TicketsBearcats Host UK On Greek Night
Activities planned for Greek members
Contact: Shawn Sell
4/20/2005
Jon DeLuca is leading the Bearcats in RBI this season. |
SETTING THE SCENE: The University of Cincinnati returns to non-conference baseball action on Wednesday (April 20), hosting local rival Kentucky in a 6:30 p.m. match-up. The game has been billed as Greek Night as members of the UC Greek Life community have been invited to enjoy the evening?s action. UC has won five of its last six contests, including two straight Conference USA series wins, to improve to 15-17 on the year. Kentucky is 19-16 this year after a win over Northern Kentucky on Tuesday night.
NOTES FROM CHARLOTTE:
? Cincinnati had its five-game win streak, its longest since 2001, snapped during Sunday?s finale.
? With two wins over Charlotte, the Bearcats have now won two straight C-USA series for the first time since 2002, when they topped Tulane and Charlotte in consecutive weeks.
? Kyle Markle was the winner in Saturday?s game for his first win since May 3, 2002, also against the 49ers.
? UC has now won four series this season, after winning one combined over the last two years. The Bearcats won seven series in 2002.
? Mark Muscenti, the UC leader in career hit by pitch, was hit by three in Sunday?s defeat.
? Muscenti tied for the second most assists in a C-USA game when he recorded 10 in Friday?s series opener.
? Tony Maynard tossed his second career complete game in Friday?s opener.
ABOUT KENTUCKY: The Wildcats bring a 19-16 record into the contest, after a Tuesday night victory over Northern Kentucky. UK is just 2-12 in the always-challenging SEC, but holds a 17-4 non-conference slate this year. Kentucky?s offense is hitting .307 for the year, with five regulars batting over .320. Michael Bertram is the Wildcats? leading hitter at .370, while John Shelby III, son of former major-leaguer John Shelby, paces the squad in homers (seven), RBI (37) and stolen bases (15). Kentucky?s pitching and defense have both struggled this year, ranking last in the conference in ERA (5.09), opponents batting average (.284) and fielding percentage (.945). Scott Green is UK?s top hurler with a 2-2 record and 3.86 ERA in 13 appearances. Freshman Alex Jordan (1-2, 7.66 ERA) will draw the start on the mound for the Wildcats.
UC AGAINST THE SEC: Cincinnati has played 101 games against current members of the Southeastern Conference since 1958, with South Carolina being the most frequent opponent. The Bearcats hold a record of 23-78 (.228) against members of the SEC, including an 8-27 mark against Kentucky. Other SEC teams the Bearcats have played against include Alabama (0-3), Auburn (0-1), South Carolina (12-26), Tennessee (2-12) and Vanderbilt (1-9). UC will be out to snap a seven-game losing streak to members of the SEC that dates back to 2003. UK is the only SEC member the Bearcats will face this season.
GREEK NIGHT: The UC-UK game will feature Greek Night festivities for members of the University Greek community. Along with special giveaways for fraternity and soroity members, an in-game coney eating contest sponsored by Skyline Chili and a pre-game pie eating contest, are scheduled.
ON A TEAR: LaFringe Hayes made his return to the line-up April 9 at Saint Louis and despite a two-week lay off, showed no signs of slowing down. For the weekend, Hayes went 7-for-9 (.778), logging the first four-hit game of his UC career. In his last 21 games, 18 of which saw him gather at least one hit, Hayes is hitting a blistering .476 (40-for-84). During the stretch Hayes has scored 28 runs, with seven doubles, four triples, 12 RBI and eight stolen bases. In this week?s Conference USA statistics, Hayes? .422 batting average leads the league.
TWICE AS NICE: With a pair of home runs at Saint Louis April 8-10 and another at Xavier on April 14, sophomore OF Brian Szarmach took over the team lead with seven longballs this season. While Szarmach has developed into one of the Bearcats? most consistent power threats, the majority of his home runs have been coming two at a time. At Wake Forest Feb. 25-27, Szarmach blasted the first two homers of his collegiate career. He did the same thing March 25-27 at Southern Miss and repeated the feat once more at Saint Louis. In addition to the power numbers, Szarmach has also shown more consistency at the plate, hitting .311 (19-for-61) in his last 15 games to raise his batting average to a season-high .283. Included in the recent hot streak for Szarmach has been a career-long seven game hit streak that has seen him bat .387 (12-for-31).
APPROACHING 200: UC head coach Brian Cleary is closing in on a coaching milestone, as he is just five wins shy of the 200-victory plateau for his career. Already the second winningest coach in school history, Cleary holds a career record of 197-287-1 (.407). The legendary Glenn Sample heads the list with 391 career victories.
BACK TO FORM: Coming into this season, senior Kyle Markle was expected to be an integral part of the Bearcats? bullpen, but the former Freshman All-American struggled in the early stages of the season, holding an 18.69 ERA in his first four appearances covering 4.1 innings. But since the beginning of March, Markle has become one of UC?s most reliable relievers. In his last 11 appearances, Markle has allowed just five runs and 10 hits in 20.1 innings, lowering his ERA to 5.11. His opponents batting average during the run is only .154, while his ERA is 2.21. On April 16 vs. Charlotte, Markle earned his first win since May 3, 2002, also against the 49ers.
