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Bearcats Open Long Homestand Against Ohio

Bearcats Open Long Homestand Against OhioBearcats Open Long Homestand Against Ohio

April 16, 2007

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SETTING THE SCENE: Cincinnati will open a 10-game homestand at Marge Schott Stadium when the Bearcats entertain Ohio on Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m. Two rain outs last week left the Bearcats as winners of five of their last seven. UC is in a tie for sixth in the BIG EAST with a 5-6 league mark and is 19-15 overall. Ohio brings a 12-20 record into the contest.

NOTING THE BEARCATS:

  • The key to the Bearcats' offensive success this season has been the stolen base as UC leads the BIG EAST with 93 thefts. The mark ties for the fourth-highest single season total in UC history and is just 26 shy of matching the school record.
  • On April 1 at Georgetown, junior speedster Tony Campana set a new UC single-season record for steals with 36, eclipsing Ken Schneider's previous mark. Campana is already tied for ninth on the career list in the category, holding a current total of 42.
  • The Bearcats' pitching has been anchored by sophomore starters Steve Blevins and Dan Osterbrock. The duo holds a combined 11-6 record and a 3.33 ERA.
  • Josh Harrison ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in runs, doubles, home runs, RBI, total bases, slugging percentage and stolen bases. He ranks second in the league in RBI with 40 and is just two behind teammate Neall French.
  • Brian Szarmach tallied the first multi-homer game of his career at West Virginia.
  • UC's rained out contest on April 11 against Xavier will be made up on Tuesday, April 24 at 6:30 p.m. in Marge Schott Stadium.

NOTING THE BOBCATS:

  • The Bobcats have lost five in a row, including three over the weekend at Eastern Michigan to fall to 12-20 overall and 2-10 in MAC play. Ohio has lost seven of the last nine to Cincinnati.
  • Freshman INF Marc Krauss has been Ohio's offensive star, leading the team in hitting (.374), home runs (six) and RBI (25). Matt Stiffler has tacked on 23 RBI and a team-high seven steals.
  • Sophomore lefty Adam Goodpasture will make his first career start on Tuesday. Goodpasture is 0-0 this year in 14 appearances with a 9.64 ERA.
  • UC volunteer assistant coach Luke Howard is a graduate of Ohio. On March 30, 2005, Howard was the starting and winning pitcher in the Bobcats' last trip to Cincinnati.

LONG BALLS STILL COMING: Even with the loss of some its power hitters from a year ago, the Bearcats find themselves second in the BIG EAST with 32 home runs. UC's current total is actually six higher than the 2006 team posted through the first 34 games. Surprisingly, one of UC's biggest power threat has been one of its smaller players as 5'7" Josh Harrison is tied for third in the league with eight blasts, along with senior Neall French. A look at some UC home runs notes:

  • The Bearcats' four homers at Pittsburgh on March 24 were the most in a single game by UC since hitting four on May 22, 2005 against UAB.
  • Another of UC's little guys got in the act at Georgetown on March 31 as 5'7" Tony Campana became the first Bearcat since Mark Haske on March 30, 2005 to lead-off a game with a homer. Haske's blast came against Ohio.
  • One of UC's usual power suppliers, Brian Szarmach, tallied the first multi-home run game of his career on April 14 at West Virginia.
  • Twice this year, and most recently on April 14 at West Virginia, the Bearcats have hit back-to-back home runs.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME: In its nearly three seasons of existence, Marge Schott Stadium has provided a solid home field advantage for the Bearcats. Since its opening, the Bearcats hold a 51-28 (.646) record at home. As was the case last season, the Bearcats' team numbers have been better at home than on the road. Both UC's team batting average (.296 to .273) and ERA (3.44 to 5.86) are significantly better at Marge Schott Stadium.

HARRISON BACK AT IT: Josh Harrison has picked up where he left off last year in 2007, hitting .326 and ranking among the BIG EAST leaders in runs (T-3rd, 43), home runs (T-3rd, eight), RBI (2nd, 40), total bases (6th, 77) and stolen bases (T-5th, 16). At Austin Peay on Feb. 18, Harrison saw his career-best 18-game hit streak come to an end, but he bounced back with his fourth long ball one day later. In the 92 games making up his UC career, Harrison has failed to gather a hit in just 15 contests. Harrison had the biggest game as a Bearcat on March 24 at Pittsburgh, homering twice in a game for the first time and tying a school record with eight RBI.

OFF AND RUNNING: The Bearcats' running game has quickly evolved into one of the team's biggest weapons and is on track to produce one of the best efforts in school history. The Bearcats have swiped 93 bases this year, tying for the fourth-highest total by a UC team, and just 27 shy of a new school record. Tony Campana has been the catalyst as he has stolen a UC single-season record 42 bags. In 11 games this year, Campana has swiped multiple bags in a game including a school-record six in the second half of a doubleheader at North Carolina A&T on Feb. 24, topping Ken Schneider's previous high of five set in 1991. Campana is ranked second nationally in steals and is joined in double figures by Adam Yeager (18) and Josh Harrison (16), who rank fourth and fifth in the BIG EAST, respectively. As a team, UC ranks first in the country with 2.72 stolen bases per game, through April 8. Efficiency has also been key for the Bearcats as they have stolen safely in 93 of 108 attempts for an 86.1 percent success rate.

