FRIDAY, MAY 11
The bracket is set for Friday's action as a pair of games are being played at both Bosse Field and USI Field for the final time during the 2012 GLVC Baseball Championship Tournament. No. 4 Rockhurst and No. 8 Lewis are battling at Bosse Field, with the loser turning around and playing top-seeded Indianapolis at 2:30 p.m. At USI Field, No. 6 Missouri-St. Louis is facing No. 2 Northern Kentucky. The winner advances to Saturday's action, while the loser will immediately face No. 3 Missouri S&T in an elimination game. Click HERE to follow Rockhurst/Lewis live and HERE to follow Missouri-St. Louis/Northern Kentucky.
ON THE MOUND: Here is a look at the matchup for today's first contests...
Bosse Field: RU Mark Himmelberg (6-2, 2.88 ERA) vs. LEWIS Pat Lahey (5-4, 2.53 ERA)
USI Field: NKU Mike Nastold (2-0, 2.39 ERA) vs. UMSL Tomas Duffek (4-4, 3.69 ERA)
OUT OF THE GATES: The top seeds in our first two games today are out of the gate early. Rockhurst put up two runs in the first inning off a double by Ryan Porter, while Northern Kentucky as taken a 1-0 lead over Missouri-St. Louis off a Brad Clement double.
PORTER CAUSING PROBLEMS: Rockhurst's Ryan Porter is back at it, doubling just inside the first base line with two outs on the board, scoring another Hawk to extend the lead 3-0. The senior first baseman is currently 2-for-2 with three RBIs.
KILLER C'S?: Over at USI Field, NKU hold a 3-0 advantage over Missouri-St. Louis, thanks in large part to Max Colaner and Brad Clement. Through four innings, Colaner is 2-for-3 with an RBI-double and a run scored, while Clement is 2-for-2 with an RBI-double and a run scored.
STRIKE FORCE: Bosse Field's first game today has provided quite the accuracy from the rubber as both pitchers have had no problem finding the plate. Through seven-and-a-half innings, Rockhurst's Mark Himmelberg has tossed 61 strikes in 96 pitches (.635), while Pat Lahey has thrown 63 strikes in 87 pitches (.724), which included an intentional walk in the top of the eighth.
MOVING ON: Rockhurst has claimed a 4-0 victory over No. 8 Lewis, which gives the Hawks the rest of the afternoon off and an 11 a.m. matchup tomorrow against the winner of the Flyers and top-seed Indianapolis. That elimination contest is coming up at 2:30 p.m. CT. No. 2 Northern Kentucky has defeated Missouri-St. Louis, 7-3.
FIVE-FOR-FIVE: In Northern Kentucky's 7-3 win over Missouri-St. Louis, Brad Clement tied an NKU single-game record with five hits. Clement was a perfect 5-for-5 in the game, with three runs and two RBIs.
ON THE MOUND: Here is a look at the matchup for today's second games...
Bosse Field: LEWIS Matt Frahm (4-5, 5.24 ERA) vs. UINDY JaVaun West (7-0, 2.52 ERA)
USI Field: MS&T Chris Bowe (2-2, 3.17 ERA) vs. UMSL Adam Radick (6-4, 4.58 ERA)
FIVE-FOR-THREE: Missouri-St. Louis has put up five runs in the top of the third inning to take a commanding 5-0 lead over Missouri S&T. A double by Nolan Craig and singles by Spencer Ammons, Charlie Mohr and Justin Lois helped the Norse rally, all of which came with two outs.
NO LONGER PERFECT: Yes, it was still early, but Lewis' Kyle Kapka has just put an end to JaVaun West's perfect game in the top of the fifth inning. West had retired the first 14 batters he faced without allowing a walk. Kapka fired a single back up the middle just beyond the reach of UIndy shortstop Mike Page. Following a balk -- the first time he was in the stretch the today -- West struck out Kyle Thomas for the third out of the inning.