BUCKEYE STRENGTH: UC?s win over Xavier on April 14 improved the Bearcats? record to 6-1 against Ohio schools this season. In addition to the Xavier win, Cincinnati has also swept three games from Cleveland State, while taking a prior single contest from Xavier and one vs. Toledo. The Bearcats will have plenty more chances to battle fellow Buckeye schools as they are scheduled to meet Miami (twice), Kent State and Xavier (once each) before season?s end. UC has won 10 of its last 12 games against Ohio adversaries, including three straight against crosstown rival Xavier.
SERIES SUCCESS: The Bearcats have reversed their series fortunes of the past two seasons this year with a total of four series triumphs, including two straight. Early this season, UC picked up sweeps at Duke and at home vs. Cleveland State, snapping a nearly two-year drought without a non-conference series win. In the past two weekends, the Bearcats have taken two of three games against both Saint Louis and Charlotte for their first back-to-back conference series wins since beating Tulane and Charlotte in 2002.
STRONG AT THE FRONT...: The Bearcats have found the ace to their starting rotation in senior Tony Maynard. The former Freshman All-American has been solid this season, posting a 5-2 record and a 3.71 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. Maynard had another outstanding outing April 15 vs. Charlotte as he crafted a four-hit complete game. In this week?s Conference USA rankings, Maynard finds himself ranked among the league leaders in innings pitched (T7th-63.0), wins (T7th-5) and ERA (8th).
...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 .205 batting average. The senior has appeared in a team-best 18 games, recording four saves and striking out 34 hitters in just 25 innings. Kay?s 2.16 ERA ranks first on the team. His four saves this season are also the most by a Bearcat hurler since Nate Bouldin?s five in 2002.
IT MUST BE THE CATCHER: Neall French?s home run on April 14 at Xavier continued a run of success for Bearcat backstops in games played at Hayden Field. In UC?s last eight games at Xavier, its catchers have homered in six of the contests, coming for a total of eight longballs. Steve Pickerell was the biggest power threat, smashing six round trippers in six games. French and Chris Hamblen added the other two deep balls.
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 .977 fielding percentage and is tied for third in Conference USA with 36 double plays. In the first round of NCAA National rankings, the Bearcats are ninth in double plays per game with 1.21. Muscenti had one of his best performances on April 15 vs. Charlotte, as he totaled the second most assists by any player in a Conference USA contest with 10.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES: After struggling through a tough 2004 season that saw UC post a record of just 7-25 in the first 32 games of the year, the Bearcats have shown a huge turnaround through 32 games this season. In addition to winning eight more games, the Bearcats have also shown great improvement on the mound. 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. The Bearcats? April 16 win over Charlotte was the team?s 15th of the year, matching the win total of each of the past two seasons.
SNAPPING A STREAK: Cincinnati?s win in game one of an April 3 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.
NOT SO FAST: While junior DH Jack Nelson isn?t enjoying the same offensive success he did in 2004, its not because of strikeouts. In the first round of NCAA national rankings released last week, Nelson is listed as the 10th toughest player in the nation to strikeout, going down just once every 21.2 at-bats. Nelson has shown his patience with 17 walks and just six strikeouts in 143 total plate appearances.
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.
PLAYING ?EM TIGHT: UC has shown improvement in close games this year, as they are 5-6 in games decided by two runs or less. The Bearcats were just 5-10 in those games last year.
CONFERENCE KILLERS: In spite of a 5-9 Conference USA record, several Bearcats find themselves ranked high in the conference-only stats. A summary of those players? performances follows:
? Brian Szarmach is tied for fourth with four home runs during league play.
? LaFringe Hayes and Logan Parker are two of 12 players tied for eighth with five doubles.
? Kyle Markle is third in opponents batting average (.148) and is fifth with a 2.65 ERA. The senior is also tied for tied for fourth with eight appearances.
? Josh Kay is tied for fourth with two saves and is tied for ninth with seven appearances.
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 .334 (123-for-368), with 24 doubles, eight triples, seven home runs, 53 RBI and 16 stolen bases. Hayes leads the team in hitting at .422 and is also tops in runs (31), hits (43), triples (five) and stolen bases (10). Haske is second on the team in hits (42), hitting (.316), runs (29), triples (two) and stolen bases (four). Parker is second on the squad with five homers and is third with 23 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 12 three-baggers in 32 games this year and are second in the conference in the category. UC made the jump back up to second with four last weekend vs. Charlotte, including the first of Jim Olds, Logan Parker and Brian Szarmach?s respective careers. 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.
FIRST WINS: A total of five 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 then beat Cleveland State on March 5, prior to Matt Heber getting a relief triumph April 10 at Saint Louis. David Theobald was the latest first-time winner, beating Xavier on April 14.
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.