, starting the program from scratch and guiding UNF to 16 postseason appearances, including 5 trips to the College World Series (2 in NAIA, 3 in NCAA Division II).  UNF announced that their home field will be named after Rhodes and will be dedicated March 6^th before their home game against Alcorn State.

Florida Gulf Coast is the unanimous choice to win the A-Sun title according to the coaches.  FGCU won the title last season winning 23 conference games becoming the first Atlantic Sun team to win back-to-back conference titles in its first 2 years in the league since the conference went to a one-division formant in 1999.

Belmont

2009 Season: (29-29, 15-15)

Nickname: Bruins

Head Coach: David Jarvis

Location: Nashville, TN

Dylan Craig

Vitals: .295 BA, 63 HR, .382 OBP, .959 Fld. %…6.47 ERA, 6 CG, 10 SVs, 294 K, 237 BB, .316 Opp. BA

Hole in the Middle: Belmont loses three top players from last year, including their 3-4 hitters Derek Wiley (.308, 17 HR, 51 RBI), the A-Sun’s career homerun hitter, and Brandon McCall (.344, 8 HR, 48 RBI) who combined to score or drive in 46.7 percent of Belmont’s runs in 2009.   The Bruins must also replace 2B Daniel Wagner (.323, 10 HR, 57 RBI).

Who’s Back: While Belmont loses a lot of offense they do bring back a couple key parts.  So. OF Dylan Craig (.397, 92 H, 9 triples) was the Atlantic Sun Freshman of the Year and a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American.  Jr. C Matt Zeblo (.335, 5 HR, 35 RBI) returns behind the plate.

Campbell

2009 Season: (27-24, 7-19)

Nickname: Fighting Camels

Head Coach: Greg Goff

Location: Buies Creek, NC

Vitals: .346 BA, 42 HR, .444 OBP, .966 Fld. %…6.95 ERA, 2 CG, 7 SVs, 337 K, 186 BB, .353 Opp. BA

Great Offense: Campbell’s offensive numbers in 2009 stack up with some of the best in the nation.  They were ranked in the top 10 nationally in team BA (.346), scoring (10.1), doubles per game (2.78), stolen bases per game (2.29), and hit by pitch (123).  They also had three players hit over .400 for the season.

Key Returners: Campbell loses top hitter Ryan Hamme (.438, 26 doubles, 51 RBI), but do bring back two key offensive players from a season ago.  Leading the offense this season will be Sr. OF Zach Johnson (.380, 29 doubles, 12 HR), who led the nation in doubles last year, and Jr. 2B Ellis Lowe (.404, 5 HR, 62 RBI).  On the mound, Sr. LHP Jeff Rydman (5-1, 5.43 ERA, 45 K) will lead the staff.

East Tennessee State

2009 Season: (25-28, 10-20)

Nickname: Buccaneers

Head Coach: Tony Skole

Location: Johnson City, TN

Paul Hoilman

Vitals: .313 BA, 72 HR, .398 OBP, .948 Fld. %…8.27 ERA, 2 CG, 8 SVs, 293 K, 218 BB, .349 Opp. BA

Big Bucs: ETSU returns its top two sluggers from last year in Jr. 1B Paul Hoilman (.380, 17 HR, 66 RBI) and So. 3B Bo Reeder (.339, 15 HR, 53 RBI).  Both Hoilmand and Reeder earned 3^rd team preseason All-American honors from Louisville Slugger.

On the mound, the Bucs return Jr. RHP Chas Byrne (6-4, 5.53 ERA, 67 K), and Bo Reeder, who in addition to putting up big power number at the plate, went 4-4, with 1 CG and 1 SV on the rubber.

Traveling’ Men: ETSU makes its first ever trip to the West Coast this season when they travel to take on Oregon in Eugene May 14-16^th.

