A By The Numbers Look At The Last Week Before The NCAA Tournament

Garrett Wittels (Sun Belt photo)

batting .414 this season.

4…Games shy of Robin Ventura’s all-time record 58 game hitting streak Wittels now stands.  FIU needs two wins in double-elimination regional play to give him a chance to tie the mark.

5…Of 27 #1 seeds, Bethune-Cookman, TCU, Coastal Carolina, The Citadel and Minnesota, that won their conference tournaments.

27…Years since Atlantic Sun champion Mercer had won a conference crown.  The Bears won what was then known at the Trans America Athletic Conference in 1983.

13…Straight conference tournaments Oral Roberts has won.  ORU’s Summit League (formerly the Mid-Continent) championship streak is the third longest in NCAA history behind Oklahoma State’s 16 and Wichita State’s 14.

30…Straight Summit League Tournament games won by ORU after going 3-0 at this year’s event.

9…Big Ten Championships won by Minnesota-a conference record-after the Golden Gophers beat Iowa to claim the 2010 crown.

12…Innings it took Virginia Commonwealth to beat UNC-Wilmington 7-5 in the CAA Championship game.  VCU’s Joe Van Meter homered in the top of the 12th for the eventual game winning runs.

VCU's Joe Van Meter

104…Hits this season by Van Meter-a new CAA single season record.  The third baseman was also named the CAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.

8…Straight NCAA Tournament bids for Southern Mississippi after beating Rice 7-4 to claim just the program’s second Conference USA crown.  After running all the way to the College World Series last year, the Golden Eagles were an NCAA “bubble team” going into this year’s CUSA tourney.

2…Missouri Valley Conference title won by Illinois State after beating Wichita State 17-8 to claim the title.  WSU was playing in its 33rd MVC title game.

3…Grand slams hit in the same game by BYU in a 25-18 win over Utah in a Mountain West Conference elimination game.  Sean McNaughton hit two of the slams, while Austin Hall hit the other.  The three grand slams in one game ties an NCAA record.

27 & 4…Strikeouts recorded and runs allowed by TCU starting pitchers Matt Purke, Steven Maxwell and Kyle Winkler to help the Horned Frogs go 3-0 at the Mountain West Conference Tournament.

Kyle Winkler (TCU photo)

32-2…Combined record this season of Purke, Maxwell and Winkler to help TCU to its seventh straight NCAA bid.

13-1…LSU head coach Paul Mainieri’s record at the SEC Tournament after his Tigers completed a 2010 sweep of the event with Sunday’s 4-3 win over Alabama in the championship game.  LSU did not qualify for the tournament in Mainieri’s first season at the helm in 2007, but they have now won three straight SEC Tournament titles.

3…Shutout innings of relief pitched by LSU starter Anthony Ranaudo to help his team win the SEC title game in 11 innings.

4,895…Fans in attendance to see The Citadel win the Southern Conference Championship-a 10-3 win over Western Carolina in Charleston, SC.

12…Straight wins by The Citadel after winning the SoCon title game.  Bulldog ace Asher Wojciechowski is also 12-2 this season after striking out eight in eight innings to earn the victory.

Lamar's Anthony Moore (SLC photo)

7…Seed of Southland Conference Tournament champion Lamar, which beat #1 seed Texas State 17-7 to claim the crown.

.625…Batting average of Lamar centerfielder Anthony Moore to help the Cardinals sweep their four SLC Tournament games.  Moore was 10-for-16 at the plat with three home runs, two doubles, and 10 RBIs to earn tournament MVP honors.

18…Years since Hawaii had won a WAC Championship prior to beating Fresno State 9-6 in this year’s championship game in Mesa, AZ.

4…Straight WAC Tournament championships Fresno State had won before losing to the Rainbows in Sunday’s title game.

33…Wins this season by St. Louis-a new school record-after beating #1 seed Charlotte to win the program’s second Atlantic 10 Tournament championship.

25…Years since Grambling State had won a SWAC title before beating Alcorn State to win this year’s championship.

5…ACC Championships won by Florida State after the Seminoles downed North Carolina State 8-3 in Sunday’s championship game.

CLICK HERE to see the Collegebaseball360.com NCAA Tournament page for complete 2010 Tournament coverage.

