Ball State University Athletics
Baseball Hosts Northern Illinois In Final Home Series
May 13, 2010 | Baseball
What's On Tap . . .
Ball State closes out the home portion of the 2010 schedule this weekend as it hosts Mid-American Conference West Division foe Northern Illinois in a three-game series at Ball Diamond ... The Cardinals will honor four seniors prior to Sunday's contest in Ryan Chenoweth, Aaron Hammons, Brad Piatt and Zach Dygert ... BSU enters the weekend with a 24-24 overall record and a 15-6 mark in MAC play as it sits alone atop the conference standings with a one-game lead over Central Michigan, Toledo and Bowling Green ... The Cardinals have won all seven of their MAC weekend series so far this season, including taking two out of three at Western Michigan last weekend ... Ball State is led by eighth-year head coach Greg Beals ... Northern Illinois enters the weekend with a 20-28 overall record and a 9-12 mark in MAC play ... The Huskies are currently in ninth place in the MAC with the top eight teams advancing to the MAC Tournament ... NIU trails both Miami and Ohio for the eighth and final spot by one game ... Northern Illinois split a pair of midweek games on the road and dropped two out of three last weekend at home against Eastern Michigan ... The Huskies are led by seventh-year head coach Ed Mathey.
MAC Tournament Watch . . .
The 2010 Mid-American Conference Tournament will be held May 26-29 in Chillicothe, Ohio with the top eight teams in the regular season qualifying ... Each divisional winner will be awarded the top seed and the remaining top six teams in terms of winning percentage will be seeded 3-8 ... If the tournament started today, Ball State would be the one seed as MAC West leader with a 15-6 mark while Bowling Green would be the two seed as the MAC East leader with a 14-7 mark ... Central Michigan would be the three seed, Toledo the four seed, Kent State the five seed, Eastern Michigan the sixth seed and Ohio would be the seven seed and Miami the eight seed ... Northern Illinois, Buffalo, Western Michigan and Akron would not make the tournament if it started today.
Series History With Northern Illinois . . .
Ball State and Northern Illinois have met 62 times prior to this weekend's series with the Cardinals holding a 33-28-1 advantage all-time ... The Cardinals swept a three-game series at Dekalb last season to avenge four losses in 2008 to the Huskies, including a two-game sweep in Muncie ... Ball State won all three games last season by scores of 10-6, 9-1 and 8-6 ... Zach Dygert paced the Cardinals' attack in the series as he went 7-of-13 at the plate with two home runs and seven RBI ... The Cardinals notched five home runs on the weekend and posted a .322 team batting average ... On the mound, BSU limited the Huskies to a .208 batting average as it posted a 3.08 team ERA on the weekend ... Alex Jones led NIU with a .417 average and three RBI on the weekend.
Grabner Earns MAC Honor . . .
Junior left-hander Derek Grabner was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Pitcher of the Week Monday afternoon ... Grabner's honor marks the sixth time this season that Ball State has claimed a MAC weekly honor ... He helped the Cardinals win their league-best seventh MAC weekend series and move into sole possession of first place in the conference with a 15-6 ledger ... He was dominant in relief against Western Michigan as he tossed 4.0 shutout innings against the Broncos to earn his first career save ... He struck out seven of the 14 batters he faced secure the series victory as he limited WMU to just two hits in the second game of the series.
Grabner lowered his ERA in MAC play to just 2.03 in 31.0 innings of work ... His 2.03 ERA ranks second in the league in MAC contests and he has a 2-0 record with one save ... He has struck out 23 batters while issuing just six walks against league foes ... He leads all MAC pitchers with 13 appearances and is limiting opponents to just a .205 batting average against.
Vitek Named To Watch Lists . . .
Junior second baseman/right-handed pitcher Kolbrin Vitek has been named to the watch list for the 2010 John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award by the College Baseball Foundation and the Golden Spikes Award Watch List ... The Olerud Award, which recognizes a player who makes an impact both on the mound and at the plate, will be presented in Lubbock, Texas, July 2 as part of the College Baseball Awards Show ... The Golden Spikes Award identifies the top amateur baseball player in the country ... Sponsored by Major League Baseball, the 33rd annual Golden Spikes Award will be presented Tuesday, July 13, at the 2010 Major League Baseball All-Star FanFest in Anaheim, Calif.
Vitek leads the Cardinals with a .377 batting average while also owning a team-low 3.90 ERA as a weekend starter ... He also leads the team in hits (72), runs (64), RBI (58), home runs (15), slugging percentage (.723) and on-base percentage (.462) ... His 634runs lead the MAC by eight over his closest competitor while he is second in the league with 15 home runs ...His 3.90 ERA ranks third in the MAC this season in a team-high 60.0 innings of work ... He has a 2-4 record and is coming off his first career save as he tossed 6.0 innings of strong relief against Western Michigan.