Florida Gulf Coast

2009 Season: (36-18, 23-7)

Nickname: Eagles

Head Coach: Dave Tollett

Location: Fort Myers, FL

Vitals: .320 BA, 74 HR, .409 OBP, .962 Fld. %…5.02 ERA, 3 CG, 14 SVs, 460 K, 169 BB, .290 Opp. BA

Chris Sale

Conference Power: Florida Gulf Coast swept the preseason honors from the A-Sun.  They were picked to win the conference for the third year in a row by the coaches.  1B Zach Maxfield (.383, 20 HR, 66 RBI) was named the preseason A-Sun Player of the Year, while Jr. LHP Chris Sale (7-4, 2.72 ERA, 104 K) is the preseason Pitcher of the Year.  Sale also was named a 1^st team All-American by Baseball America, a 2^nd team All-American from Ping!, and was the Cape Cod Pitcher of the Year last summer.

Playing the Best: FGCU faces a tough slate this year.  The Eagles will face 12^th-ranked Miami, 16^th ranked Clemson, 9^th-ranked Florida, and 27^th-ranked Wichita State all on the road in 2010.

Jacksonville

2009 Season: (37-22, 19-11)

Nickname: Dolphins

Head Coach: Terry Alexander

Location: Jacksonville, FL

Vitals: .301 BA, 62 HR, .400 OBP, .952 Fld. %…5.18 ERA, 2 CG, 13 SVs, 451 K, 184 BB, .288 Opp. BA

Pitching Strength: Jacksonville won its 5^th A-Sun conference championship last year and should contend again behind a strong pitching staff this season.  Two JU pitchers are on the preseason All-A-Sun team led by Jr. RHP Matt Loosen (4-1, 4.16 ERA, 91 K) and Jr. RHP Chris Kaminski (5-1, 2.70 ERA, 8 SVs).

Offensive Leaders: The Dolphins lose top hitter Jeremy Gillan (.400, 11 HR, 62 RBI), but bring back plenty of speed and power with 1^st team preseason All-A-Sun player Sr. Chuck Opachich (.377, 42 RBI, 19 SB) and Sr. OF Alex Martinez (.306, 12 HR, 53 RBI).

Kennesaw State

2009 Season: (30-22, 20-9)

Nickname: Owls

Head Coach: Mike Sansing

Location: Kennesaw, GA

Vitals: .307 BA, 65 HR, .391 OBP, .963 Fld. %…5.08 ERA, 7 CG, 8 SVs, 475 K, 199 BB, .281 Opp. BA

Stepping Up: KSU loses 13 players overall, including 6 regular starters off their 2^nd place team last year.  The top five hitters are all gone, but two preseason All-Atlantic Sun performers do return in Sr. SS Tyler Stubblefield (.300, 7 HR, 27 RBI) and Jr. OF Josh Whitaker (.379, 4 HR, 25 RBI in 22 GP)

Owl Arms: The biggest concern for KSU has to be the pitching staff where 6 pitchers are gone from the 2009 team including A-Sun Pitcher of the Year Chad Jenkins (8-1, 2.54 ERA, 98 K, 5 CG).  The top returning pitcher is Jr. RHP Ryan Rodebaugh (1-1, 4.10 ERA, 2 SVs).

Lipscomb

2009 Season: (24-32, 17-13)

Nickname: Bison

Head Coach: Jeff Forehand

Location: Nashville, TN

Vitals: .280 BA, 42 HR, .356 OBP, .949 Fld. %…6.19 ERA, 6 CG, 9 SVs, 442 K, 258 BB, .279 Opp. BA

Strong Down the Stretch: Lipscomb finished 8 games below .500 overall, but still finished with a winning conference record, reaching the tournament championship game before falling to Jacksonville 7-4.

Ace in the Hole: While the Bison lose staff ace and first round MLB draft pick Rex Brothers (5-5, 3.26 ERA, 4 CG, 132 K), they do bring back Sr. RHP Josh Smith (7-4, 3.86 ERA, 101 K).

Offensive Production: Lipscomb will look to improve the offense this year behind CF Tyler Wilson (.320, 65 H, 25 SB), 1B Ryan Wilkins (.290, 5 doubles, 21 RBI).  Several newcomers expect to fill out the lineup as well with Jr. Cory Hale (.304, 14 HR, 41 RBI), a transfer from Columbia State CC, and Jr. Zach Messer (.378, 14 HR, 56 RBI) from Walters State CC who both figure to start.