2010 Conference Tournament Central

America East Tournament (May 26-28)

Bracket Champion: Stony Brook

All-Conference Team

ACC Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Florida State

All-Conference Team

Atlantic Sun Tournament (May26-29)

Bracket Champion:  Mercer (First title since 1983)

All-Conference Team

Atlantic 10 Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champion:  St. Louis

All-Conference Team

Big East Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  St. John’s

All-Conference Team

Big South Tournament (May 25-29)

Bracket Champion: Coastal Carolina

All-Conference Team

Big Ten Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champion:  Minnesota

All-Conference Team

Big Twelve Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Texas A&M

All-Conference Team

Big West Conference – No Post Season Tournament

Regular Season Champion: Cal State Fullerton

All-Conference team

CAA Tournament (May 27-29)

Bracket Champion:  Virginia Commonwealth

All-Conference Team

Conference USA Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Southern Mississippi

All-Conference Team

Great West Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champ: Utah Valley (No NCAA Bid)

All-Conference Team

Horizon League Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Wisconsin-Milwaukee

All-Conference Team

Ivy League – Best of Three Series

Champion:  Dartmouth beat Columbia

All-Conference Team

Metro Atlantic Tournament

Bracket Champion:  Rider

All-Conference Team

Mid-American (MAC) Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champion:  Kent State

All-Conference Team

Missouri Valley Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champion:  Illinois State

All-Conference Team

Mountain West Conference Tournament (May 25-29)

Bracket Champion:  TCU

All-Conference Team

Northeast Conference Tournament (May 27-29)

Bracket Champion: Central Connecticut St.

All-Conference Team

Ohio Valley Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Jacksonville St.

All-Conference Team

Pac 10 Conference – No Postseason Tournament

Regular Season Champion:  Arizona State

All-Conference Team

Patriot League – Best of Three Series

Champion:  Bucknell

All-Conference Team

SEC Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  LSU

All-Conference Team

Southern Conference Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  The Citadel

All-Conference Team

Southland Conference Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champion:  Lamar

All-Conference Team

SWAC Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Grambling St.

All-Conference Team

Summit League Tournament (May 27-29)

Bracket Champion:  Oral Roberts

All-Conference Team

Sun Belt Conference Tournament (May 26-29)

Bracket Champion:  Florida International

All-Conference Team

West Coast Conference – No Postseason Tournament

Regular Season Champion:  San Diego

All-Conference Team

Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament (May 26-30)

Bracket Champion:  Hawaii (First since 1992)

All-Conference Team

Golden Eagles To Play Well Rounded Slate In 2010

Oral Roberts Head Coach Rob Walton

set March 5, 6 & 7.

Complete 2010 Oral Roberts Schedule

Other non-conference home opponents include: three games vs. Western Michigan, TCU, Wichita State, Missouri State,  and Arkansas Little Rock.  Road non-conference games:  UCLA (3 games), Texas, Missouri State, UT Arlington, Arkansas, and two trips to Wichita State.

Summit League match-ups include:  North Dakota, Oakland, Southern Utah, Western Illinois, IPFW, South Dakota State, Centenary, and North Dakota State.  The Summit League plays four-game conference series with a doubleheader on the second day.

Oral Roberts will host the 2010 Summit League Tournament May 27-29 in Tulsa, OK.  The Golden Eagles have won 12 straight Summit Championships, giving them 12 straight NCAA Tournament appearances.

Bruins Will Play 21 Of Their First 25 Games At Home

Belmont Head Coach David Jarvis

Shelby Park. It is the third time in four years that Belmont has faced a Missouri Valley Conference opponent to open the season. In last season’s home opener Belmont won two-of-three games against Illinois State, and in 2007 the Bruins opened up with two wins over Bradley.

Complete 2010 Belmont Schedule (PDF)

REGIONAL MATCHUPS
Belmont will trade home games with six area teams – Western Kentucky, Murray State, MTSU, Tennessee Tech, UT-Martin, and Austin Peay – which will make up a majority of the Bruins’ non-conference slate. The regional matchups begin at home with WKU (42-20) on Feb. 24. The Hilltoppers earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history after sharing the Sun Belt regular season title. Belmont will travel to WKU on April 7, to fulfill the two-game series.