Nielsen Earns Academic Honor . . .
Sophomore first baseman Ian Nielsen has been named ESPN The Magazine First Team Academic All-District V by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) ... Nielsen becomes the first Cardinal to be honored in the district since Kyle Dygert received accolades in the 2005 season ... He will now appear on the national ballot and is eligible for the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Team, which will be announced May 25.
Nielsen, a Freshman All-America selection last year, owns a 3.83 grade-point average in health education ... He owns a .328 batting average and has played in all 47 games this season at first base ... He is fourth on the team with seven home runs and is second on the team with 45 RBI.
Quick Start In The MAC . . .
Ball State has won all six of its Mid-American Conference weekend series so far this season with series victories at Ohio, vs. Miami, at Bowling Green, vs. Buffalo, at Central Michigan, vs. Eastern Michigan and at Western Michigan... The Cardinals' 15-6 MAC record is the top mark in the MAC this season ... Ball State is the only team in the MAC to win all six of its weekend series so far this year.
Ball State's 15-6 start to league play marks its best start to a MAC season since the 2005 season when the Cardinals posted a 15-4 record after seven series ... That season, BSU won all eight weekend series in league play and finished 17-5 on the year.
Home Sweet Home . . .
Ball State opened the 2010 season with 23 straight games away from home ... The Cardinals have only played 12 of their 44 games at Ball Diamond this season but own an 10-2 record in the friendly confines this year ... The Cardinals have out-scored their opponents 139-80 at home and are batting .357 (159-of-446) at Ball Diamond ... On the mound, BSU has a 5.40 ERA at home while the opposing team has a 11.57 ERA.
Sophomore Ian Nielsen leads the team at home with a .457 batting average (21-of-46) and has driven in 18 runs ... Junior T.J. Baumet is second on the team at Ball Diamond with a .400 batting average (20-of-50) and has scored 19 runs ... Senior Zach Dygert has driven in 23 runs and notched six home runs at home ... Junior Kolbrin Vitek has also driven in 23 runs and scored 23 runs in 12 home games.
Did You Know? . . .
Junior second baseman/right-hander Kolbrin Vitek was named Midseason All-America by Baseball America as a utility player ... Vitek is of just 15 players in the nation to be honored with a midseason award and the only player from the Mid-American Conference to earn accolades.
Left-Hander On A Roll . . .
Junior left-hander Derek Grabner has been one of the top relievers in Mid-American Conference play this season ... Grabner has appeared in 13 MAC games and leads the team with a 2.03 ERA in 31.0 innings of work ... His 2.03 ERA in league play ranks second in the league as he has allowed just seven earned runs while his 13 appearances are tied for the league lead ... He has a 2-0 record with one save against MAC foes this year while striking out 23 and walking just six.
Walk This Way . . .
Senior catcher Zach Dygert leads the team with 36 walks this year ... His 36 walks are tied for the most in the Mid-American Conference with Eastern Michigan' Ben Magsig ... He has earned 17 walks in MAC play this season and is tied with teammate Kolbrin Vitek for second most in the MAC, trailing Eastern Michigan's Todd Graves (19).
Tough Schedule . . .
The Cardinals have played one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the nation, according the NCAA ... Ball State has the third toughest schedule in the nation in terms of opponent winning percentage ... The Cardinals' opponents own a .622 winning percentage to rank third out of 301 NCAA Division I teams (as of April 25).
Below is the top 10 list of non-conference strength of schedules in the nation:
1. Cal St. Fullerton 13-11 .632
2. San Diego 13-15 .625
3. Ball State 7-17 .622
4. Miami (FL) 14-5 .613
5. Florida 16-5 .605
6. Rice 14-12 .604
7. Mississippi St. 15-6 .601
8. Fla. Atlantic 10-8 .597
9. New Mexico 17-10 .595
10. Citadel 12-12 .593
This Weekend's Starters . . .
For the eighth straight weekend, Ball State will send the same rotation to the mound with three right-handers ... Perci Garner will get the nod Friday, Cal Bowling Saturday and Kolbrin Vitek Sunday ... Northern Illinois will counter with left-hander Chuck Lukanen Friday, right-hander Jeremy Gonzales Saturday and left-hander Tom Barry Sunday.
Garner will be making his 15th appearance and ninth start of the season Friday ... He has a 5-2 record with a 4.23 ERA on the year in 55.1 innings of work ... He has struck out 65 batters while walking 29 on the year ... In Mid-American Conference play he has a 3.38 ERA in 37.1 innings.
