SUWANEE, Ga. - Two pitching performances stood out during Week 2 of the 2012 season. Trinity senior Ben Klimesh threw a complete-game shutout and struck out 13 in a win over Louisiana College while Rhodes junior Jackson Baker struck out nine in a 7-inning complete game shutout of Huntingdon.
AROUND THE SCAC
Austin College went 1-3 on their weekend trip
to California, falling to No. 20-ranked Redlands 13-3 before taking
one of three against Occidental College, falling 7-1 in game one,
taking a 5-4 win in game two and dropping game three 14-7. Chase
Muder and Mason Leech had big weeks at the plate, with Muder
hitting .471 with two doubles and scoring two runs while Leech
batted .438 with three runs batted in. Josh Coughennower was also
strong at the plate, hitting .364 with a double and an RBI. Justin
Villanueva had a strong start on the mount to get the ‘Roos
their first win of the season, surrendering two earned runs in 5.2
innings of work while striking out six in the team’s 5-4
victory on Saturday. This weekend the ‘Roos are home for a
three game set with the University of Dallas as they step into
conference play.
No. 23/25 Birmingham-Southern dropped their opening two
games of the 2012 season to Emory (7-5, L) and Berry (10-7, L) in
less than ideal baseball playing conditions. Against Emory, BSC was
led by Stephen Denton and Austin Justice who combined to go 4 for 6
with 3 runs batting in the 1-2 spot in the order. Designated-hitter
Jeremy Hatley was 1 for 4 with 3 RBI in a losing effort. Against
Berry, the Panthers were led by junior first baseman Bruce Maxwell
who was 3 for 4 with a run scored and drove in a run. The Panthers
return to action on February 17-19 as they travel to Fayetteville,
N.C. to take on Lynchburg, Methodist (N.C) and Frostburg State.
Centre will open its season Tuesday, February
21 when the y travel to Spalding. The Colonels are coming off a
13-22 (6-9 SCAC) 2011 season. Centre’s home opener is
scheduled for Saturday, February 25 in a double-header with
Earlham.
Dallas (6-0) went 3-0 on the week, sweeping Sul Ross State
in Alpine, Texas. Saturday's doubleheader began with a 5-4 Dallas
victory. Junior right fielder Adam Farris put the Crusaders on the
scoreboard in the first inning, with a three-run homer to right
field. Junior right-hander Michael Byers (2-0) went six and
one-thirds, allowing eight hits and four earned-runs while
striking-out four hitters. Senior right-handed pitcher Michael
Schweiss registered his first save of the season. Dallas capped the
day with a 9-6 game-two triumph. Right-hander Jacob Bruns (1-0) was
the winning pitcher on record, pitching the second, third and
fourth-inning in relief of senior righty Stephen Hansen. Dallas
staved off SRSU, 9-8, on Sunday to complete back-to-back three-game
sweeps. Junior southpaw Chris Schierhorn pitched the first four
innings for the Crusaders, giving up two earned-runs on seven hits
and a walk. He managed to strike-out four. Allred left the yard for
a third time this season, with a three-run blast in the first
inning.
Hendrix went 2-1 at the Texas-Tyler Clements Fluids
Classic, including a 12-8 victory over the host #23 UT-Tyler. On
Friday, Texas Lutheran jumped out to a 7-0 lead, but Hendrix made a
game of it, scoring six runs before the Bulldogs' reliever closed
out the game in the ninth. Senior second baseman Clark Sims went
3-for-5 with two runs scored and a double. On Saturday, the
Warriors picked up their first win over a ranked opponent, topping
UT-Tyler on their home field. Hendrix pounded out 12 hits,
including home runs by senior designated hitter Nathan Harr and
Radack, who went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and two RBI. Harr
had two hits and knocked in four. Senior Geoff Lomax earned his
first win of the season and sophomore Thomas Weber struck out four
in a four-inning save. Hendrix ended the weekend with a 4-3 victory
over Freed-Hardeman on Sunday. Radack extended his nine-game hit
streak, dating back to last year with three hits and three RBI.
Freshman right fielder Matt Simmons had two hits, including a solo
home run in the bottom of the eighth that proved to be an important
insurance run. Hendrix begins SCAC play on Saturday and Sunday at
Trinity.
Millsaps opened up the 2012 season this past
week as they took on great competition while winning two out of
three. Millsaps started things off on Tuesday with a thrilling
come-from-behind win over cross town rival Belhaven to take a 1-0
lead in the Maloney Series and earn their first win of the season.