CENTER OF ATTENTION: Credit Lewis centerfielder Mike Bolling for stopping a UIndy rally in the bottom of the sixth. With two outs, Tyler O'Daniel lined a single up the middle and Bolling came up throwing, delivering a perfect strike to catcher Brian Norwood who applied the tag to Scott Mourey. Lewis needed to hold off another Greyhound two-out rally, but pitcher Matt Frahm was able to get Ryan Wildes to ground out to short to end the inning.
STOPPING ANOTHER UINDY RALLY: The Greyhounds were in position to score the winning run against Lewis, but the Flyers have provided yet another impressive stop. With a full count and two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Lewis' Drew Hicks forced a deep fly out to right field to extend the 2012 GLVC Baseball Championship Tournament game to extra innings. It marks the second consecutive extra-inning game for UIndy and an exciting rematch between the two squads as the No. 8 seed Flyers upset the top-seeded Greyhounds in the tournament opener.
UINDY DOES IT AGAIN: UIndy (38-14) needed extra-inning heroics for the second straight day as the Greyhounds topped Lewis 1-0 in 11 innings Friday at Bosse Field. Centerfielder Matt Maringer hit a game-winning single that scored Mike Page to help the Greyhounds avenge an opening-round 8-2 loss to the Flyers on Thursday. See the game-winning single HERE!
THURSDAY, MAY 10
We are minutes away from opening the 2012 GLVC Baseball Chammpionship Tournament. Two games at two differerent fields open the event at 11 a.m. CT with No. 4 seed Rockhurst playing No. 5 Quincy at historic Bosse Field, while No. 6 Missouri-St. Louis battled No. 3 Missouri S&T in a rematch of their regular-season finale on Tuesday. The Tritons defeated the Miners 2-1 to clinch a spot in this year's field. Follow each game live by clicking HERE for Rockhurst/Quincy or HERE for UMSL/MS&T.
ON THE MOUND: Here is a look at the matchups for today's contest...
Bosse Field: QU Matt McDaniel (3-1, 2.80 ERA) vs. RU Mark Sappington (8-3, 1.73 ERA)
USI Field: UMSL Jeremy Butler (6-3, 2.35 ERA) vs. MS&T John Auble (7-2, 3.30 ERA)
WILD START AT USI: While the Quincy/Rockhurst contest is cruising along in the bottom of the second in a scoreless contest at Bosse Field, things are off to a wild start at USI Field. Missouri-St. Louis has stormed out of the gates with a 4-0 jump on Missouri S&T. The sixth-seeded Tritons have been led by outfielders John Pliackas and Nolan Craig, who each recorded 2 RBIs in the top of the first inning. S&T pitcher John Auble and catcher Clint Wobbe suffered a wild pitch and a passed ball that allowed the Tritons to put runners in scoring position.
BOSSE PITCHING DUEL: We won't have a no-hitter in our first game at Bosse Field, but Quincy's Matt McDaniel and Rockhurst's Mark Sappington are dueling on the mound. Sappington has allowed two Quincy base hits, while McDaniel just gave up his first hit of the game in the bottom of the fourth.
ERRORS LEAD TO ROCKHURST RUNS: A pair of two-out errors by Quincy shortstop Drake Austin, on the same play, has opened the RU lead to 3-0 after five innings. T.J. Dailey grounded to short, but Austin bobbled the ball and then hurried a throw that sailed wide of Curran Colins at first base. Patrick Chandler and Jordan Stull bot scored for Rockhurst.
DITTO FOR QUINCY: Quincy is now on the board at Bosse in the top of the sixth as Rockhurst rightfielder Patrick Chandler mishandled a Curran Collins fly, allowing Mitchell Broughton to score.
MOVING ON...: No. 4 Rockhurst has defeated No. 5 Quincy 3-1, while No. 6 Missouri-St. Louis has topped No. 3 Missouri S&T for the second time in three days by a score of 5-1.
FOLLOW & LISTEN LIVE: Our next two tournament games are scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT starts. Top-seed Indianapolis faces No. 8 Lewis at Bosse Field and No. 2 Northern Kentucky plays No. 7 Drury. Click HERE to follow the NKU/DU game and HERE to follow UINDY/LEWIS. Online radio coverage will be provided by UIndy as well. Click HERE for that coverage.
