TicketsUC Back On The Diamond vs. Purdue
Bearcats to conclude homestand
Contact: Shawn Sell
4/5/2005
Erik Eitel is hitting .389 in his last six games. |
SETTING THE SCENE: Cincinnati is back in action on Wednesday (April 6), hosting Purdue in a non-conference contest at the UC Baseball Stadium. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m. The game has been declared National Student-Athlete Day and prior to the contest, four UC student-athletes, including DH Jack Nelson, will be recognized for excellence in competition and in the classroom. The Bearcats enter the contest sporting a 10-14 record after splitting a doubleheader with Houston on Sunday. Purdue is 7-15 after a four-game split with Penn State in the opening weekend of Big Ten play.
NOTES FROM HOUSTON:
? The Bearcats snapped their seven-game losing streak to Houston with a 2-1 win in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader. The win was UC's first over Houston since a 11-10, 12-inning win on April 20, 2002. The Bearcats? last home win over the Cougars before Sunday came on March 30, 2001 in a 12-5 triumph.
? Mark Haske had his season-best eight-game hit streak snapped, while Jack Nelson saw his season-high seven-game string end.
? Mark Muscenti tallied his first three-hit game of the season in game one.
? Josh Kay recorded his third save of the year, the most by a Bearcat hurler in a season since Nate Bouldin?s five in 2002.
? The Bearcats earned their 10th win of the season in the team's 23rd game. It took UC until game number 44 last season to capture 10 wins.
ABOUT PURDUE: The Boilermakers are 7-15 this year after splitting four games with Penn State over the weekend. Purdue has faced a challenging schedule in 2005, as 10 of its 22 games have been against ranked teams, including common opponent Florida Atlantic. The Boilermakers dropped two of three at FAU, while the Bearcats were swept in a three-game set. Purdue?s offense, which ranks near the bottom of the Big 10 in nearly every offensive category, is led by sophomore Mitch Hilligoss? .395 batting average. Neal Gorka leads the team with three homers, while Eric Osborn is tops with 14 RBI. The Boilermaker pitching staff ranks last in the conference in both ERA and opponents batting average. Senior Martin Havens (0-0, 11.57 ERA) will draw the start on the hill against UC.
UC AGAINST THE BIG TEN: Cincinnati has played 108 games against current members of the Big 10 Conference since 1958, with Ohio State being the most frequent opponent. The Bearcats hold a record of 30-76-2 (.287) against members of the Big 10, including a 5-7 mark against Purdue. Other Big 10 teams the Bearcats have played against include Illinois (2-2), Indiana (4-10), Michigan (1-1), Michigan State (2-3), Northwestern (1-5) and Ohio State (15-48-2). The Bearcats have never faced Iowa, Minnesota or Penn State on the diamond. UC will be out to snap a four-game losing streak to the Big 10 that goes back to a 1998 win over Indiana.
HEATING UP: Senior OF Erik Eitel and junior 2B Mark Muscenti have been two of the hottest hitting Bearcats as of late, helping to solidify the bottom of the order. Since taking over in centerfield for an injured LaFringe Hayes six games ago, Eitel has collected at least one hit in five of the six contests, batting .389 during the span and adding nearly 60 points to his season batting average. Muscenti is 5-for-12 (.417) in his last four games, including his first three-hit game of the season in game one of an April 3 doubleheader against Houston.
APPROACHING 200: UC head coach Brian Cleary is closing in on a coaching milestone, as he is just eight wins shy of the 200-victory plateau for his career. Already the second winningest coach in school history, Cleary holds a career record of 192-284-1 (.404). The legendary Glenn Sample heads the list with 391 career victories.
PLAYING ?EM TIGHT: UC has shown improvement in close games this year, as they are 3-5 in games decided by two runs or less. The Bearcats were just 5-10 in those games last year.
BEATING HOUSTON: Cincinnati?s win in game one of Sunday?s doubleheader vs. Houston marked the end of a frustrating stretch for the Bearcats. Prior to that victory, UC had dropped its last seven straight to the Cougars, its longest streak against any Conference USA opponent entering the season. With that streak behind them, the Bearcats will next try to end a six-game losing streak to Memphis. That series will take place at home, May 13-15.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: After struggling through a tough 2004 season that saw UC post a record of just 3-21 in the first 24 games of the year, the Bearcats have shown a huge turnaround through 24 games this season. In addition to winning seven more games, the Bearcats have also bettered their numbers in nearly every hitting and pitching total. With a win in game one of an April 3 doubleheader vs. Houston, UC reached 10 wins in their 23rd contest of the year, a feat that didn?t come until game number 44 last season.