Bowling will be making his 14th appearance and 13th start of the season ... He has a 5-3 record with a 5.97 ERA in 57.1 innings of work as he has struck out 35 batters while walking 22 ... In MAC action, he leads the league with a 5-0 record and has a 5.59 ERA in 37.0 innings of work.
Vitek will be making his 13th appearance and 12th start of the season Sunday ... He has a 2-4 record with a 3.90 ERA in a team-high 60.0 innings of work as he has struck out 42 batters while walking 17 ... He picked up his first career save last weekend with 6.0 strong innings of relief against Western Michigan ... In league play, he has a 3.49 ERA and a 2-2 record.
Lukanen will be making his 14th appearance and 13th start of the season Friday ... He has a 4-8 record with a 5.40 ERA in a team-high 83.1 innings ... He has struck out 73 batters while walking 36 ... In MAC play, he has a 3-4 record with a 4.23 ERA in 55.1 innings.
Gonzales will be making his 14th appearance and 12th start of the year Saturday ... He has a 3-3 record with a team-log 4.50 ERA in 74.0 innings ... He has struck out 52 batters while walking a team-high 40 ... He owns a 1-3 record with a 4.53 ERA in league action.
Barry will be making his 16th appearance and 10th start of the year ... He has a 4-3 record with a 5.76 ERA in 59.1 innings ... He has struck out 34 batters while walking 34 ... He has made five starts in MAC play and has a 2-1 record with a 5.08 ERA while posting a complete game.
Scouting The Cardinals . . .
Ball State enters the weekend with a 24-24 overall record and sit alone in first place in the Mid-American Conference with a 15-6 mark ... The Cardinals have scored 356 runs (7.4 runs/game) this season and are batting .298 ... On the mound, BSU owns a 5.24 team ERA and opponents are batting .299 ... The Cardinals have struck out 290 batters while walking 178.
Junior Kolbrin Vitek leads the team with a .377 batting average ... Vitek also leads the team in hits (72), runs (64), RBI (58), doubles (15), home runs (15), slugging percentage (.723) and on-base percentage (.462) ... Senior Zach Dygert is second on the team with 51 RBI and 10 home runs ... Junior T.J. Baumet is second on the team with a .340 batting average while freshman Blake Beemer is third with a .338 average.
In the bullpen, right-hander Heath Riley leads the team with 21 appearances and has a 4.87 ERA in 20.1 innings of work ... Left-hander Derek Grabner has made 19 appearances and has a 4.36 ERA in 43.1 innings of work ... Left-hander Jon Cisna has appeared in 17 games and has a 3.86 ERA in 28.0 innings ... Senior Aaron Hammons has appeared in 17 games as well and has a 3.94 ERA in 16.0 innings ... Hammons leads the team with five saves.
Scouting The Huskies . . .
Northern Illinois enters the weekend with a 20-28 overall record and a 9-12 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The Huskies have scored 246 runs (5.1 runs/game) and has posted a .267 batting average on the year ... On the mound, NIU has a 6.10 ERA and opponents are batting .302 against ... The Huskies have struck out 296 batters while walking 211.
Dave Reynolds leads the team with a .310 batting average and 57 hits ... Jordin Hood leads the team with 10 home runs and 37 RBI while owning a .292 batting average ... Troy White is second on the team with 30 RBI.
In the bullpen, Andy Deain leads the team and the MAC with 30 appearances and 11 saves ... He has a 4.59 ERA in 33.1 innings of work ... Tom Zelasko is second on the team with 26 appearances and has a 4.91 ERA in 25.2 innings of work ... Kyle Glancy is third on the team with 20 appearances and has a 5.70 ERA in 30.0 innings of work.
Last Weekend . . .
Ball State notched its seventh straight Mid-American Conference weekend series victory as it took two out of three at Western Michigan in a rare Sunday tripleheader ... The Cardinals won game one 4-3, which was suspended Friday in the fourth inning ... BSU claimed the weekend series with a 10-5 victory in game two before Western Michigan claimed a 6-1 victory in the series finale ... Senior Kory Benbow drove in five runs in the tripleheader while classmate Zach Dygert reached base eight times, including six walks ... Junior left-hander Derek Grabner tossed 4.0 innings of shutout relief in game two while junior right-hander Kolbrin Vitek threw 6.0 innings of relief in game one as both players notched their first career saves.
Offensive Explosion . . .
Ball State had one of its best offensive games in program earlier this season when the Cardinals defeated Mid-American Conference East Division leader Bowling Green 32-10 ... The Cardinals set BSU single game records for runs (32), hits (29), RBI (29) and at-bats (58), while also scoring the most runs against Bowling Green in Falcons' history ... Twelve different Cardinals recorded a hit Saturday, including eight different players notching multiple hits ... The Cardinals notched six home runs and five doubles to finish the game with 52 total bases.
