D3baseball.com Daily Dose

In the HCAC Mt St Joseph (9-1) leads all conference members. Baseball hitter of the week was Gabe Focke, Rose-Hulman. The junior outfielder was 7-of-8 (.875) at the plate and collected seven singles, three RBI, and scored once in the two wins. Focke’s on base and slugging percentage for the week was also .875. Mt. St. Joseph’s John Strittholt was named the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference pitcher of the week. The junior right-hander threw a two-hit shutout against RIC, allowing only one walk and one unearned run. Strittholt struck out one batter and allowed only singles in the fifth and seventh innings to claim his first win of the young season. Defending North Coast Athletic Conference champion Wooster (5-0) has once again emerged as the preseason favorite in balloting by baseball coaches in their annual preseason poll. OIn the OAC, Muskingum (10-1), Wilmington (5-1) have the best records. OAC hitter of the week was Muskingum freshman Brock Whiteman as he helped lead the Muskies to a 9-1 record at the Gene Cusic Classic in Fort Myers, Florida. Whiteman batted .476 with 21 RBI, four triples, three doubles and one home run. The pitcher of the week was Mount Union senior pitcher Shawn Kerek who pitched two complete games in as many starts last week. He gave up only six hits, one run, and one earned run and tallied 13 strikeouts to hold the Raiders opponents to a .122 batting average. Presidents AC favotite Washington and Jefferson started 3-0.

Only Augustana (7-1) in the CCIW had a good start. Carthage (4-4) has the second best record of the conference teams. Brian Kolb of Wheaton and Jacob Husing of Carthage were named baseball players of the week in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin after their performances during the previous week of competition. Kolb, a freshman infielder, had a strong week for the Thunder baseball team last week with a .542 (13-24) batting average. Kolb had a .621 on-base percentage and a .833 slugging percentage, driving in nine runs on the week and scoring five times. Kolb hit two home runs last Wednesday against DeSales University, including a grand slam. Husing defeated Coe College, 3-1, on March 10 in the Red Men’s season opener in Port Charlotte. Fla. Husing allowed one unearned run on seven hits and two walks, while striking out six batters. Once again the IIAC has a national player of the week IIAC male athlete of the week and NCBWA pitcher of the week was Lee Boyse, Coe. Boyse, a junior pitcher, went 2-0 with a 0.69 earned run average and 11 strikeouts in two games during the week. He pitched six innings in Coe’s 13-1 win over Clark (Mass.), striking out four and allowing one run and four hits. Boyse threw a complete game shutout in a 2-0 win over #8-ranked Carthage. He struck out seven batters in seven innings and did not walk a batter. In the Northern AC, Concordia-Chicago (6-3) is on top of preseason favorite Aurora (6-4). Webster (8-5 is the only team above .500 in the SLIAC. Erich Schwartz of Maryville University has been selected as the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference baseball hitter of the week. The Saints won six of nine games during the week and Schwartz led the way with a .290 (9-31) batting average. The junior DH from Parkway North High School in St. Louis had 7 RBI, scored 7 runs and had 3 doubles and a home run.

In the Midwest Conference only two teams are at .55 or above, Carrol (3-3) and Grinnell (2-2). Ripon (2-7) is the favorite for its sixth MWC North Division title in seven years according to the 2007 MWC Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll. Carleton (3-0) leads the MIAC and St Scholastica (2-2) leads the Upper Midwest Conference. Baseball pitcher of the week in the Upper Midwest Conference was Brady Grohs of Bethany Lutheran. Grohs pitched 2 games in Port Charlotte getting Bethany’s only two wins. For the week Brady ended up 2-0 while pitching 7 innings giving up 4 runs, striking out 2 and ended the week with a 5.14 era. Baseball player of the week was Bethany Lutheran College junior infielder Travis Fluck. In six games in Port Charlotte, FL, Fluck hit .381 (8/21) with 3 runs, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI’s, 5 BB and 2 SB’s. He also played very well defensively starting every game at short and ended the week with a 1.000 fielding percentage. UW-Stevens Point (2-0) head baseball coach Pat Bloom earned his 100th career win in the Pointers’ 7-6 victory over College of St. Scholastica on March 5 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minn. Four-time defending champion, UW-Whitewater (3-1) is the preseason favorite to win the 2007 WIAC baseball championship, according to the league’s sports information directors. UW-Whitewater trails UW-Stevens Point and UW-La Crosse (6-1) in the early part of the season.

