Ball State University Athletics
Baseball Travels To Bowling Green This Weekend
April 09, 2009 | Baseball
What's On Tap . . .
The Cardinals return to Mid-American Conference play this weekend as they travel to Bowling Green for a three-game series against the Falcons ... This is the second straight road MAC weekend for BSU ... Ball State enters the weekend with a 15-12 overall record and a 5-2 mark in MAC play to lead the MAC West Division ... The Cardinals have won three straight games heading into the weekend after a doubleheader sweep at Buffalo last weekend and a midweek victory at Purdue ... Ball State is led by seventh-year head coach Greg Beals ... Bowling Green enters the weekend with a 13-14 overall record and a 4-4 mark in MAC play ... The Falcons are coming off of a series victory at Central Michigan last weekend before dropping a 27-7 non-conference contest against Eastern Michigan during the midweek ... Bowling Green is led by 19th-year head coach Danny Schmitz.
Series History . . .
Ball State and Bowling Green have met 93 times prior to this weekend's three-game series with the Cardinals trailing the all-time series 49-42-2 ... The Cardinals have won 12 out of the last 16 meetings between the two teams ... Ball State is just 13-27-1 all-time against the Falcons on the road and will be making its first visit to Bowling Green since the 2004 season.
Last year, Bowling Green won the three-game series in Muncie as the Falcons picked up 18-12 and 18-16 victories in the first two games before the Cardinals claimed a 9-7 victory in the series finale ... The two teams combined to tally 23 home runs in the three games as the Cardinals recorded 10 and BGSU added 13 long balls ... Ball State batted .328 in the series while the Falcons hit .368 ... Left fielder Kory Benbow paced the Cardinals' offensive attack as he was eight-of-11 (.727) at the plate in the series while Nate Fields drove in eight runs on the weekend ... Kolbrin Vitek picked up the Cardinals' lone victory on the weekend as he tossed 6.1 innings and allowed just one earned run ... Bowling Green had three players record three home runs apiece on the weekend with Brian Hangbers leading the way with three home runs and nine RBI.
Nielsen Honored, Again . . .
Freshman first baseman Ian Nielsen was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the week, the league office announced Monday ... This marks the second time this season that Nielsen has been honored by the MAC ... Ball State has now received a weekly honor from the MAC all seven weeks of the 2009 season.
Nielsen led the Cardinals into sole possession of first place in the MAC West Division with a doubleheader sweep at Buffalo this past weekend ... He was six-of-nine (.667) in the two games against the Bulls and drove in five runs ... Four out of his five RBI came with two outs in the twin bill as he led the Cardinals to a 5-2 conference start.
Last Time Out . . .
The Cardinals are coming off of a 17-8 victory Tuesday afternoon at Big 10 foe Purdue ... Ball State pounded out 19 hits against the Boilermakers ... The Cardinals' first four hitters, Jeremy Hazelbaker, Nate Fields, Kolbrin Vitek and Zach Dygert combined for 11 hits in the game and they reached base 15 times ... They also drove in 12 runs and scored 10 on the strength of six doubles.
Ball State ran out to an early 8-0 lead at Purdue and cruised to victory ... Fields paced the attack with a team-high four hits as he drove in three runs and scored four runs ... Dygert added three hits and four RBI while Hazelbaker picked up three RBI and four runs scored ... Left-hander Eric Van Matre picked up his first win of the season as the Purdue transfer worked 2.0 innings of relief and limited the Boilermakers to one run on four hits.
200 Victories . . .
Seventh-year head coach Greg Beals joined some elite company in Ball State baseball history as he became the fifth coach to reach 200 career victories with the Cardinals' 4-2 win over Kent State ... Beals (203-160) joins former Cardinal coaches Pat Quinn (323 wins), Rich Maloney (256), Paul Williams (209) and Bob Rickel (209) ... Beals is the second-fastest coach to reach 200 victories as he reached his milestone in 359 games ... Maloney was the fastest to reach 200 wins as he did it in 312 games, followed by Rickel (398 games), Williams (409) and Quinn (427).
Leading The Way . . .