Mercer

2009 Season: (23-23, 12-15)

Nickname: Bears

Head Coach: Craig Gibson

Location: Macon, GA

Vitals: .302 BA, 60 HR, .370 OBP, .965 Fld. %…6.39 ERA, 2 CG, 7 SVs, 346 K, 183 BB, .302 Opp. BA

Big Offense: Mercer loses top hitter Steven Karwatt (.374, 10 HR, 43 RBI), but do return the five other guys who hit over .300, including Sr. INF Michael Langley (.358, 7 HR, 27 RBI) and So. INF Jacob Tanis (.340, 11 HR, 35 RBI), who was named a Freshman All-American by Louisville Slugger.  Pitching wise Jr. RHP closer J.T. Odom (5-5, 3.88 ERA, 3 SVs) returns as does Sr. RHP Lath Guyer (2-4, 5.55 ERA, 76 K).

Home in Dixie: Mercer hosts 18 of their first 21 games with only trips to Tallahassee to play Florida A&M and Atlanta to face Georgia State the only road trips.  Mercer will not play north of Nashville, TN all season long while playing games in only four states (Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina).

North Florida

2009 Season: (23-31, 15-15)

Nickname: Ospreys

Head Coach: Dusty Rhodes

Location: Jacksonville, FL

Vitals: .295 BA, 59 HR, .377 OBP, .948 Fld. %…5.78 ERA, 6 CG, 9 SVs, 381 K, 183 BB, .296 Opp. BA

The American Dream: Dusty Rhodes announced that this will be his final season at the helom of North Florida.  Rhodes started the program in 1988 and has built the team from scratch.  He should win his 900^th game at UNF this season, playing on the newly named Dusty Rhodes Field at Harmon Stadium.

Foundation: North Florida’s lineup will center around Sr. OF Preston Hale (.371, 10 HR, 43 RBI) who led the Ospreys in batting average, slugging percentage, runs, hits, HR, and RBI.  Hale was a 2^nd-team All-conference performer in 2009 and enters 2010 a unanimous selection to the preseason All-Atlantic Sun team.

Stetson

2009 Season: (27-30, 16-14)

Nickname: Hatters

Head Coach: Pete Dunn

Location: DeLand, FL

Vitals: .314 BA, 60 HR, .395 OBP, .951 Fld. %…5.85 ERA, 1 CG, 9 SVs, 383 K, 223 BB, .305 Opp. BA

Poised for a Run: Stetson returns 19 letterwinners and 7 starters from last season’s 5^th place team.  Leading the offense will be Sr. DH Aaron Crittenden (.339, 13 HR, 66 RB) and So. 3B Mark Jones (.363, 82 H, .518 Slg. %).   Crittenden is a preseason All-conference pick this season, while Jones earned Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American honors last season.

Pitching Rotation: The Hatters will have a much different weekend rotation this season with So. RHP Lindsey Caughel (4-3, 6.30 ERA, 41 K) the only returner.  The other spots will be filled with two pitchers that missed last season with injuries.  R-Jr. RHP Justin Dechert (5.51 ERA, SV) and R-So. RHP Will Dorsey (2-1, 3.72 ERA, SV) will fill out the rotation.

USC Upstate

2009 Season: (17-37, 7-23)

Nickname: Spartans

Head Coach: Matt Fincher

Location: Spartanburg, SC

Vitals: .283 BA, 18 HR, .358 OBP, .964 Fld. %…7.81 ERA, 1 CG, 7 SVs, 345 K, 296 BB, .322 Opp. BA

Marching On: USC-Upstate enters its third season in Division I, still making the transition to the higher level.  After winning 17 conference games in 2008, they fell off to just 7 wins in 2009 finishing in last place.  This season they look for improvement behind 17 returning lettermen including 7 pitchers.

Key Returners: Jr. RHP Matt Branham (2-5, 4.39 ERA, 82 K) is back to lead the pitching staff, while Sr. 1B/C Jimmy Tanner (.354, 15 doubles, 34 RBI) the top hitter for the Spartans last year will once again power the lineup.

Silver Spartans: This year marks the 25^th season for baseball at the school.

2010 Atlantic Sun Predicitons

2010 Champion: Florida Gulf Coast

2010 Player of the Year: Preston Hale—North Florida

2010 Pitcher of the Year: Chris Sale—Florida Gulf Coast