Texas Tyler (17-0, 3-0) is tied with Texas_Dallas (12-3, 3-0) in the East division of the ASC. In West, McMurry (11-7, 3-0) leads. East ASC hitter was Ed Hurta, LeTourneau. Hurta hit a walk-off grand slam against Louisiana College. Hurta, who also doubled in that game against LC, hit a home run and a double earlier in the week against Austin College. East pitcher was Nate Jennings, Texas-Tyler. Jennings tossed three perfect innings with six strikeouts to pick up a save and a win. Jennings, who struck out two against Northwood to preserve a 6-4 victory, entered in the ninth with a 4-4 tie against Mississippi College and went two innings to help the Patriots lock up an ASC win. West ASC hitter was Michael Simpson and West ASC pitcher was Robert Conley, Texas Lutheran. Simpson went 6-for-10 with four walks over three games. He drove in seven runs and hit a double as the Cowboys went 2-1. Conley picked up his first two saves on the season by closing out games against Texas A&M-International and Hardin-Simmons. The right-hander entered with the bases loaded in the fifth inning against HSU with an 8-6 lead. He needed just one pitch to escape the jam and went the rest of the way, allowing not hits. In the Northwest there is a tie at the top of the standings. George Fox (13-0, 6-0) shares the top spot is a surprising Puget Sound (7-5-1, 6-0). NWC baseball players of the Week were Sean Anderson, Willamette and Ryan Snell, Whitworth. Anderson batted .636 (7 for 11) in three games (all wins) last week with five RBIs and three runs scored. He had two home runs, a double and a stolen base. Snell threw a complete game in a 4-1 win at L&C, allowing six hits while striking out eight and walking three. Redlands (12-4-1, 5-0) and La Verne (7-9, 5-1) stayed on top of the SCIAC standings. Congratulations to La Verne’s Brad Licher for being named the SCIAC Male Athlete of the Week. Licher collected six hits including a walk-off double in La Verne’s 2-1 series win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. Licher began the series with a 2-for-5 performance at the plate in La Verne’s 6-3 triumph over the Stags on March 2. The following day he was a single short of the cycle going 4-for-4 with a two-run homer, two triples and 4 RBI (and two sacrifices) in the series finale, concluding his effort with the game-winning double in the bottom of the ninth to propel the Leopards to an 11-10 win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps to claim the series. Licher is the team-leader in batting average (.483) and homers (3). Independent Chapman (17-2) is 3-1 in their last four games, all against against ranked opponent.

Game of the week: #3 Montclair state (6-3) at #2 Chapman (17-2)

With nine first place votes, Salve Regina is picked to finish first in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. Endicott with two first place votes is picked to finish second. The University of Southern Maine’s baseball team sits atop the annual Little East Conference Coaches’ Preseason Poll. The Huskies received six first place votes to begin the 2007 slate as the conference frontrunner, while Eastern Connecticut earned the remaining two first place ballots to finish second. In the MASCAC Bridgewater State was picked to finish on top of the conference. NEWMAC player of the week is Ryan Rainone, WPI and Pitcher of the week is Brendan Devereaux, WPI. Rainone batted .500 by collecting 19 hits in 38 at-bats during WPI’s spring break trip to Fort Myers last week. He paced the Engineers with nine runs scored and nine runs batted in while adding a double and a triple. Devereaux picked up a win and a save during WPI’s spring break trip to Fort Myers. He began his week by striking out the side in the ninth inning of a 10-9 victory over Hiram on Tuesday. Devereaux returned to the mound on Saturday when he yielded just one run while striking out seven in a 9-1 win against Illinois College. In the NESCAC Trinity (2-0) starts the season with a sweep of Worchester State. Brandeis (2-0) and Emory (13-3) are in Sanford Florida playing at the UAA Tournament.

