April 14, 2008

Weekly Release: Metro State

Game 34: Metro State (33-7) at Northern Colorado (11-22)

Tuesday, April 15 • Greeley, Colo. • Jackson Field • 2:00 p.m.

Audio Streaming: www.1310kfka.com • Live Stats: www.uncbears.com

 

Middle Of A Streak

Northern Colorado plays game four of an eight-game homestand on Tuesday against 10th-ranked Metro State in Division II. The Bears are 3-0 during the current stretch after sweeping Montana State-Billings over the weekend.

 

Series History

Northern Colorado and Metro State have met 116 times since the series began in 1969 and the Bears own the 75-41 advantage in the all-time series. The last time the two teams met, in 2005, the Bears won 20-2. Current senior Jeff Horn was the only player on the roster to see action in that game, pinch-hitting and then playing second base for one inning.

 

Round And Round We Go

This weekend, the Bears will host a double round-robin tournament with Utah Valley State and Air Force. The two teams will play each other at 10:00 a.m. on both Friday and Saturday, with the Bears facing the Falcons at 2:00 on Friday and Sunday and the Wolverines on 2:00 at Saturday and 10:00 on Sunday.

 

Home Sweet Home

Northern Colorado has now played six games within the friendly confines of Jackson Field, posting a 4-2 record. The Bears are hitting .343 over the six games and 26 of the 71 hits are for extra bases, including both of the team's triples this season. The team's slugging percentage is also .507 at home, bringing the season percentage to .353.

 

It Took 30

No player on the Northern Colorado roster hit a triple through the first 30 games of the season, but junior Erik Hegstad nailed two in back-to-back at bats in the first game of the series against Montana State-Billings. Three-baggers have always been extremely hard to come by for the Bears as the individual single-season record is 10 by Alvin White in 1978. Hegstad actually tied the school record for triples in a game with two, knotting four other players.

 

Now Appearing

With his double in the second game of the series against Montana State-Billings, junior Kevin Sandberg tied for 10th in school history with 32 career doubles. The record for doubles in a career is 47 by Chris Kirgan (1992-94).

 

Seventh Heaven

In the fourth inning of the first game against Montana State-Billings, the Bears scored a season-high seven runs. The previous high in 2008 was six runs, done in the first inning of the same game and in the fourth inning of the series finale at Southeast Missouri State. The school record for runs in an inning is 18 against Metro State in 2003. The Bears defeated the Roadrunners 31-9 scoring the 18 in the seventh frame.

 

What A Relief

The relief pitchers in the series against Montana State-Billings came in and were extremely effective for the Bears. On Saturday, senior Jason Banks allowed just two hits, striking out five in 4.1 innings of work. In game one on Sunday, senior Sean Peery threw two innings, striking out five in seven batters faced allowing just one hit, while senior Dan Kazell pitched the final 2.1 of game two, striking out six of the 10 batters faced.

 

In A Pinch

Senior catcher Erik Whinery, who has started 30 of the team's 33 games and pinch hit just one time this season, probably had his biggest hit as a Bear in that pinch role. In the bottom of the sixth inning (of a scheduled 7-inning game) with NC trailing 3-1 and two outs, Whinery was put into the lineup with the bases loaded and promptly hit a bases clearing double through the right side of the infield to give the Bears the 4-3 lead and the victory.

 

Coming On Strong

Junior Mike Raudenbush was used sparingly through the first part of the season, but has forced head coach Kevin Smallcomb to get him in the lineup. After starting the season 1-for-6 from the plate with three strikeouts, Raudenbush has hit 10-for-20 with no Ks since the South Dakota State series.

 

Getting On Base

Seniors Chad Murray and Erik Whinery have both done a great job lately of getting on base. Murray has reached in nine straight and in 19 of the last 20, while Whinery has gotten on base safely in 15 of the last 16.

 

It Hasn't Been Easy

With the first 24 games on the road this season, the Bears faced some of the toughest competition in Division I as four teams and 13 of those 24 contests came against teams currently ranked in the top 10 of the Collegiate Baseball Poll as Arizona State (1-1) is ranked third, UC Irvine (0-1) is sixth, Texas A&M (2-2) is eighth and Nebraska (0-6) is 10th.

