Baseball Home for Six Straight
March 24, 2008
On Deck: After playing its last eight games on the road, the Saint Louis baseball squad returns to The Billiken Sports Center for six straight and nine of its next 10 games. The Billikens (8-11, 0-3 Atlantic 10) get things started with a Tuesday matchup against Illinois State at 2 p.m. Illinois College comes to town on Wednesday for a 6 p.m. first pitch. Following the Action: All home games may be followed through GameTracker on SLU's official athletics Web site, www.slubillikens.com. All home games are played at The Billikens Sports Center, located on the eastern edge of campus adjacent to Chaifetz Arena. Admission is free to all Billiken baseball games. About the Billikens: Saint Louis went 4-1 on last week's spring-break trip in Bradenton, Fla. The biggest win of the week was a 4-0 shutout of Ohio State, last season's Big Ten champion. SLU stayed on the road to open A-10 play at Charlotte over the weekend but dropped all three games in the series. Sophomore designated hitter Mike Beal, who is riding an eight-game hitting streak, leads the everyday players with a .409 average. Junior third baseman Tom Pinnell hits at a .309 clip and is tied for second with nine RBIs. On the mound, junior right-hander Scott Turmail leads the squad with a 3-1 record to go along with a 3.11 ERA and 26 strikeouts. Senior right-hander B.J. Rodrigue, who threw the shutout against the Buckeyes, has a 2.00 ERA in six appearances. As a team, the Billikens are hitting .258 and score 4.9 runs per game. The pitching staff has a 5.99 ERA and has allowed opponents a .293 batting average. Scouting Illinois State: The Redbirds enter the week 9-8 overall and 0-3 in the Missouri Valley Conference. ISU is coming off a three-game sweep at home at the hands of No. 15 Wichita State. Prior to that conference-opening set, the Redbirds went 5-0 at the IMG Academy College Baseball Classic in Bradenton, Fla. Kevin Dubler leads the Redbirds with a .373 average to go along with three homers and 15 RBIs. Mike Stalowy hits .317 and has driven in 12 runs. Ryan Copeland leads the team with a 2.94 ERA and three wins. As a team, the Redbirds hit .269 and score 5.9 runs per game. The pitching staff has a 5.30 ERA and has allowed opponents a .292 batting average. Head coach Jim Brownlee is 119-163 in six years at Illinois State, 820-772-5 in 29 years overall.
The Series: Illinois State leads the all-time series 31-14, but the Billikens took two of three last season at The Billiken Sports Center. Scouting Illinois College: The Blueboys, members of the NCAA Division III Midwest Conference, enter the week 6-3 after beginning their season in Florida. IC hosts Eureka College on Monday and Wash. U. on Tuesday before traveling to The BSC. The contributing factor for IC last week was its offense. The Blueboys' bats registered 20 hits in a game against Plymouth State and 19 more in an 11-inning victory against St. Michael's. Head coach Jay Eckhouse is in his seventh year at the helm, where he has accumulated 77 victories. The Series: The Blueboys and Billikens have never met on the diamond. New Leader: Head coach Darin Hendrickson is in his first season as the Billikens' skipper. Hired in the summer of 2007, Hendrickson has found success at each of his three previous head-coaching stops during his 12-year tenure. Most recently, he led Central Missouri to three regular-season and tournament championships over the last four years and twice had his team in the semifinal round of the NCAA Division II Tournament. Previously, he led St. Louis Community College Forest Park to four NJCAA Super Regional championship games and Fontbonne University (St. Louis) to a conference title in that program's third year of existence in 1998. Hendrickson has a 13-year career record of 498-185. He is assisted by Kevin Moulder, Will Bradley and volunteer assistant Danny Jackson. The Atlantic 10 Conference:Saint Louis is in its third season in the A-10. In their debut in 2006, the Billikens made a memorable run through the conference tournament and emerged as league champions, marking their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 40 years. The Billikens were picked to finish 10th out of 14 squads in the league race this season. The top six teams at the end of the regular season qualify for the A-10 Tournament, which for the first time will be played at a neutral site at Campbell Stadium in Camden, N.J., beginning May 21. Early Season Accolades: Junior right-hander Scott Turmail has twice picked up A-10 Pitcher of the Week honors. In his first appearance in a Billiken uniform on Feb. 23, he allowed just four hits and struck out three in a complete-game shutout at Belmont. For his effort, he was named A-10 Pitcher of the Week and was dubbed the Northeast Region Player of the Week by CollegeBaseballInsider.com. He was named A-10 co-Pitcher of the Week for the period ending Feb. 16 after picking up a save against Fontbonne and tossing eight shutout innings against Dartmouth. Streaking: The Billikens strung together five wins at one point earlier this month, their longest streak since the Bills won six straight during the A-10 Championship season in 2006. Last year, Saint Louis was unable to string together more than three wins consecutively. Approaching 500: SLU head coach Darin Hendrickson is two wins away from reaching 500 for his career. He achieved 209 wins during his four-year tenure at Central Missouri, 126 in four years at Fontbonne, 155 in four years at Forest Park CC and eight so far in his first season with the Billikens. Make-up Date: SLU's game against Bradley, which was snowed out on March 5, will be made up at The BSC on Wednesday, April 10. First pitch is slated for 3 p.m. Running of the Bills: As a team, Saint Louis has already stolen 25 bases on the year, which is just 13 steals shy of the team's