In the Empire 8, Ithaca (1-2) is picked to finish first but RIT (5-2) has started stronger. Ithaca’s two losses were at the hands of #20 Kean and #2 Chapman. RPI (8-0) continues their hot start as they sweep the weekly Liberty League honors. Liberty League performer of the Week was Ken Carroll, pitcher of the week was Tim Klein, and rookie of the week was John Dreimiller. In eight games to open the season in Florida, Carroll batted .514 with a team-best .800 slugging percentage. Of his 18 hits, four were doubles and two were home runs. In five appearances, all in relief, Klein was 1-0 with three saves. He allowed no runs with just one hit and two walks and six strikeouts in 7.2 innings. The opposition hit .043 against him. In two appearances, including one start, Dreimiller allowed just five hits and no runs with seven strikeouts and two walks over 9.0 innings of work. Baptist Bible (1-0) is without a loss nut Penn State Berks (2-3) leads the conference with a 2-0 record. Stevens Institute of Technology baseball team was selected as the Skyline Conference preseason favorite in baseball. The Ducks received four first-place votes finishing ahead of two-time defending champion Centenary. The Cyclones received three first-place votes. Cortland state (8-0) and Oneonta State (6-0). Lehmen college (1-1) earned a split with Emerson.

Penn State Behrend (6-0) is tops in the AMCC. In the Centennial, Gettysburg (8-1) leads the league in ERA and is second to Johns Hopkins (4-2) in batting average. In the Middle Atlantic States Collegiate Athletic Corporation, Albright (1-0) in the Commonwealth joins King’s (4-1) in the Freedom as conference leaders. The College of New Jersey (6-1) leads Kean (6-2) in the NJAC. In the College of New Jersey’s win at Alvernia they ended a possible Crusaders ralley with a game ending triple play. Ramapo (8-2) has a current 5 game win streak. NJAC player of the week was Anthony Mackow, New Jersey City University as he hit .692 with two doubles, three RBI, and five runs scored in the first three contests of his junior season in Ft. Myers, FL. Pitcher of the week was Brian Kraus, The College of New Jersey after earning the victory on the mound in TCNJ’s season-opening 14-0 shutout of Wartburg in Phoenix, AZ. Rookies of the week were Nick Nolan, Kean (hitter) and Jesus Castano, Montclair State (pitcher). Nolan earned NJAC rookie of the week honors after hitting .500 with a double, a home run, five RBI, and two runs scored in a 2-1 week of play for Kean in California. Castano earned NJAC rookie pitcher of the Week honors after helping to propel the Red Hawks to a 14-8 victory over Wheaton in Phoenix, AZ. For NJAC Head Coaches in the news, Newark’s Mark Rizzi got his 100th victory and Camden’s Keith Williams claimed his 150th victory. In the Penn AC Gwynedd-Mercy is 6-1 with their only loss to Farmingdale State.

In the Capital AC, Salisbury (13-2) and St Mary’s (MD) (10-5) have better records but train Mary Washington (6-4) in the conference as Mary Washington is undefeated in conference. Salisbury’s Mark Bostwick was named as the Capital Athletic Conference baseball player of the week. Bostwick hit for the cycle against Catholic University accomplishing the feat in his first four at-bats in the game. In the GSAC, Senior Adam Rosen of Maryville was the player of the week. At the plate, he was 7-for-14 with two doubles, four RBIs, four base on balls and a stolen base. On the mound, Rosen recorded three saves. The pitcher of the week is Huntingdon’s Chad Anderson. The junior pitched a complete-game shutout against Oglethorpe, allowing only a first inning hit in the game. He struck out 14 and walked only two. Maryville (13-6) leads the conference over Huntingdon (12-7). Washington and Lee (11-3, 5-0) leads Randolph Macon (9-4-1, 2-0) in early conference action in the ODAC. In The SCAC, Rhodes (18-2, 8-0) has the only conference wins and is running away with the east division crown. Millsaps (13-3) and Hendrix (10-8-1) are at the top in the west division. SCAC pitcher of the week is John Herbert, Centre. Herbert had an outstanding week on the mound for the Colonels, allowing only one earned run in 14.2 innings, while limiting opponents to only nine hits. He struck out 10 and allowed only one walk, with opponents hitting just .161 against him, while posting a 0.61 ERA for the week. The offensive player of the week was Millsap’s Jason Hadley. Hadley went a combined 9-for-11 (.818) with 10 runs scored, seven RBIs, three doubles and his first home run of the year as the Majors improved to 12-3 after sweeping all three games this past week. In the USA South, Christopher Newport (15-5, 3-1) finds themselves at the top of the standings in a close conference race. Percentage points behind Christopher Newport are NC Wesleyan (15-8, 4-2) and Ferrum (11-8, 4-2). Baseball player of the week was Taylor Kennedy, Greensboro. Kennedy led The Pride to a doubleheader split with conference foe Methodist last week in the team’s only action. Kennedy went a combined 6-for-9 (.667) with four RBI, one run scored and two walks in the two games. Baseball Pitcher of the Week was Ahmed Shelton, Averett. Shelton appeared in two games last week, picking up two complete-game wins. In a 2-1 win over Lynchburg, Shelton gave up one run on five hits, with six walks and three strikeouts in nine innings. In another 2-1 victory, this time over USA South foe Shenandoah, Shelton tossed a complete nine innings, giving up just one run on five hits with one walk and three strikeouts.