Junior center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker, the Cardinals' leadoff hitter, enters the weekend leading the Mid-American Conference in batting with a .446 average ... Hazelbaker leads the league in hits (50), runs (39), triples (4), stolen bases (18) and on-base percentage (.544) ... He is third in total bases (75) fifth in slugging percentage (.678).
On The Mound & In The Field . . .
Sophomore right-hander and third baseman Kolbrin Vitek has picked up his play in Mid-American Conference action this season ... Vitek, a Freshman All-America selection last year, leads the MAC in conference games in both batting and pitching ... He owns a .519 average (14-of-27) in conference play this season and has a 0.00 ERA on the mound in 10.0 innings pitched.
This Weekend's Starters . . .
Ball State will stick with its normal weekend rotation as it will send right-handers Brad Piatt, Brenden Stines and Kolbrin Vitek to the hill ... Bowling Green will counter with right-hander Brennan Smith and left-hander Matt Malewitz ... The Falcons have not named a starter for Sunday's game.
Piatt enters the weekend with a 4-0 record on the year and a 4.36 ERA ... He has worked a team-high 33.0 innings this year and will be making his eighth start of the year ... He is coming off of his shortest outing of the season as he only lasted 1.1 innings at Buffalo as he allowed seven runs.
Stines enters the weekend with a 1-3 overall record and a 4.33 ERA ... He has worked 27.0 innings and will be making his 10th appearance and seventh start ... He worked 2.1 innings at Purdue in the start Tuesday as he allowed just two earned runs ... He did not start last weekend due to the rain-shortened series.
Vitek gets the nod Sunday afternoon and brings a 2-1 record and a 2.86 ERA into the weekend ... He has worked 28.1 innings this year and has struck out 32 while only walking four batters ... He is coming off of a strong four-inning performance last weekend at Buffalo as he allowed only three hits and struck out four batters.
Smith gets the nod on Friday afternoon for BGSU and brings a 4-3 record with a 2.88 ERA into the contest ... He will be making his ninth start of the season and has worked 40.2 innings ... He is coming off of a 7.0 inning start last weekend at Central Michigan as he picked up the win ... He only allowed four hits and held CMU scoreless while striking out six.
Malewitz enters the weekend with a 2-1 record and a 2.70 ERA ... He has worked a team-high 43.1 innings and will be making his eighth start ... He worked 8.0 innings last weekend at CMU as he allowed just one run on four hits.
Scouting Ball State . . .
Ball State enters the weekend with a 15-12 overall record and a 5-2 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The Cardinals sit in sole possession of first place in the MAC West Division ... Ball State has scored 192 runs this season through the first 27 games as it is batting .316 on the season ... The Cardinals own a .497 slugging percentage on the strength of 72 doubles, 10 triples and 28 home runs ... On the mound, BSU owns a 4.11 ERA and is holding opponents to just .278 hitting ... The Cardinals have tallied 186 strikeouts while walking 101 batters.
Junior center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker leads the team in batting this season with a .446 average ... Hazelbaker leads the team with 50 hits, 39 runs, four triples, a .670 slugging percentage and a .544 on-base percentage ... Sophomore third baseman Kolbrin Vitek is second on the team in batting at .358 and is second with 29 RBI ... Freshman first baseman Ian Nielsen is third in batting a .357.
In the bullpen, senior left-hander Tom Mueller leads the team with 16 appearances ... Mueller has worked 18.1 innings and owns a 1.47 ERA ... Junior closer Morgan Coombs has worked 18.0 innings and has a 1.50 ERA while recording a team-high three saves ... Right-hander Aaron Hammons is second on the team in appearances with 15 as he has struck out 22 batters in 16.1 innings.
Scouting Bowling Green . . .
Bowling Green enters the weekend with a 13-14 overall record and a 4-4 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The Falcons have scored 194 runs in 27 games this season while posting a .326 batting average, which leads the MAC ... Bowling Green owns a .456 slugging percentage on the strength of 45 doubles, nine triples and 21 home runs ... On the mound, the Falcons have a 7.42 ERA as opponents are batting .312 ... Bowling Green has struck out 157 batters while walking 106.