POLL WINNER: In a poll conducted on www.ucbearcats.com, junior 1B Logan Parker was voted the Bearcats? team MVP through the first half of the season. A total of 565 fans cast votes for Parker, who finished nearly 300 votes ahead of junior OF LaFringe Hayes. The final tally showed 1,247 votes recorded in the survey.
BUCKEYE STRENGTH: UC?s loss to Ohio on March 30 was the Bearcats? first to an in-state rival since last April and put the team?s 2005 record at 5-1 against Ohio foes. In addition to a win over Toledo on March 23, Cincinnati has also swept three games from Cleveland State, while taking a single contest from Xavier. The Bearcats will have plenty more chances to battle fellow Buckeye schools as they are scheduled to meet Xavier and Miami (twice each), and Kent State (once) before season?s end. UC has won nine of its last 11 games against Ohio adversaries.
STRONG AT THE FRONT...: The Bearcats seem to have found the ace to their starting rotation in senior Tony Maynard. The former Freshman All-American has been solid this season, posting a 4-1 record and a 3.78 ERA. Against Xavier on March 13, Maynard turned in the best outing of his collegiate career, holding the Musketeers hitless into the eighth inning. For the day, Maynard matched his career-best with eight innings of work, surrendering just one hit and one walk and striking out a career-high seven. In this week?s Conference USA rankings, Maynard finds himself ranked among the league leaders in innings pitched (10th-47.2) and wins (T8th-4). Maynard also helped the Bearcats snap a seven-game losing streak to Houston with five gritty innings on April 3. After taking a line drive off the right shoulder and head in the fourth inning, Maynard remained in the game and allowed just one run on four hits in the outing.
...AND AT THE BACK: UC has also solved the issue of who will serve as the closer based on senior Josh Kay?s performance this year. Kay has proven to be nearly unhittable as he is holding opponents to a .183 batting average. The senior has appeared in a team-best 13 games, recording three saves and striking out 19 hitters. Kay?s 2.50 ERA ranks first on the team. His three saves this season are also the most by a Bearcat hurler since Nate Bouldin?s five in 2002.
BACK ON THE MOUND: Junior Jack Nelson made an impressive return to the pitching mound on March 25 at Southern Miss. After not facing a batter in a game or practice all season, Nelson turned in two shutout innings against the Golden Eagles. Nelson?s mound appearance was his first since March 23, 2004 at Miami (Ohio).
BIG DAY AT THE DISH: Logan Parker turned in his finest day at the plate during UC?s 10-4 win over Toledo on March 23. For the day, Parker recorded his first four-hit game as a Bearcat and the first by a UC player this season. Among Parker?s knocks were a pair of doubles and his team-leading fifth home run of the year. Parker?s four-hit performance was the first by a Bearcat since Aaron Moll had four hits on May 21, 2004 vs. UAB.
CONFERENCE KILLERS: In spite of a 1-7 Conference USA record, several Bearcats find themselves ranked high in the conference only stats. A summary of those players? performances follows:
? Logan Parker is listed in a total of five categories, including a ranking of fifth with a .448 batting average. Parker is also ranked in slugging percentage (10th-.690), on-base percentage (T10th-.500), hits (T10th-13) and doubles (T4th-4).
?Mark Muscenti is eighth with a .417 batting average in conference play and is tied with Parker for 10th in on-base percentage.
? Brian Szarmach is one of 20 players tied for sixth with two home runs in C-USA play.
? Kyle Markle is tied for second in opponents batting average (.118) and is 12th with a 3.48 ERA.
SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM Building on its strong tradition of academic success, the Bearcat Baseball team had another outstanding quarter during the Winter of 2004-05. A total of five student-athletes earned a TopCat Scholar award (GPA over 3.5) and 12 were named Bearcat Scholars (GPA over 3.0). Additionally, freshman Dustin Alvey was recognized as UC?s Top Male Scholar-Athlete of the Quarter after earning a 4.0 GPA. Senior Jim Olds was another of the 17 UC student-athletes to earn 4.0 GPA?s for the quarter. Below is a look at the players honored
Topcat Scholars (GPA?s between 3.5-4.0): Dustin Alvey, Josh Kay, Jim Olds, Evan Sanford.
Bearcat Scholars (GPA?s between 3.0-3.5): Brian Beltz, Nick Buscemi, Jon DeLuca, Erik Eitel, Mike Foley, Jake Geglein, LaFringe Hayes, Pat LeMasters, Kyle Markle, Jack Nelson, David Oberly, Bryan Wood.
FRENCH NAMED TO WATCH LIST: Junior catcher Neall French has been named to the 37-member initial watch list for the Johnny Bench Award, honoring the nation's best collegiate catcher. The award is sponsored each year by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission and is named after the former Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame backstop. The watch list will be narrowed down to 10 semifinalists, who will be announced on May 17. The three finalists will be revealed on June 1, with the sixth annual award winner being announced at the Greater Wichita Sports Banquet on June 29.