As I finish the final touches on my weekly blog my thoughts are not on the game but thinking about the Bluffton Baseball Team and their tragedy. This is not the kind of breaking news anyone wants to wake up to. Everyone at D3baseball.com wishes the best for the players, their family and the Bluffton University community.

In the northeast corner of the nation the New England and New York regions are coming to life. This weekend Eastern Connecticut State (0-0) travels for a key game against Kean. In the New York region, Cortland (2-0) is sporting a perfect record with two tournament games played at Hampden-Sydney. Liberty League teams, RPI (0-0), Vasser (0-0), and Skidmore (0-0) will start their seasons this weekend.

The Mid-Atlantic sees the first action in the Freedom and Commonwealth Conferences. In the New Jersey AC Kean (1-0) is the only unbeaten. Players of the week are Joe Franceschini, Rowan, Joe Augustine, Kean, and Steve Myers, Rutgers-Camden as player of the week honors awarded for the first time this season. Franceschini earns the first NJAC Player of the Week selection after hitting .500 with six RBI and five runs scored in three games combined for the Profs. Augustine earns the first NJAC Pitcher of the Week selection after leading the Cougars to a season-opening 4-0 road victory at Stevens allowing just one hit in 8.1 innings of work. Myers earns the first NJAC Rookie of the Week selection after producing the game-winning hit in the Scarlet Raptors’ first victory of the season. He registered a game-winning RBI double in the bottom of the eighth inning for the first hit of his collegiate career in Camden’s 3-2 victory over Waynesburg.

In the Capital AC, Mary Washington (3-0) opened the season with a doubleheader sweep of Messiah College and added one more win this week. Salisbury (7-1) pushed their win streak to seven games. The Seagulls posted a no-hitter against Eastern University as Bryan Brainer pitched five scoreless innings to kick-off the no-hitter before it got closed out by the bullpen. In the Great South AC Mike Sims and Justin Phelps, both from LaGrange were the player and pitcher of the week. Sims batted .500 in four games (9-for-18) with six runs scored and five RBIs. Sims was also 5-for-5 in stolen bases. He had a career-high four stolen bases against Sewanee. Phelps was 2-0 in two relief appearances. Phelps pitched nine scoreless innings, allowing five hits, a walk and struck out eight. In the ODAC,two teams have winning records. Lynchburg (6-2) took two from Juniata. Virginia Wesleyan (4-2) split with York and lost to Emory at the Rawlings Classic. D.W. Moore, Lynchburg, was the ODAC Baseball Pitcher of the Week. He has posted a 3-0 record and a 2.84 ERA early this year in just three appearances. The sophomore right-hander has allowed 15 hits and six walks while striking out 15 in 19 innings. Moore pitched 6.2 innings of scoreless relief at Greensboro.