OHIO VALLEY OPPPONENTS
Eleven of Belmont’s 28 non-conference games will be against teams from the Ohio Valley Conference, beginning with a three-game series against Eastern Illinois (36-14) from Feb. 26-28. After facing the 2009 regular season champions, the Bruins will travel to Murray State (34-21-1) on March 2 for the first of 21 road games during the season.

Belmont’s OVC tour resumes on March 23 when the Bruins host 2009 tournament champion Tennessee Tech (31-24-1) in Shelby Park. Senior Day is schedule for May 18 against Tennessee-Martin (20-31) – the last home game of the season. The Austin Peay series will take place on the road on April 20 and at home on the 28th.

SEC
Belmont will play two Southeastern Conference teams with Vanderbilt (37-27) on April 6 at Hawkins Field in Nashville, and Tennessee (26-29) on April 27 in Knoxville.

NEW BEGINNINGS
Belmont will face three new opponents in 2010 including Cleveland State, Eastern Michigan and Evansville. All games will be played at Shelby Park with Evansville opening the season on Feb. 19, Eastern Michigan (25-35) playing three games in two days from March 5-6, and a mid-week bout with Cleveland State (21-31) March 16 and 17.

The Bruins’ first substantial road trip will be a nine-game swing including a stop in Arkansas to play Arkansas-Little Rock for the first time since 1998.

CONFERENCE MATCHUPS
The Bruins open the conference season on the road against reigning Atlantic Sun Tournament Champion Jacksonville (37-22) on March 12. The Dolphins eliminated Belmont en route to their fourth A-Sun title and sixth berth in the NCAA Tournament.

The Bruins will play 27 conference games, three less than last season’s A-Sun slate which the Bruins finished with an even 15-15 record. All conference series are three games as most will occur over the span of two days, except Lipscomb and Florida Gulf Coast. ETSU is the lone conference member that the Bruins will not play in the regular season.

The baseball edition of the Battle of the Boulevard between arch-rival Lipscomb will be held in Shelby Park from March 19-21.

Belmont will conclude the regular season on road against Mercer on May 20 and 21.

The 2010 Atlantic Sun Championship will be held in Nashville at Lipscomb’s Dugan Field from May 25-29.

SHELBY IS HOME
Shelby Park will field all of Belmont’s 32 home games in 2009, ending nearly two decades of hosting teams at Greer Stadium – the home of the Nashville Sounds, Class AAA affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.

Cougars To Compete In The New Great West Conference

Complete 2010 Chicago State Schedule

CSU begins a season-opening nine game road swing on March 6-8 with a four-game set at Mercer before traveling to Palm Beach, Fla., for a four-game series against former Mid-Continent Conference foe Southern Utah. Following a March 23 contest at Eastern Illinois, the Cougars welcome IPFW to Brooks Field for their home opener on March 24 before embarking on a 10-game road trip versus Purdue (March 26-28), Indiana State (March 30), Illinois (March 31), Valparaiso (April 2-3) and IPFW (April 6).

The Green and White continues its April stretch with an April 7 showdown versus Eastern Illinois at Brooks Field before traveling to New York on April 9-11 for its first-ever Great West Conference series against NYIT.

After a April 13 road game at perennial Big East Conference contender Notre Dame, CSU returns to Brooks Field for a season-best 11-game homestand with weekend conference series against NJIT (April 16-18) and Utah Valley (April 23-25) sandwiched between mid-week games versus Indiana State (April 14), Purdue (April 20) and North Park (April 21).

Following the homestand, the Cougars hit the road for a mid-week series at Kansas State on April 27-28 and a four-game Great West series at Houston Baptist from April 30-May 2. CSU closes its home slate with Great West weekend series against North Dakota (May 7-9) and Texas-Pan American (May 14-16) before battling Northern Colorado on the road on May 20-22 in its final conference series of the year.

The inaugural Great West Conference Tournament will take place on May 26-29 in Edinburg, Texas with all eight teams competing in the tournament.

CSU welcomes back 15 players and seven position starters from last season’s team that includes a pair of Academic All-Great West Conference honorees.

“We had a spectacular recruiting season this past year and we were able to attract some very good players to Chicago State University. My hat goes off to my recruiting coordinator, Assistant Coach Neal Frendling, for he has given us the opportunity to compete for a Great West Championship,” Caston added. “With a mixture of our returning players, junior college transfers and incoming freshman, look for the Chicago State Baseball team to put up some numbers offensively and defensively. We will be a completely different team in 2010. The Chicago State baseball team is headed in the right direction and I feel the foundation has been set in order to build a legitimate baseball program.”