Head Coach Greg Beals . . .
Head coach Greg Beals is in his eighth season at the helm of the Cardinals ... Beals brings a 238-197 record into the weekend and he is third all-time in Ball State history in career wins ... He became the second-fastest coach to reach 200 career victories when he accomplished the feat against his alma mater Kent State last spring ... He is 18 wins shy of second all-time in Ball State history for career victories ... Rich Maloney is currently second all-time with 256 wins, while Pat Quinn holds the BSU record with 323 victories
Career Record Watches . . .
Senior catcher Zach Dygert and junior second baseman Kolbrin Vitek are already in the top five all-time in a few career statistical categories ... Dygert is fifth all-time in BSU history in RBI, fifth in walks and tied for second in hit by pitch ... Vitek is third all-time in career slugging percentage and sixth in career batting average. Below is a list of the career marks:
Runs Batted In
1.) Brad Miller - 228
2.) Matt Wood - 221
3.) Mark Davis - 190
4.) Jeremy Ridley - 166
5.) Ed Farris - 162
5.) Zach Dygert - 162
Walks
1.) Scott French - 139
2.) Mike Sullivan - 120
3.) Brad Miller - 117
4.) Demetrius Sanders - 113
5.) Justin Love - 109
5.) Shannon McCormick - 109
5.) Zach Dygert - 109
Hit By Pitch
1.) Ryan Read - 40
2.) Zach Dygert - 31
2.) Marc Franz - 31
2.) Brian Dorrmann - 31
Slugging Percentage
1.) Thomas Howard - .700
2.) Brad Snyder - .688
3.) Kolbrin Vitek - .674
Batting Average
1.) Larry Bigbie - .386
2.) Brad Snyder - .378
2.) Mark Davis - .378
4.) Jason Meier - .367
5.) Kolbrin Vitek - .364
Cardinals Tabbed Favorites . . .
Ball State earned their Mid-American Conference record seventh MAC West Division title in 2009 after closing the year with five straight wins to chase down Toledo for the division title ... The Cardinals have now won seven of the 13 MAC West Division titles since divisional play began in 1998 ... Only Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan have won MAC West titles with both teams claiming three each.
Ball State enters the 2010 season as the preseason favorite to claim the MAC West Division and MAC Tournament titles, as chosen by the league's head coaches in the preseason poll ... The Cardinals received a league-high 72 points to claim the MAC West Division's top spot and were chosen by five coaches to claim their second MAC Tournament title in program history.
Dygert Named To Watch List . . .
Senior catcher Zach Dygert has been named to the 2010 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award delivered by Papa John's Pizza ... The Johnny Bench Award is awarded awarded annually to the nation's top collegiate catcher based on athletic ability, sportsmanship, team leadership and character.
Dygert, a 48th round draft pick by the Washington Nationals last season, is a two-time All-Mid-American Conference selection ... He finished last season fourth on the team with a .350 batting average as he tallied 69 hits ... He was second on the team with 58 RBI and also scored 42 runs ... This season, he is second on the team with 51 RBI and 10 home runs during the first 48 games of the year ... He recorded a big eighth inning home run this season to lead the Cardinals to an upset victory over No. 15 Arkansas in the first weekend of the year.
Dygert is one of four catchers from the MAC on the 2010 Johnny Bench Watch List. He is joined by Toledo's Aaron Dudley, Bowling Green's Tyler Elkins and Akron's John Turk.
Vitek Earns National Honor . . .
Junior second baseman Kolbrin Vitek was named the Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper (March 29) as he was dominant at the plate and on the mound in the Cardinals' series victory at Ohio ... He posted a .500 batting average (6-of-12) in the three-game series and a .571 on-base percentage ... He was equally dominant on the mound as he tossed 7.0 shutout innings of two-hit baseball in the Cardinals' 4-0 victory at Ohio ... He limited the Bobcats to only three base runners and none of the three base runners advanced past first base ... He struck out five batters and only faced 23 batters in 7.0 innings
Dygert Named Team Captain . . .
Senior catcher Zach Dygert has been named the 2010 team captain by head coach Greg Beals ... Dygert posted a .350 batting average last spring and was second on the team with 58 RBI when he earned First Team All-Mid-American Conference accolades ... He was selected in the 48th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft by the Washington Nationals ... Collegebaseballinsider.com rated Dygert as the best fielding catcher in the MAC for the third straight season in its preseason publication.
Looking Ahead . . .
Ball State steps out of Mid-American Conference play for the final time this season as it travels to Big Ten foe Michigan Tuesday afternoon ... The Cardinals wrap up the regular season next weekend with a three-game series at Toledo that begins Thursday.