Millsaps (8-2) and Centre (3-0) continue to roll this season. The SCAC offensive and pitcher of the week were Daniel Ward, Hendrix and Justin Basham, Centre. Ward went 9-for-11 over the week, hitting two home runs (one of which was a grand slam), four doubles and three singles. Ward drove in 10 runs and scored five as the Warriors won two of three games on the week. He slugged 1.727 with a 0.818 batting average. Basham posted a complete-game seventh-inning shutout in his first career outing for the Colonels en route to a 9-0 win over Earlham College. Basham allowed only four hits and did not walk a batter, while striking out 11 Quakers. The freshman hurler retired 12 hitters straight at one time and did not allow a runner to reach third base the entire game. Basham also struck out at least one hitter six of the seven innings and at least two hitters four different innings. In the USA South, Averett (14-3) continues their fine season and N.C. Wesleyan (10-3) grabs the early conference lead with two wins. Conference honors went to Mark Wooten, N.C. Wesleyan, Chris Toth, Methodist, Jake Loye, Averett and Lincoln Garner, Ferrum. Wooten hit .643 (9-for-14) with five RBI, one double and one home run as the Battling Bishops went 3-1 last week. Toth appeared in one game last week, picking up a victory in the Monarchs, 9-2, win over Ferrum. Toth pitched seven innings without giving up an earned run. Freshman Loye hit .500 (6-for-12) with six RBI, two doubles, one home run and a slugging percentage of .917 last week for the Cougars. Garner, a freshman at Ferrum, picked up his second win of the season in an 11-0 win over USA South rival Methodist. Garner tossed eight shutout innings while allowing just four hits and three walks with 11 strikeouts. Emory (6-0) stayed unbeaten this season. Emory won its fourth-consecutive game on its final at bat, as Zander Sotiriou hit a one-out walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth to allow Jake Ornstein to score from second base as the eagles defeated Adrian 4-3 at Chappell Park.

In the center part of the nation, Transylvania is 2-0 with wins over DePauw while Heartland rival Rose-Hulman is 3-1. Adrian (1-2) got a win over Oglethorpe and losses to Emory and Piedmont. In the CCIW, Augustana started 3-0. St Olaf (2-0) sweeps Dubuque as Luke Gagnon was 5-5 with 4 doubles at the Metrodome in the Twin Cities. Fellow conference member Macalester (1-0) is also undefeated in early action.

Out west, Texas Lutheran (11-0) will play Texas Tyler (9-0) in a clash of the remaining unbeaten teams in the American Southwest Conference this weekend. Schreiner (10-2) is also a ten game winner in the ASC. Players of the week in the ASC are Trent Elizondo, Texas-Dallas, Grant Wilson, Louisiana, Ryen Pounds, Concordia-Austin and Bernard Pena, Schreiner. Elizondo collected 14 hits over 20 at-bats, raising his batting average to .692 on the season. Elizondo hit four doubles, had nine RBI and walked twice. He also scored a combined six times against Paul Quinn College and McMurry. Wilson threw a complete game shutout against Texas College on Tuesday. He allowed just two hits and was perfect over six innings. Wilson turned around on Saturday and allowed only two runs in seven innings against Hardin-Simmons. Both appearances resulted in wins. Pounds hit two home runs - including a grand slam - and two doubles to go along with 12 RBI over a four-game stretch. He went 3-for-3 with a walk and nine RBI during the game in which the Tornados plated 38 runs - a new ASC record. Pena hurled a no-hitter against Division II Texas A&M International, striking out four batters and walking only one over the seven-inning game. The Mountaineers won 7-0.

With the action in the Northwest Conference, George Fox (6-0) remains unbeaten with two team members getting conference honors this week. Bo Thunell and Nick Bratney were the NWC player and pitcher of the week. Thunell batted .500 (4 for with six RBIs and three runs scored. He had a pair of doubles and a home run in the two Bruin victories. Bratney tossed a complete-game victory, allowing four runs (none earned) on nine hits, with two strikeouts and one walk. In the SCIAC, Redlands (6-4) and LaVerne (4-6) are both 3-0 in conference. Chapman (12-1) got big wins against fellow independent Menlo College this week. Chapman All-American pitcher Devin Drag allowed 7 runs against Menlo, raising his ERA to 2.4 but remaining unbeaten on the season. Cal State East Bay (9-3) won two of three games against Willamette University (3-6).

Game of the week: St Thomas vs. Wisconsin-Stevens Point, March 5 at the Herbert H. Humphrey Metrodome.