THE NEED FOR SPEED: After ranking last in Conference USA in 2004 with a program-low 10 stolen bases, the Bearcats bolstered their team speed with the additions of transfers LaFringe Hayes and Mark Haske. Batting 1-2 in the line-up all but three games this season, the duo has combined to nab 14 of UC?s 20 stolen bases. Hayes has been the primary threat as he is tied for fourth in the conference with 10 steals in 10 attempts. His speed has been sorely missed, as the Bearcats have failed to steal a base in the last five games with Hayes out of the line-up.
BEARCATS PICKED 10TH IN C-USA: In a preseason poll of conference coaches, the Bearcats have been chosen to finish 10th in Conference USA this season. Tulane, ranked No. 1 nationally in the preseason by Baseball America, earned all 12 of the first place votes as the favorite to win the conference. Defending C-USA Tournament Champions TCU were picked second, with last year?s regular season titlists East Carolina rounding out the top three.
ON A TEAR: LaFringe Hayes has been Cincinnati?s hottest hitter as of late, taking over the team-lead in hitting at .390 before being sidelined over the last five games with a shoulder injury. In his last 15 games, 13 of which saw him gather at least one hit, Hayes is hitting a blistering .458 (27-for-59). During the stretch Hayes has scored 23 runs, with four doubles, four triples, six RBI and eight stolen bases. Included in the recent hot streak was a career-best 11-game hit streak.
WELCOME ADDITIONS: The Bearcats have enjoyed the contributions of newcomers Mark Haske, LaFringe Hayes and Logan Parker as the trio have been mainstays in the line-up. As a group, the threesome is batting .347 (95-for-274), with 18 doubles, seven triples, seven home runs, 42 RBI and 16 stolen bases. Hayes leads the team in hitting at .390 and is also tops in runs (26), triples (five) and stolen bases (10). Haske is second on the team in hitting at .340 and is also second in runs (23), triples (two) and stolen bases (four), while leading the team with 33 hits. Parker ranks third with a .320 batting average and is tops on the squad with five homers and is tied for first with 19 RBI.
TRIPLE THE FUN: Three-base hits came in bunches for the Bearcats March 4-6 vs. Cleveland State as they accounted for seven in the three-game series. LaFringe Hayes was at the center of the output, recording four. In the March 4 win, Hayes tied a school and Conference USA record with a pair of triples, while helping the Bearcats match a conference mark with four in the game. Hayes? first triple also went down as the first in UC Baseball Stadium history. After ranking last in C-USA in 2004 with just five triples, the Bearcats have already bettered the total with eight three-baggers in 22 games this year and are tied for fourth in the conference in the category. Hayes has a shot at the school record for triples in a season as his five already tie him for fourth in school annals. Billy Wolff set the record with nine in 1965.
IRON MEN: The Bearcats? infield has shown their durability during the 2005 season as the foursome of 1B Logan Parker, 2B Mark Muscenti, 3B Jon DeLuca and SS Mark Haske have combined to play all but three innings at their respective positions. DeLuca was the first to get a break as he sat down for the ninth inning of UC?s win over Toledo on March 23. The continuity has proved valuable as the infield holds a combined .969 fielding percentage and is tied for fifth in Conference USA with 23 double plays.
UNLIKELY POWER: Entering this season, the Bearcats expected power from players like Jon DeLuca, Neall French, Jack Nelson and Logan Parker. But in the early stages of 2005, an unlikely group provided most of the Bearcats? power output. In the Feb. 11 opener, senior Erik Eitel hit just the third home run of his career. A day later, juniors Mark Muscenti and LaFringe Hayes went long on consecutive at-bats. The blast for Muscenti was only the second of his career, while Hayes? homer was the first of his collegiate career. Another unlikely candidate went deep on Feb. 20 at Duke as sophomore Brian Beltz picked up the first long ball of his career. The trend continued at Wake Forest as Beltz tallied his second career blast and Brian Szarmach hit the first two of his collegiate career. While the quintet has combined for nine of UC?s 15 homers, Parker has made an immediate impact in the Bearcat line-up with five longballs. Szarmach has also been a pleasant surprise with four home runs.
FIRST WINS: A trio of Bearcat hurlers have broken into the win column for the first time in their careers in 2005. Bryan Wood was the first to earn his initial triumph, getting a relief win on Feb. 19 at Duke. One day later, it was Sean Munninghoff picking up a W against the Blue Devils. Kevin Schrader was the most recent first time winner, as he beat Cleveland State on March 5. In addition to this trio, redshirt sophomore Nick Buscemi earned his first win in nearly two seasons after beating Toledo. Buscemi missed all of 2004 recovering from arm surgery.