ON THE MOUND: Here is a look at the matchups for our next two games...
Bosse Field: LEWIS Tom Helwich (6-1, 3.44 ERA) vs. UINDY Donovan Drake (7-1, 1.20 ERA)
USI Field: DU Will Landsheft (5-1, 2.96 ERA) vs. NKU Cody Cooper (5-3, 4.76 ERA)
OFF TO A FLYING START: Just as Missouri-St. Louis did against the tournament's first game at USI Field, Lewis is off to a flying start in the first inning, stunning top-seed Indianapolis and GLVC Pitcher of the Year Donovan Drake. The Flyers opened with four runs in the top of the first and then held off a Greyhound rally in the bottom of the first to lead 4-0 early on.
GOING YARD: Northern Kentucky first baseman Phil Smith has registered the first home run in the 2012 GLVC Baseball Championship Tournament. Smith, a first-team All-GLVC East Division selection, cleared the left field wall to extend the Norse lead to 2-0.
UPSET SPECIALS: Four games are in the books and only two of the top four seeds remain in the winner's bracket. And those two teams are not the GLVC's divisional champions. East Division champ and top-seed Indianapolis dropped an 8-2 decision to No. 8 Lewis at Bosse Field, while No. 3 and GLVC West Division champ Missouri S&T fell 5-1 to No. 6 Missouri-St. Louis on Thursday.
TIME TO CELEBRATE: No. 8 seed Lewis has room to celebrate following its impressive 8-2 victory over No. 1 Indianapolis.
ELIMINATION TIME: Thursday's nightcaps, which take place at 6 p.m. CT, will mark the end of the tournament for two teams. The first elimination game will take place at Bosse Field, where the top-seeded Greyhounds face No. 5 Quincy. At USI Field, the third-seeded Miners of Missouri S&T will try to extend their stay in Evansville with a win over No. 7 Drury.
ON THE MOUND: Here is a look at the matchups for our two nightcaps...
Bosse Field: UINDY Hugo Lalonde (6-4, 3.24 ERA) vs. QU Clayton Hicks (4-4, 4.25 ERA)
USI Field: MS&T Zach Gronek (11-1, 3.04 ERA) vs. DU Tyler VanGerpen (7-2, 4.50 ERA)
A NEAR INSIDE-THE-PARKER: Indianapolis extended its lead to 3-0 in the top of the sixth inning thanks to Brandon Stevens' two-RBI triple to left field. His shot sailed just over an outreached Gavin Meyer, who slammed into the leftfield wall and dropped to the ground. It appeared that UIndy head coach Gary Vaught was waving Stevens in for a rare inside-the-park home run, but Stevens slammed on the brakes and settled for the triple. Meyer was uninjured on the play and stayed in the game.
WHAT BACK PAIN?: Ask Quincy's Aaron Priestes how his back feels after just being hit by a Tyler Norton pitch and he will tell you it's just fine. That's because the HBP came with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning. After the Hawks had already put up two runs in the inning, the HBP allowed the tying run to cross the plate. Norton was replaced by Chris Saroff shortly thereafter.
GREYHOUNDS LEAD OFF THROWING ERROR: Ryan Wides has opened a two-run lead for the Greyhounds, following a base hit to right field that led to two runs scoring off an errant throw home by Quincy rightfielder Aaron Priestes. The throw sailed into the Quincy dugout, scoring both runs and advancing Wides to third. We go into the bottom of the 10th inning with UIndy leading 5-3.
FOUR FOR FRIDAY: The bracket is set for Friday's action as a pair of games will be played at both Bosse Field and USI Field for the final time during the 2012 GLVC Baseball Championship Tournament. No. 4 Rockhurst and No. 8 Lewis will battle at 11 a.m. CT at Bosse Field, with the loser turning around and playing top-seeded Indianapolis at 2:30 p.m. At USI Field, No. 6 Missouri-St. Louis faced No. 2 Northern Kentucky at 11 a.m. The winner advances to Saturday's action, while the loser will immediately face No. 3 Missouri S&T in an elimination game.