Logan Meisler leads the Falcons in batting with a team-high .398 average ... Ryan Shay is second on the team in batting at .387 and leads the team with 43 hits and four home runs ... Derek Spencer has driven in a team-high 28 runs this season.
In the bullpen, Charles Wooten has made a team-high 12 appearances and owns a 12.23 ERA with two saves in 17.2 innings ... Dusty Hawk also has two saves has he has a 7.52 ERA in 20.1 innings.
Five-Finger Discount . . .
The Cardinals lead the Mid-American Conference this season in stolen bases ... Through 27 games, Ball State has recorded 64 stolen bases on 76 attempts ... Ball State also owns the top stolen base tandem in the conference this season in junior Jeremy Hazelbaker and senior Nate Fields ... The two have combined to steal 36 bases in 40 attempts at the top of the Cardinals' lineup ... Fields leads the team with 18 steals in 19 attempts while Hazelbaker has converted 18-of-21 stolen base attempts ... The two are tied for first in the MAC in stolen bases.
Double Trouble . . .
Ball State leads the Mid-American Conference and is 68th in NCAA Division I in doubles with 72 ... The Cardinals have 11 players who have notched doubles this season with eight of those players with at least five doubles ... Sophomore third baseman Kolbrin Vitek leads the team with 12 doubles while senior second baseman Nate Fields is second with 11 doubles ... Last season, the Cardinals set the BSU single season record for doubles with 133.
Using The Long Ball . . .
Last season, Ball State tied a single season record for home runs with 95 long balls on the year ... The Cardinals prepared for a downturn in the power department this season after losing 46 home runs to either the Major League Baseball Draft or graduation ... Through the first 27 games though, Ball State has pounded out 28 home runs ... Nine different players have hit the long ball this season ... Junior left fielder Kory Benbow lead the team with six home runs while sophomore third baseman Kolbrin Vitek has five and freshman Ian Nielsen has tallied four home runs.
Gridiron To The Diamond . . .
Ball State received an addition to the pitching staff this spring from an unlikely source, the Mid-American Conference West Division champion Cardinal football team ... Redshirt freshman Perci Garner joined the Ball State baseball program in January after serving as the Cardinals' third string quarterback this fall ... Garner has already appeared in nine games this spring, working 9.1 innings and allowing four runs ... He has tallied 14 strikeouts this season while only walking six batters as he owns a 3.86 ERA.
Garner was a two-sport star at Dover High School in Ohio ... He was named the East Central Ohio League Pitcher of the Year as he posted a 5-3 record with a stellar 0.83 ERA.
Cardinals Rack Up Honors . . .
Ball State has garnered a weekly Mid-American Conference honor in all seven weeks of the season as the Cardinals have tallied six Player of the Week honors and two Pitcher of the Week accolades ... Freshman first baseman Ian Nielsen (two), junior center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker (three), junior left fielder Kory Benbow have earned Player of the Week honors, while junior right-hander Brad Piatt and sophomore right-hander Kolbrin Vitek earned Pitcher of the Week accolades.
Nielsen posted a .588 batting average (10-of-17) in the four games and recorded a .650 on-base percentage as he reached base 13 times ... He tallied two home runs on the weekend, including a solo shot in his first career collegiate at bat. Nielsen drove in six runs and scored four times while posting a 1.000 slugging percentage ... He reached base at least four times in three of the games on the weekend, including a four-hit output in the Cardinals' victory in game one of the doubleheader.
Hazelbaker led the Cardinals to a 2-0 weekend and the top spot at the 2009 Austin Peay Baseball Invitational as he posted a .600 batting average (six-of-10) for the weekend ... He drove in six runs, scored four runs and posted a 1.200 slugging percentage in the two victories.
Against Big Ten foe Indiana, he tallied his first home run of the season as he recorded a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Cardinals a heart stopping 5-4 victory ... He followed that up with a four-hit performance against Austin Peay as he drove in a career-high five runs in the victory.
Benbow posted a .600 batting average (nine-of-15) in the Cardinals' four-game series against Big 12 power Missouri ... He tallied a series-best nine hits in the four games as he drove in five runs and scored four runs ... He tallied 17 total bases on the weekend for a 1.133 slugging percentage while notching two doubles and two home runs.