total in both 2007 and 2006. Sophomore center fielder J.D. Dunn leads the team with nine steals in 10 tries. Beal Street: Sophomore designated hitter Mike Beal (St. Louis, Mo./Glendale CC) is hitting .409 ... has hit safely in all but two of his 14 starts and is on an eight-game hitting streak ... singled twice and scored a pair of runs in the second Charlotte tilt ... led the team with a .500 average in five games in Florida. Ryno: Senior infielder Ryan Bennett (Kansas City, Mo./Miami (Ohio)) is hitting .455 in 11 at-bats ... returned to the lineup after missing much of the preseason due to injury ... had back-to-back two-hit games at Charlotte. Back in Black: Sophomore left fielder David Blackwell (Shaker Heights, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) scored a run in the first Charlotte game ...had a five-game hitting streak snapped in the Lafayette tilt. Well Dunn: Sophomore center fielder J.D. Dunn (Franklin, Tenn./Centennial) has started all 19 games in center ...hitting .275 with a team-high tying 11 RBIs ... is 9-of-10 to lead the team in the stolen-bases department ...had a career-best 10-game hitting streak snapped in the second Charlotte game ...hit .412 with three RBIs on the spring-break trip. Hardcore: Freshman catcher Mike Corrigan (Elburn, Ill./St. Charles North) has made four appearances on the year, including his first career start against Fontbonne on March 12 ...pinch-ran in the first Charlotte game and scored on a Brandon Parsons home run. Don't Mess with Texas: Sophomore infielder Andrew Guerra (Dallas, Texas/Rice University) is hitting .271 and leads the team with 15 runs scored ...has a team-high seven doubles ...hit safely in all three games at Charlotte, including the second game when he scored twice and drove in a run. Curious George: Freshman right-hander George Hebert (Midlothian, Va./Clover Hill) has made five appearances out of the bullpen, including two against Charlotte. The Mayor: Junior right-hander Chris Merrick (Cantonsville, Md./Cantonsville CC) is 1-0 with a 5.11 ERA in three appearances, two of which were starts ...drew the starting assignment against UMBC and picked up his first win after allowing six runs on 11 hits in six innings of work. Moore Power: Senior catcher Casey Moore (Lake St. Louis, Mo./Wentzville Holt) is third on the club with a .297 average and second with 13 runs scored ... went 3-for-4 with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored in the second game against Charlotte ...also had two hits in the first Charlotte game and against Ohio State ... smacked his first home run of the season against Dartmouth on the spring-break trip where he hit .412 in five games. A Little Moore Power: Junior shortstop Ziggy Moore (Lake St. Louis, Mo./Wentzville Holt) has a 1-1 record and a 3.00 ERA in five appearances, all in relief roles ...is third on the team with 12 strikeouts ...has seven hits and five RBIs at the plate. Lights Out: Sophomore right-hander Zach Outman (St. Louis, Mo./Forest Park CC) has a 5.26 ERA in six appearances on the mound ...cracked a pinch-hit, two-run home run in the 10th inning of the second Charlotte tilt ... went six innings in the first game against the Niners, allowing two earned runs on nine hits while striking out five ...pitched an inning of scoreless relief against Lafayette. Hittin' BP: Sophomore right fielder Brandon Parsons (Stow, Ohio/Stow Munroe Falls) hit safely in all three games at Charlotte, including the first game where he smoked a two-run home run ...has a .231 average to go along with eight RBIs. Extra Perks: Junior right-hander Brad Perkins (Collinsville, Ill./SWIC) has made a team-leading six appearances out of the bullpen. Pinpoint: Junior third baseman Tom Pinnell (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) is second on the team with a .309 average ... has a team-best seven multi-hit games ...had two hits in the second Charlotte game ...singled and scored twice in the first Charlotte tilt ... combined to go 6-for-10 in the first three games in Florida. Mr. Rodgers' Neighborhood: Senior first baseman Greg Rodgers (St. Charles, Mo./St. Charles CC) is hitting .237 and has a team-high tying 11 RBIs ...has drawn a team-best 24 walks, giving him 95 for his career to rank seventh all-time ... hit .364 in the three-game set at Charlotte, which included back-to-back two-hit games ...also drove in two runs in the first game and scored twice in the second. On the Bayou: Senior pitcher/third baseman B.J. Rodrigue (Destrehan, La./Brother Martin) is 2-2 with a 2.00 ERA on the mound ...hurled a complete-game shutout against Ohio State, yielding 10 hits and walking just two Buckeyes in nine innings. Transfer Time: Junior right-hander Chaz Salembier (Brentwood, Mo./Ithaca College) threw a scoreless 1-1/3 innings in the first Charlotte contest. Leave It To Sever: Junior right-hander Dave Sever (Burr Ridge, Ill./Benet Academy) has a 5.73 ERA and a 1-4 record ... leads the pitching staff with 28 strikeouts ...pitched seven-plus innings in the Charlotte finale, allowing five earned runs on 10 hits while striking out four. The Mailbag:Junior right-hander Scott Turmail (Florissant, Mo./Forest Park CC) leads the pitching staff with three wins and boasts a 3.11 ERA ... has walked just four batters in 37.2 innings while striking out 26 ... tossed eight shutout innings against Dartmouth, allowing just three hits while striking out seven. Help Me, Help You: Freshman infielder Ramee Yacoub (Oakland, N.J./Indian Hills) cracked a pinch-hit, two-run double in the second Charlotte game ... singled in the finale against the Niners. Catching Some Zs: Freshman left-hander Mike Zimmermann (Maryland Heights, Mo./DeSmet) made his first career appearance against Dartmouth, pitching an inning of scoreless relief to hold the Billiken lead. |
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