ROTATION MAINSTAYS: The Bearcats' starting pitching has excelled this season thanks to the play of sophomores Steve Blevins and Dan Osterbrock. The pair ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in wins, strikeouts and innings and have each won a BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week award. A closer look at each player's contributions this year:

  • After being victimized by a lack of run support early in the season, Blevins has won five of his last seven outings after starting the year 0-3. He had his best outing on March 9 vs. Cleveland State, hurling eight shutout innings with five strikeouts. Blevins has excelled in the walk-to-strikeout ratio with just 18 free passes and 49 K's in 65 innings of work. His ERA stands at 3.10, nearly three runs better than last year. After yielding 14 home runs last season, Blevins allowed his first of the year on March 24 at Pittsburgh in his 40th inning of the season.
  • Osterbrock, who holds a 6-1 record, has won six of his last seven starts and his 2.78 ERA ranks eighth among BIG EAST pitchers. His best outing came with a three-hit shutout of Dartmouth on March 3. On March 31 at Georgetown and again on April 14 at West Virginia, Osterbrock struck out a career-high eight, and his season total of 61 ranks second in the BIG EAST. The lefty hurled his third complete game of the season, keying UC's 4-3 win over Notre Dame on April 6.

BULLPEN LOCKDOWN: The Bearcats have enjoyed solid performances from the bullpen, with a newcomer and some surprising returnees leading the way.

  • Junior Billy Welsh has gotten his short stay off to a fine start, holding opponents scoreless in nine of his 14 appearances and turning in a 2.77 ERA. The righty got his first win at UC with 2.2 innings of relief against Cleveland State and he ranks among the BIG EAST leaders in saves (4th-4) and appearances (T9th). Opponents are hitting just .177 against him.
  • Junior southpaw Adam Calez has a sparkling 2.08 ERA in 10 appearances, while limiting opponents to a .152 batting average. After struggling with control last season (26 walks, 18 strikeouts), Calez has struck out 16 and walked only six so far this year.
  • Sophomore Jake Geglein and Evan Sanford have also performed well this season. Geglein has yielded just two runs in 11.2 innings over seven outings, while striking out 10 and picking up a win and his first-ever save. Sanford has allowed just two runs in his last six innings, striking out 12 and gathering his first career win.

OUTFIELD IN GOOD HANDS: With LaFringe Hayes gone to graduation and Josh Harrison moved to the infield, UC entered the season needing someone to step up in the outfield. The additions of Tony Campana, Cameron Satterwhite and Michael Obyc have more than filled the holes.

  • Campana has been a sparkplug at the top of the line-up, swiping a UC single-season record 42 bases and hitting a team-high .336. Campana had a career-best 18-game hit streak snapped on March 25 but has gathered at least one hit in all but four of UC's 34 games this season. In addition to his BIG EAST-leading steal total, Campana also ranks among the league leaders in hits (11th, 41), runs (13th, 31) and walks (T-6th-23).
  • Satterwhite has a 10-game hit streak to his credit this year and is batting .266 overall. He has shown a flair for the dramatic this year as he has hit game-winning homers on March 10 vs. Cleveland State and again on March 28 vs. Wright State.
  • Obyc has provided another option, starting a total of 17 games between the outfield and first base. He holds a batting average of .294, nearly twice his career average, and has eight RBI.

BUCKEYE STRENGTH: In recent years, Cincinnati has enjoyed success against its in-state rivals, winning 24 of its last 34 games against Ohio adversaries, including five of seven this season. The Bearcats will work to continue that success again in 2007 as four match-ups against Ohio schools remain on the 2007 slate. UC has wins this year over Cleveland State (three), Dayton and Wright State, with losses coming to Xavier and Toledo.

A MUCH NEEDED LIFT: With Logan Parker's big bat lost in the middle of the line up, seniors Neall French and Brian Szarmach and freshman Michael Earley have stepped up to fill the hole:

  • French has been the anchor of the Bearcat line-up, leading the BIG EAST with 42 RBI and tying for sixth with eight home runs. He has been red hot as of late, hitting safely in nine of his last 11 games at a .356 clip (16-for-45) with 18 RBI during the stretch. French had his best day as a Bearcat at Kentucky on March 7, with a career-best six RBI, courtesy of a pair of three-run homers. He barely missed the cycle on March 31 at Georgetown, missing only the single and driving in five.
  • Szarmach is hitting a solid .283 and has added 27 RBI. He also has eight doubles, a triple and six home runs, including his first career multi-homer game on April 14 at West Virginia.
  • Since returning from a wrist injury in early March, freshman Michael Earley has batted .329 (25-for-76) with four doubles, five home runs and 14 RBI in 25 games.