Ball State University Athletics
Feb. 21: Baseball Weekly Release
February 21, 2006 | Baseball
Feb. 21: Baseball Weekly Release (PDF)
This week in Ball State Baseball: The Cardinals travel to Charleston, S.C., for a round-robin tournament with Towson University, The Citadel and Le Moyne College . . . Friday's first pitch is slated for noon at Riley Park, while Saturday's game is scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. start and Sunday's at 11:30 a.m.
About the Cardinals: Ball State went 1-2 during its initial weekend of competition in 2006 . . . The Cardinals dropped a 10-4 decision last Friday evening at UAB, then evened the season series in 13 innings Sunday afternoon with an 11-10 win before falling 3-0 in the second game of the doubleheader . . . Redshirt-sophomore Kyle Heyne was named Mid-American Conference West Division Pitcher of the Week (Feb. 20) after his five-inning, six-strikeout effort Sunday . . . Senior first baseman Brad Miller has a team-high .429 batting average after going 6-for-14 from the plate, including a two-run home run and two doubles Friday night . . . Miller and senior center fielder Mike Sullivan lead the team with three RBIs each.
About Towson: The Tigers enter this weekend's competition with a 0-3 record after being swept by Virginia (Feb. 17-19) . . . Junior Ryan Schreiter leads the team with a .300 batting average in 10 at-bats . . . Senior right-handed pitcher Chris Rhoades will make his second start of the season Friday against the Cardinals . . . Rhoades completed five innings against UV, posting four strikeouts while allowing two walks and two earned runs.
The Series: This is the first meeting between the schools.
About The Citadel: The Bulldogs, who host Hofstra Tuesday and Wednesday, enter the week with a 2-2 overall record . . . After dropping the opener to Virginia (5-3), they won two straight over Richmond (6-0) and Nebraska (8-5), before falling to North Carolina State (6-2) . . . Sophomore outfielder/first baseman Chris Swauger, the Southern Conference's Player of the Week, paces the team with his .600 batting average (2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 7 RBI) in 15 at-bats . . . Senior left-handed pitcher Ryan Owens will start the game for The Citadel . . . Owens is 0-1 in two starts for the Bulldogs, including a 7.00 ERA with seven strikeouts and three walks in 9.0 innings.
The Series: The series is tied at one-game apiece, with the Cardinals winning the most recent game.
About Le Moyne: The Dolphins, who went 25-22 last year, open their season Friday versus The Citadel . . . The top returning position players for Le Moyne include senior short stop Mike Affronti (.343, 1 HR, 19 RBI, 2 SB), senior first baseman Keith Connors (.321, 6 HR, 34 RBI, 9 SB) and senior catcher Brian Hansen (.314, 4 HR, 27 RBI, 2 SB) . . . Scheduled to start on the mound Sunday against Ball State is senior left-handed pitcher Michael Falasca (0-1, 6.75 ERA, 13.1 IP, 12 SO).
The Series: This is the first meeting between the schools.
BSU Baseball All-Time: The Cardinals own a 1,268-1,185-14 (.517) all-time record . . . Ball State began play in 1920, compiling a 2-3 record under Orville Sink . . . In 85 years of competition -- no games were played in 1944 due to the war -- BSU has compiled a winning record 39 times . . . With a 38-18 record last season, the Cardinals have finished .500 or better in each of the last 10 seasons.
Head Coach Greg Beals: Greg Beals is currently in his fourth season as the head coach of the Ball State baseball team . . . In three-plus seasons with the Cardinals, Beals has compiled a 103-69 (.599) overall record and a 48-25 (.658) Mid-American Conference mark . . . In 2003, Beals became the most successful first-year head coach in school history by guiding the Cardinals to a 36-21 overall record . . . Beals is also the first BSU head coach to win the MAC West Division title in his first season, with a 17-10 MAC ledger . . . In addition, he is just the third coach to post a winning record in his first year at BSU . . . Beals earned his 100th victory May 21, 2005, in the second game of a doubleheader with Wright State . . . The Cardinals shut out the Raiders 8-0 . . . Beals is just the eighth head coach in Ball State baseball history, ranking sixth in overall wins and third in MAC victories . . . Pat Quinn, BSU Associate A.D. and baseball sport supervisor, holds the record for career overall wins (323), while current University of Michigan head coach Rich Maloney owns the MAC win mark (149).
MAC Preseason Poll: Ball State was picked to finish second in the MAC West Division preseason coaches poll (released Feb. 1), behind last year's divisional runner-up Central Michigan . . . Miami is the favorite to win the East Division and the postseason Tournament.