(Release)

Red Bird to play eight games against 2009 NCAA Tournament Teams

ISU Head Coach Mark Kingston

in Gainesville, Fla. Illinois State’s schedule features 53 games, including 19 contests at home against regional foes Illinois, Northern Illinois, Eastern Illinois, Purdue, and Valley rivals Southern Illinois, Wichita State and Bradley.

Complete 2010 IllinoisState Schedule (PDF)

“This is a very challenging schedule as we look forward to 2010,” Illinois State head coach Mark Kingston said. “Our non conference opponents will prepare us for the demands of a very competitive Missouri Valley Conference. At one point, we will play five-consecutive games against 2009 NCAA tournament teams. Being able to play at Florida and Vanderbilt will also be an experience that pays dividends. This high level of competition will be good for us in the long term, both individually, and as a team.”

Illinois State will play its first 18 games on the road and begin the 2010 season at the Austin Peay Classic (Feb. 19-21) in Clarksville, Tenn., against Austin Peay and Iowa. The trip is the first of three the Redbirds will make to the state of Tennessee. Illinois State will then travel to Winter Haven, Fla., for the 2010 RussMatt Central Florida Invitational (Feb. 27-March1), where the Redbirds will play four games against four different opponents.

The Redbirds will then tackle the grueling five-game stretch against tournament teams to start its spring break trip, but the competition doesn’t let up with two games against James Madison (March 12 and 14) wrapped around a date with North Florida (March 13) in Jacksonville, Fla., before Illinois State returns home.

Illinois State opens the home portion of its schedule at Duffy Bass Field with a four-game series against Central Michigan (March 19-21). The Redbirds won’t have time to get too comfy, as the team plays nine of its next 11 games on the road, including the conference-opening series at Indiana State (March 26-28), another trip to Tennesse for a three-game series with Lipscomb (April 2-3), and a match-up with Valley foe Creighton in Omaha (April 9-11).

ISU will host mid-week match-ups with Illinois (March 30), Northern Illinois (April 6), Purdue (April 14) and Eastern Illinois (May 12). The Redbirds open the home-conference slate against Southern Illinois (April 16-18). Illinois State will also welcome Wichita State (April 30-May 2) and Bradley (May 14-16) to Duffy Bass Field in Missouri Valley Conference action. Keeping history alive, Illinois State will travel across town for the annual Horenberger-Bass Classic against Illinois Wesleyan (April 27). The Redbirds will close the season on the road at Evansville (May 20-22).

Postseason play begins Tuesday, May 25, with the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, hosted by Wichita State at Eck Stadium in Wichita, Kan. The NCAA Tournament begins on Friday, June 4.

(Release)

OMAHA, Neb. – Eleven games in Rosenblatt Stadium’s final season, games against five NCAA Tournament participants and three meetings with local rival Nebraska highlight this year’s 2010 Creighton Baseball schedule, which was released late Monday.

The Jays kick-off its 54 game schedule on Feb. 20 with a doubleheader in Conway, Ark. against Central Arkansas and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. The Bluejays will start the season with a 21-game road trip before playing its home opener against Indiana State on April 2 at Rosenblatt Stadium.

Creighton Head Coach Ed Servais

The Jays will also close its home slate with a Rosenblatt matinee against New Orleans on May 22 at 12:00 p.m. It will be the last regular season game the Jays play at the park, as they will play a handful of games at TD AMERITRADE Park Omaha in 2011 before moving in as full-time tenants in 2012.

Complete 2010 Creighton Schedule

The Jays non-conference season is highlighted by six games against four NCAA Regional participants from last season. The first of which will be Southland Conference champions Sam Houston State, who the Jays will play on March 5 and 7^th.

Minnesota is next on Creighton’s list of tourney teams, as the Jays will face the Golden Gophers at the Metrodome on March 13 in the Metrodome Tournament.

Kansas State and Kansas round out the Jays’ non-conference, ’09 tourney-team lineup, as they will face KSU in Manhattan on March 16. Creighton and Kansas will play a home-and-home set, as the Jays will visit Lawrence on March 23 and the Jayhawks will play at Rosenblatt on April 7.