Last weeks Game of the Week: Averett and Christopher Newport split a doubleheader in Danville, Virginia on February 24. Both teams decided to play a twin-bill on instead of single games on Saturday and Sunday due to the threat of inclement weather on Sunday. A six-run fifth inning was enough to lift the Cougars to a win in the first game of a double-header on Saturday, but the Averett University baseball team could not duplicate the feat in game two. The Cougars split their games with the Captains of Christopher Newport with final scores of 6-4 and 1-3. In the first game, the Captains (7-3, 1-1 USA South) struck early, scoring one run in the second, and three runs in the fourth inning. The Cougars (13-2, 1-1 USA South) however, refused to be stopped by the Captains ace pitcher Kenny Moreland and came alive in the bottom of the fifth inning. In the fifth, Jake Loye led of with a double to center field. Jeremiah McMillan reached right after on an error by the second baseman, and Loye scored on the play. After two outs, the Cougars hit four straight hits, including three doubles. Those hits scored five more runs and gave the Cougars the win 6-4. The second game quickly turned into a pitchers battle between the two teams, with the first run not scored until the fifth inning. The Captains put one run across in the fifth, another run in the sixth, and finally one more run in the top of the ninth. The Cougars only managed one run in the seventh inning. On the day for the Cougars, Justin Brown led hitting 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run. Ken Kellum was just behind him hitting 1-for-4 with one run and one RBI. Ahmed Shelton pitched a complete game in the first game, gaining the win and only allowing four runs. For the Captains, Eric Cole led hitting 4-for-8 with two RBI and two runs.

A successful lead off with the D3baseball.com with 20,000 visitors to date. Yes the site for all your D3 baseball needs has been well received in its first week

The northeast corner of our nation is still in practice mode but a few teams are starting to make a trip to play a little baseball. Wesley (1-0) started the season with a win against St. Mary’s and Rowan (2-1) took 2 out of three on a road trip to Virginia. There is still is several weeks before all are out on the diamond and I know the fans are anxious to hear the crack of the bat (or is it a ping).

The South region continues to see a lot of action. Averett is the first 10 game-winner in the nation as they explode to a 12-1 record. They face a stiff test this weekend in my game of the week as they start their conference schedule at homed against Christopher Newport. Players of the week are Trea Bailey, CNU and Travis Reynolds, Averett. Bailey .467 (7-for-15) with seven RBI, three doubles and one triple as the Captains went 3-1 last week. Reynolds appeared in three games last week and earned two victories, including a seven-inning complete-game in a 10-1 victory over Neumann. In the win, Reynolds did not allow an earned run while giving up four hits and striking out nine batters. .In the Capital AC, Salisbury (4-1) is riding a 4 game win streak. In the Great South AC all four teams got their first win last week, going 9-5 since my last report. Virginia Wesleyan (3-0) in the Old Dominion AC has all their wins against ranked teams - first Salisbury, then Rowan, now a victory against the region favorite, NC Wesleyan. Rhodes (4-1) and Millsaps (5-2) hold the top spot in the Southern Collegiate AC with conference play not yet started. Nathan Skeen, Hendix and Robert Flanagan, Rhodes were players of the week in the SCAC. Flanagan (3-0, 0.92 ERA) pitched a gem against 13th-ranked Millsaps as the Lynx upset the Majors 8-5. He worked 7.2 innings, giving up just two hits and no earned runs while allowing just a walk and striking out seven to earn his third win of the season. Skeen had six hits in 11 trips to the plate (.545) and knocked in the winning run in the 10th inning in Hendrix’s 6-5 win against Rhodes on Friday, and on Sunday, knocked in the winning run in the ninth inning against Sewanee.

The Mideast, Central and Midwest regions are all preparing for their spring trips to points south.

The action in the west was in Texas as the Texas Lutheran Bulldogs (7-0) gave their coach, Bill Miller, his 500th victory. Joining Texas Lutheran in as an unbeaten is Texas-Tyler (5-0). Brett Amyx, Texas Tyler and Marcus Volz, Mary Hardin-Baylor were the hitters of the week while Andrew Cantrell, East Texas Baptiost and Nick Schafer, McMurry were pitchers of the week in the American Southwest Conference. Amyx was 6-7 with 3 hone runs and eight RBI and Volz was 10-16 with 3 stolen bases. Cantrell and Schafer allowed just a single run in their games this weekend. Cantrell got a complete-game five-hitter against Mary Hardin-Baylor and Schafer handed Chapman their only loss of the season scatting five hits in eight innings of work. The Chapman Panthers (9-1) continue to roll with 2 of 3 from McMurray over the weekend. Kyle Reading (.559) and Kurt Yako (.475, 18 RBI) have continue their hot hitting this season. George Fox (5-0) continues to be unbeaten, although they are a game behind Lewis and Clark (2-4) in the conference, with Lewis and Clark’s only two wins against conference foe, Willamette.