 

Milestone Approaching

Northern Colorado has a storied baseball tradition, one that shows when looking at the all-time record. The Bears are now just five wins shy of 1,400 in history, sporting a 1,395-1,032-3 (.575) record since the program began in 1924.

 

Extra Bags

Junior transfer Erik Hegstad has 26 hits this season, and 15 of those hits are for extra bases. He is second on the team with 10 doubles, is the only player to have a triple with two and is second on the squad with three home runs.

 

Trouble With Triples

Northern Colorado is 27 games into the season and has yet to record a triple in a game. Opponents have had 13 three-baggers in 2008. Last year, the Bears tallied 20 triples while giving up 23. The team does have 46 doubles and every player who has played in at least 20 games has recorded multiple doubles this season.

 

Double Trouble

Northern Colorado has turned 22 double plays through the first 27 games of the season, with senior Chad Murray being in on 14 of them.

 

Milestones

Senior Cory Morales had the 300th at bat of his career in the series finale against South Dakota State and now has 302. Senior Adam Symons tallied the 200th total base of his career in the finale against South Dakota State when he walked.

 

A Win Over One

For the first time in Division I history at Northern Colorado, the Bears defeated the top-ranked team in the nation, downing Arizona State 6-3 on March 21. This season the Bears are 3-6 against teams ranked in the top 30, while they went 0-6 against ranked squads a year ago. In 2006, NC defeated #2-ranked Nebraska, 5-2 and went 2-4 against teams appearing in the national rankings.

 

Road Warriors

Northern Colorado is getting used to living on the road as the Bears started the 2008 season with 24 straight games away from home. The 2007 team also started with its first 24 on the road, posting an identical 7-17 record to start the year. The 24 games is the longest road stretch to open a season in school history.

 

Closing In

Senior Cory Morales is now just 14 hits shy of 100 for his career at Northern Colorado, as he is sitting at 86. Senior right-handed pitcher Sean Peery needs to record just five more strikeouts for the 50th of his career, while senior Chris Reap is 14 shy of 100. With three more doubles, junior Kevin Sandberg will tie for 10th in school history with 32 doubles. Senior Adam Symons will tie for 10th on the career at bats charts with 26 more and is also three doubles shy of tying for 10th.

 

In The Clutch

With runners in scoring position and two outs, head coach Kevin Smallcomb hopes that his everyday catcher Erik Whinery is coming to the plate. Whinery is hitting .429 in that situation with nine RBI in 14 at bats, including two doubles and a home run. Senior Chad Murray is also hitting over .400 in those same circumstances, hitting .417 in 12 at bats with five hits and seven RBI.

 

Going Yard

If one was going to predict what inning a Bear was going to hit a home run, the sixth would be a good bet. Four of the team's last five long balls have come in the sixth frame and five of the team's 12 have been in the sixth. Junior Erik Hegstad has two homers in the sixth inning, while senior Cory Morales, senior Chad Murray and junior Kevin Sandberg each have one.

 

Inherited Runners

NC pitchers have done a fantastic job of not letting inherited runners cross the plate. Bears' hurlers have inherited 27 base runners through the first 27 games and only six have scored. Senior right-handed pitcher Dan Kazell has paced the squad, coming in with seven on base and none have scored. Twice he has taken over the game with the bases loaded and gotten out of the jam.

 

The Every Day Player

Senior shortstop Cory Morales is the only player on the Bears roster to have started and played in all 27 games this season. Morales is now hitting .276 and has 87 assists and 49 putouts on the year, close to double anyone else's assists on the team. Last season, played and started in all 51 games, bringing his career total to 78 consecutive games started.

 

Strength of Schedule

The Bears will face some of the best teams in the nation in 2008. Six of the team's opponents played in the NCAA Regionals last year with UC Irvine and Arizona State advancing to the College World Series (Texas A&M, Nebraska, Creighton, Arkansas). Four of those teams (#1 Arizona State, #4 UC Irvine, #9 Nebraska, #23 Texas A&M) are currently ranked in the Collegiate Baseball Poll.