After the season opener in Arkansas, the Jays will play in three tournaments, two of which will be in Texas. ULM, Northwestern State (La.) and Stephen F. Austin will be the opponents at the Stephen F. Austin Tournament while Northern Colorado and Sam Houston State will tangle with the Jays at SHSU’s tournament.

After a single non-conference game at Texas-Arlington, Creighton will play in the Metrodome Tournament in Minneapolis. The Jays will play South Dakota State on March 12, host Minnesota on the 13^th and Harvard on the 14^th.

The Jays will play a three-game set in Chicago against 2009 Horizon League regular season champ Illinois-Chicago before jumping into its 21-game, Missouri Valley Conference schedule.

The Jays be on the road at Southern Illinois on March 26-28, and will also have road conference series at Bradley and Missouri State.

Along with Indiana State, the Jays will host Valley opponents Illinois State, Evansville and 2009 regional participant Wichita State.

Creighton hosts two of the three games against Nebraska at Rosenblatt Stadium. An April 6 trip to Lincoln precedes games on April 20 and May 18 in Omaha.

Creighton will also play host to Big Ten foe Iowa, along with Air Force, Seattle University and New Orleans in its other non-conference home games.

The State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament will be played from May 25-29 at Eck Stadium in Wichita, Kan. It will be the second straight year Wichita has played host to the tournament.

The Jays finished last season 31-25, falling in the MVC title game to Wichita State. Creighton will look for its first NCAA regional appearance since 2007, and third under head coach Ed Servais.

(Release)

Here’s the rundown of some of the new things on the site this week:

1.  Podcast interview with Florida Gulf Coast pitcher Chris Sale – who was named the Cape Cod Pitching MVP over the summer.

2.  The debut of Around The Bases – Four thoughts on college baseball (mostly).

3.  Gordon Beckham honored at Saturday’s Georgia vs. Auburn football game.

4.  Rider will host the 2011 MAAC Baseball Championship.

5.  Tournament passes on sale for the 2010 ACC Baseball Tournament.

6.  The passing of Missouri Valley Conference umpire Lenny Brickens.

7.  Stanford running back Toby Gerhart named a Doak Walker Award semifinalist.

8.  More 2010 schedules that were released during the week.

Remember, while we can’t (and wouldn’t) specifically ask you to purchase anything from our sponsors.  However, if you do plan to buy things like sports tickets, baseball caps, baseball equipment, or other sports apparel, you will be helping us continue to bring you great college baseball information if you make those kind of purchases through the sponsor links on our web site.

Lenny Brickens, who served as the Missouri Valley Conference’s Baseball Coordinator of Umpires since 2006, passed away on October 30, 2009.

Lenny Brickens

Brickens began Umpires for Youth in 1971 and took over the Indianapolis Umpires Association (IUA) in 1973.  He recruited, trained and scheduled umpires in central Indiana throughout all of those years.  During his 40 year career, Lenny umpired all levels of baseball and had several appearances in NAIA World Series competitions, NCAA Division 1 Tournament, Division II and III College World Series, Missouri Valley Championship Series, and the Big Ten for many years.  Lenny also represented the United States as an umpire at the Pan Am Games in Indianapolis, the Junior World Championships in Moncton, Canada, the European Olympic Championships in the Netherlands, and the World Baseball Championships in Taipai.

He was a member of Holy Spirit Catholic Church, the IHSAA, Collegiate Baseball Umpires Alliance, Amateur Baseball Umpires Association, Indiana Officials Association and The Fall Creek Officials Association.  He organized a contingent of umpires to work pre-season collegiate baseball in Florida.

Because of his dedication and perseverance, Lenny built one of the most respected and unique umpire organizations in the United States.  He also can be credited with helping Central Indiana high schools to better their baseball programs by organizing and running a summer baseball program.  To help supplement team costs for this summer program, Lenny organized and ran an annual Monte Carlo charity night in Indianapolis for many years.

For the past 15 plus years, Lenny raised thousands of dollars within his IUA organization which was either given to specific charities or to families who had suffered losses of loved ones who were members of the IUA.

Lenny is survived by his wife, Theresa Donahue Brickens, daughter Anissa Borden; sister, Stella Benefiel; granddaughter, Cayleigh Donahue.

(Press Release)