Game of the Week: Christopher Newport at Averett
Last week: George Fox 12, Redlands 2. Bringing back memories of their last meeting in the 2006 NCAA Division III West Regional, the George Fox University Bruins blasted the University of Redlands Bulldogs 12-2. Chris Albrecht (1-0) was the winning pitcher last year when the Bruins defeated the Bulldogs 10-3 in the opening game of the regional, and he was on the mound again for the Bruins’ Desert Classic win. The senior southpaw was superb, throwing seven shutout innings while scattering six hits, walking none, and striking out three. The Bruins banged out 12 hits to defeat righthander Pat Whalen (0-1), breaking open a tight 1-0 game with a five-run outburst in the 4th. Drew Johnson dropped a bases-loaded bunt for a single for the first run, and Dan Wentzell and Matt Wyckoff added two-run singles later in the frame. Wentzell slugged a tape-measure two-run homer, and Ryan Fobert added a solo home run.

Here the sun is shining and snow still blankets the ground but the 2007 Division III Baseball season has begun. Two no hitters are already in the books as I clear the bases for the first time.

Most teams are preparing for their spring trips but there is some baseball being played in the South and West regions this week. A few NJAC teams (Rowan, Rutgers-Newark, Rutgers-Camden) are heading south to play teams in the ODAC and USA South.

Four teams in the USA South have had good starts. Methodist (4-0) and Christopher Newport (3-0) are at the top with NC Wesleyan (6-1) and Averett (6-1) close behind. Both NC Wesleyan and Averett started 6-0 but losses to Mt Olive (NCW) and Hamden-Sydney (Averett) knocks them out of the ranks of the unbeaten. In the season opener, Blake Rice threw a no-hitter against Frostburg State. Rice stuck out 7 and walked 2 in a 7 inning 2-0 win. Rice was chosen as the Athlete of the Week in the UAS South for his accomplishments.

The SCAC is off and running as three teams emerge with unbeaten records. Oglethorpe (3-0), Rhodes (3-0), and Millsaps (3-0), start the season with perfect records. Outfielder Hunter Owen, Millsaps was the SCAC player of the week with 2 HR, 5 runs and 5 RBI in two games last week.

In the ODAC, Virginia Wesleyan (1-0) starts off the season with a win against Salisbury. The baseball gods were not kind to the Great South AC as the conference went 0-10 to start the season.

In the ASC, Texas Lutheran starts the season 4-0 and heads on the road for a DH against Huston-Tillotson. Bulldog’s Jacob Kaase, SS, hit .583 with 6 runs, 2 walks, and 3 RBI to be named the ASC West Hitter of the Week. West Pitcher of the Week was RB Garza from Mary Baylor Hardin with 2 saves in 4.6 innings of work. Garza did not allow a run with 5 strikeouts. The second no-hitter of the short season was Ozark’s Ted Kock’s gem. Kock, ASC East Pitcher of the Week, beat Principia in the Eagle’s season opener (sound familiar) with 9 strikeouts in only the second Ozark no-no in modern day history. Kock’s teammate, Andrew Teaster was the ASC East Hitter of the Week. The Ozark first baseman hit .900 with 2 doubles, 2 triples, and 3 RBI. Ozark finshed the week 3-2.

Rounding out the west region, Lewis and Clark (2-0), Geoege Fox (1-0), Linfield (1-0), Redlands (1-0) and Chapman (6-0) start the season undefeated. Chapman has shown mid season form with a .373 batting aveara and a 2.33 ERA though their first 6 games of the season.

My pick for game of the week is George Fox at Redlands (Friday 16 Feb) as two top teams in the west try to stay unbeaten.