In the second game of the series, Benbow tied his career-high with five hits and reached base a career-high six times in the Cardinals' victory.
Hazelbaker earned his second MAC West weekly honor this season after as he led the Cardinals to a 4-2 record last week against Southern Illinois and Chicago State ... He posted a .500 batting average (10-of-20) and tallied a .630 on-base percentage for the week as he reached base 17 times in the six games ... Hazelbaker also recorded seven stolen bases on eight attempts for the week ... He scored nine runs in the six games and posted four multiple-hit games on the week.
Piatt earns his first MAC West weekly honor of his career after he improved to 3-0 on the season as he worked seven shutout innings in the Cardinals' victory over Chicago State ... He limited the Cougars to just one hit over seven innings as he struck out a career-high eight batters ... He only walked one batter in the victory as the Cougars didn't have a base runner past second base and only had one base runner reach second base.
Vitek picked up his first weekly honor for Vitek this season and the second honor of his career (March 19, 2008) ... Vitek was dominant on the mound last week in two starts against Notre Dame and Akron as he posted a 1-0 record with a 0.82 ERA ... He only allowed one earned run in 11.0 innings of work in his two starts ... He struck out 15 batters on the week while only walking one batter ... He also was strong at the plate as he posted a .471 (eight-of-17) average over the four games last week.
Hazelbaker led the Cardinals to a series split against preseason MAC favorite Kent State has he posted a .750 batting average (six-of-eight) in the two games ... He became the first Cardinal to hit for the cycle since Ben Schroeder accomplished the feat April 20, 2003 in Ball State's 10-3 victory over Illinois State ... He accomplished the feat Friday afternoon in his first four at-bats of the game as he tallied a first inning double, a second inning home run, a fourth inning single and a fifth inning triple as he reached base five times against the Golden Flashes ... He posted a 1.625 slugging percentage in the series as he reached base eight times in the two games and hit two doubles, a triple and a home run
Vitek Named To Watch List . . .
Sophomore pitcher/third baseman Kolbrin Vitek has been named to the 2009 Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Award Watch List, The College Baseball Foundation announced ... The Wallace Award is presented annually to the nation's top collegiate baseball player in conjunction with the College Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.
Vitek made an impact on the Cardinals both on the mound and at the plate last season as a true freshman ... He spent the entire season in the Cardinals' weekend rotation and served as Ball State's usual designated hitter in the games he did not pitch ... He was named to Collegiate Baseball's Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American Team as a “multiple position athlete.”
As the Cardinals' Sunday starter for most of the season, Vitek posted a team-best 6-1 record with a 5.65 ERA ... He led Ball State with 69 strikeouts while walking just 19, and he ranked second in the Mid-American Conference with 9.51 strikeouts per nine innings ... Ball State won 11 of the 13 games he started.
In addition to his 13 starts on the mound, Vitek started 31 games as Ball State's designated hitter and three games as the Cardinals' first baseman ... At the plate, he logged a .305 batting average with five home runs and 24 RBI ... He also added four doubles and three triples.
Cardinals Picked Second . . .
Ball State was picked to finish second in the Mid-American Conference West Division in the preseason coaches' poll.
Ball State returns 16 letterwinners from last season's 28-25 team that posted a 12-11 mark in MAC play ... The Cardinals are led by second team All-MAC catcher Zach Dygert who posted a .293 batting average last season which included 13 home runs and 38 RBI ... Also, senior second baseman Nate Fields returns to the club after leading the team last season with a .331 batting average with nine home runs and 11 doubles.
Sophomore pitcher/third baseman Kolbrin Vitek returns after earning Freshman All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball ... Vitek was named to the Wallace Award Player of the Year Watch List this season as he is coming off a dual threat freshman campaign ... He posted a .305 batting average in 34 games in the field while turning in a 6-1 record with 69 strikeouts to just 19 walks on the mound for the Cardinals.
Looking Ahead . . .
Ball State, after playing seven straight road games, returns home to the friendly confines of Ball Diamond for 10 out of its next 11 games ... The Cardinals will host a pair of midweek games against Huntington and Indiana next week before welcoming in Central Michigan.
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