Senior Andrew Evans bases loaded, two RBI base hit with two outs in
the ninth gave Millsaps the 8-7 win. The Majors used eight pitchers
on the day as junior Alex Granier earned the win for Millsaps to go
to 1-0 on the season. On Friday as freshman William Chenoweth
pitched five shutout innings on the way to an 11-3 win. On Sunday,
Millsaps took on No. 24 Piedmont and found itself in a pitching
duel. After both teams opened up the first inning with a run
apiece, the Majors could not find any offense despite great
pitching from junior Will Edwards and freshman Samuel Doucet as
they went on to fall to No. 24 Piedmont 3-1. Millsaps returns to
action on Friday, February 17th as they travel to Clarksville, Ark.
to take on Westminster College (Mo.).
Oglethorpe got its season underway this past weekend by
topping Covenant 8-5 on the road on Friday. In the win, the Petrels
started to come alive in the fifth inning. first baseman Casey
Tuttle provided the first hit and run of the game for Oglethorpe
with a solo home run, the first of his career, tying the game.
Oglethorpe exploded in the next two innings for three runs apiece.
In the sixth, third baseman Nick Manai started the rally with a
one-out double. Right fielder Cory Leff followed with an RBI single
to give the Petrels their first lead of the game. Catcher Joseph
Parillo advanced both himself and Leff into scoring position with a
double, setting the table for the big blow of the inning, a two-run
single by Tuttle. In the seventh, center fielder Vernon Trice led
off the inning with a double. He then reached third on a Jake Spear
sacrifice bunt and scored on a Ryan Grau fielder's choice-RBI.
Oglethorpe pitching held off a late Covenant rally to secure the
victory. The Petrels play at Huntingdon on Tuesday before playing a
weekend series at the home of the Gwinnett Braves at Coolray Field.
Rhodes went 3-1 in their first week of action during the
2012 season. Rhodes opened the year on Tuesday with a 13-1 victory
over visiting LeMoyne-Owen. They then travelled to Montgomery, Ala.
to take on Mississippi College on Saturday and a double header on
Sunday against Huntingdon. Rhodes defeated Mississippi College 7-3
behind 6 six strong innings by senior RHP Austin Carden, en route
to his second victory of the season. Junior RHP Matt Burnick
collected his first save of the season as he threw innings of
shutout baseball. The Lynx took the first game on Sunday against
Huntingdon 2-0 behind a complete game shutout by junior RHP Jackson
Baker. Rhodes then dropped the second game 11-7. The Lynx will
return to action this weekend with a three game set against Wabash
this coming weekend.
Sewanee will open up its 2012 baseball season on February
18 hosting Johnson Bible for a double-header. The Tigers are coming
off a 10-21 (0-11 SCAC) season from a year ago.
Southwestern lost all three games to Mary Hardin-Baylor
this past week as the Pirates continue to search for their first
win of 2012 (0-7). Playing at home, the Pirates came up short
against the Cru, 8-4. Leading SU was DH Lance Gottardy who went 2
for 4 with two RBI. Traveling to Belton for two games on Saturday,
Southwestern lost a pair of 3-1 ball games. Cray Betts was 3 for 3
with a run scored. In the second game Saturday, UMHB’s Taylor
Burrow yielded just one unearned run while no-hitting the Pirates.
Southwestern returns to action on Tuesday, February 14 when they
host Schreiner in a double-header. Southwestern closes the week
with a three-game set against Texas Lutheran on Friday and
Saturday.
No. 22 Trinity improved to 5-0 to start the season,
winning all three games at Concordia University’s
Rudy’s BBQ Tornado Classic over the weekend. The Tigers
opened the tournament with a 7-0 shutout against Howard Payne,
highlighted by Josh Fink’s pitching performance. Fink
pitched seven innings before he allowed his first hit, and it would
be the only one of the game as Fink and Franklin Bay combined for
the shutout. Not to be outdone, Ben Klimesh followed that
performance with a complete-game shutout the next afternoon,
striking out 13 batters in the 1-0 victory over Louisiana College.
That evening, Trinity and Concordia – two playoff teams a
year ago – met in the tournament finale. The Tigers earned a
3-2 victory to finish the weekend, holding off a late rally by the
home team. Trinity’s 5-0 start to the season is its best
since the 2005 squad opened the year with six straight wins.
Trinity’s best start under head coach Tim Scannell was the
2004 team that began the season with 10 consecutive victories.
Trinity will play five games this week, beginning with a three-game
series against Centenary on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Tigers then
open SCAC play with a two-game weekend series against Hendrix. Last
season, Trinity won three out of five regular season games against
the Warriors, with each team winning its series at home. The Tigers
then defeated Hendrix in the SCAC Championship game at the end of
April to earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs.
For the complete SCAC Baseball Diamond Weekly for
Week 2, click here.